VILLAGE HALL CONSTRUCTION
On April 1, 2005 the Village of Covington passed an ordinance to refurbish and improve Village Hall, which required additional space and land. To accommodate the need for additional space, Ullery Street was vacated. Remodeling began in July of 2005 and the village government offices and the police department were relocated to the Buckeye Insurance Office at 25 E. Wright Street (located at the corner of Wright and Pearl Streets).
The renovation was completed in July of 2006 and the government offices and police department were relocated back to the Village Government Center from the Buckeye Insurance Offices. On Monday, July 10, 2006, Covington Village Council met in the first regular session in the newly-renovated Village Hall with the following members present: Luther Landis, Doris Beeman, George Karayannis, Donna K. Dewey and Gary Bell. Council member Scott Tobias was excused. Mayor Lowell Yingst presided the meeting and Grant Kerber, Law Director, was also present.
POLICE DEPARTMENT
The turn of the century began as the 1900’s ended with Rick Wright serving as Police Chief, a position he had held since taking over for Larry Earick in 1994. Wright remained Chief of Police until Lee Harmon replaced him in 2002. In 2019, Harmon matched Norman Miller (1960-1977) as the longest tenured Chief of Police in the history of the Covington Police Department.
COVINGTON FIRE & RESCUE
Construction of a new $1.4 million, 16.000 square-foot fire station began at 801 E. Broadway St. in Covington on June 14, 2008 and was completed in February 2009 to replace the old 65×50-foot station located at 12 E. Spring St.
General Contractor: RECO General Contracting, Inc.
Architect: Candace Goodall
Covington Fire Department, Inc. Membership: Robert Weer, Doug Haines, William Westfall, Doug Minnich, Donald Knapp, Roger Finfrock, Rike Miller, Tom Brant, Leon Hollopeter, John Boehringer, Bart Weer, Jay Wagner, Ty Owens, Chip Brant, Andy Angle, Jason Lyle, Rod Patty, Jarrod Boehringer, Jim Crowell, Greg Vandegrift, Tony Alexander, Mark Landis, Kyle Boehringer, Chris Haines, John Frock, Kris Alexander, Dave Hart, Isaac Schafer, Nick Meyer, and Doug Peters.
In July of 2017, the Covington EMS combined with the Covington Fire Department in this same facility and the facility at 1000 Dick Minnich Drive was sold. By merging into the complex at 801 E. Broadway St. allowed EMS services to have staff on site 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
THE IMPROVEMENT OF COVINGTON SCHOOLS
Covington Exempted Village Schools went through drastic changes in 2015 and 2016 with the construction of a new K-8 building and the attachment to the existing high school that was erected in 1974. This new layout combined the elementary, middle and high schools into one campus. The old middle school located on Grant Street and the elementary school located on Chestnut Street were demolished.
THE GROUNDBREAKING OF A NEW SCHOOL…
APRIL 14, 2015 – COVINGTON
With the sounds of bulldozers in the distance, a new era for Covington Schools began on Tuesday, April 14, 2015 with the official Ground-Breaking Ceremony on the front lawn of Covington High Schools. The transition from three buildings to one campus has begun – with the new facility projected to be opened in 2016.
Long-time Covington School Board member and current Board President, Dr. Dean Pond put it best when speaking to a large crowd consisting of the entire student body and staff, members of the community and local press.
“Our legacy is right here in front of us,” Pond said on behalf of the entire Covington Community. “These young people, the students of Covington Schools will receive the best education we can possibly offer on one campus. This new facility will put us on the cutting edge of education.”
This new construction isn’t the first time Pond has been involved in the advancement of education facilities. He was directly involved in the mid 1970’s when the current high school was built.
“I can remember when we built the high school we have to my left, a reporter asked me how this new school at the time would benefit the community and I told him it would make Covington Schools the best school of any size in the state of Ohio,” Pond said to the crowd. “I feel the same with this current project. It’s going to make Covington Schools the best in the state.”
In the planning process, the committee went through great lengths to ensure the traditions from the past were retained within the development of the new campus, from the renovation of the current high school to the overall appearance of the new building that will house kindergarten through eighth grade.
Superintendent Ken Miller opened the ceremony, introducing those who are actively involved in the planning. After Pond spoke, Mrs. Stacey Thomas from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission took to the stage to address the crowd and Covington Mayor, Ed McCord followed.
The ceremony was concluded with the Board of Education, the administration and then student representative breaking ground.
SPEAKERS:
Superintendent: Mr. Ken Miller
Board President: Dr. Dean Pond
Ohio Facilities Construction Commission: Mrs. Stacey Thomas
Mayor of Covington: Ed McCord
BOARD OF EDUCATION:
President: Dr. Dean Pond
Vice President: Mr. Brad Hall
Member: Mr. Lee Harmon
Member: Mr. Mark Miller
Member: Mr. Alex Reck
Treasurer: Mrs. Carol Forsythe
CAMPAIGN CHAIR: John Shell
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT REPRESENTATIVES:
Alex Gast – Class of 2015
Carly Shell – Class of 2016
Bryce Keiser – Class of 2018
Zane Barhorst – Class of 2020
Bethany Weldy – Class of 2021
Holly Beasley – Class of 2022
Claudia Harrington – Class of 2022
In 2016, the district completed construction of a new K8 building located to the east of the existing High School (built in 1974). In compliance with Ohio Facilities Construction Commission requirements, the district demolished the Elementary building (from 1956) and the Middle School building (from 1931). For an entire school year, the district operated this new K8 facility separate from the High School building. Then in 2017, the district completed the construction of a new corridor and Board Office connecting the two buildings together to form one inter-connected campus.
As part of the construction process, the history and traditions of Covington schools were retained as much as possible as all available class composites from each graduating class were digitally restored and displayed within the corridor merging the K-8 building to the high school. Plus, as recommended by athletic director Roger Craft, elements from the old middle school gym were implemented into the gym floor of the new gymnasium and historic images from years past were composited into the banners on the south wall of the new gym. Each detail in these areas were carefully planned out by school administrators and executed by chosen contractors.
Once completed, the new campus for Covington Exempted Village Schools not only met the objectives established in the beginning of the planning stages – it exceeded expectations thanks to all of the people involved who care so much about creating an educational environment for current and future generations of students.
175TH CELEBRATION
In 2010 the Village of Covington celebrated its 175th year of being a municipal corporation of the great commonwealth of Ohio. Covington was incorporated in 1835. A commemorative 175th logo was created and a festival was held on July 10th, 2010 in the village with live bands, carnival activities and games of chance. Ed McCord was the sitting Mayor at the time, while council members consisted of Dick Rice, Joyce Robertson, Chip Shafer, Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, and Marc Bayse. Carmen Siefring was the Fiscal Officer.
ATHLETIC EXCELLENCE:
The Vogler Brothers, Tim and Terry, were the first Covington natives to emerge on the national stage in the 1970s and 1980s and it took over two decades, but more former Buccaneers went on to excel at the highest level collegiately after the turn of the century.
Logan Brown was a 2006 Covington graduate and the first Buccaneer wrestler to win a state championship as he won the 189 pound weight class in 2006 with an unbeaten 52-0 record – and not allowing a single offensive point throughout the state tournament. He was also a standout football and baseball player at Covington and earned All-Ohio honors in football as a senior. Brown then became a four-time NCAA Qualifier in the 197 pound weight class at Purdue University in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011. Over the course of his collegiate career Brown defeated 2010 NCAA Champion Max Askren of Missouri and several other All-American wrestlers. He also competed against NCAA Champions Jake Varner of Iowa State (an eventual Gold Medalist in the 2012 Summer Olympics) and Phil Davis of Penn State, as well as NCAA Runner-up Craig Brester of Nebraska. Logan earned Academic All-American accolades in 2010 and 2011. At the conclusion of his prestigious career, Logan was one of just six wrestlers in Purdue history with over 100 career wins as he recorded 109 victories.
Jackie Siefring, a 2014 Covington graduate, put together and impressive athletic career of her own as a standout in basketball and track at Covington High School. After winning two individual state championships (Long Jump, 300 Meter Hurdles) in 2014 and setting five school records in track and field in high school, Jackie took her talents to Akron University in the fall of 2014. In four years in track and field at Akron, she was a three-time 1st-team All-American (2016 in Pentathlon, 2017 in Heptathlon and 2018 in Pentathlon) and earned 2nd-team All-American honors three times (2016 in Heptathlon, 2017 in Pentathlon and 2018 in Heptathlon). She also won a combined 8 MAC (Mid-American Conference) Championships. Jackie also became the first Covington Alumnus to competed on the world stage as she was a member of Team USA in the Heptathlon at the Thorpe Cup in Dusseldorf, Germany in the summer of 2017. With Siefring’s help, the United States defeated the German squad by 1,181 points – 17,461 to 16,280.
A.J. Ouellette, also a 2014 graduate of Covington High School, enjoyed a phenomenal football career at Ohio University as a four-year starter at running back. Ouellette, who entered the program as a walk-on, accumulated 3829 rushing yards and 32 touchdowns on 719 carries. He was just one of two running backs in Bobcat history to rush for over 1000 years in two seasons – 1006 yards in 2017 and 1306 yards in 2018. Ouellette accumulated 4345 career all-purpose yards and was name “MAC Offensive Player of the Year” by the prestigious Touchdown Club of Columbus. He was also chosen “Offensive MVP” after rushing for 164 yards in a 27-0 win over San Diego State University in the Frisco Bowl on December 19, 2018. A.J. was select 1st-team All-MAC in 2018 and 2nd-team All-MAC in 2017.
In high school, Ouellette was a three-sport standout in football, wrestling and track. He was a two-time state placer in wrestling, a state qualifier in track and was named the Offensive Player of the Year in the state of Ohio in Division 6 at the conclusion of his senior year in football.
After his collegiate career at Ohio University was complete, Ouellette was invited to try out for the New Orleans Saints during the Rookie Mini Camp and spent time with the Cleveland Browns in 2019. He also had tryouts with the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs. A.J. joined the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League in 2019, making Ouellette the second Covington alumnus (Tim Vogler) to play professional sports. In 2022, Ouellette led the Argonauts to the Grey Cup Championship by scoring two touchdowns in a 24-23 victory over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in the championship game. He was also an Eastern Division All-Star selection at running back in 2022.
THE END OF AN ERA…
The year 2018 saw an end of an era as the Sellman’s Furniture Store located at 23 North High Street in Covington closed its doors and put its building up for sale in November of that year. Sellman’s, a family-owned business that was last owned by Jane Sellman, had been a mainstay in Covington, Ohio for 86 years. It first operated out of Piqua, Ohio in 1932 and moved to Covington in 1938 where it had a reputation of carrying some of the finest furniture brands in the world, including Broyhill and Serta. In the early days customers would come from long distances to purchase furniture from Sellman’s and eventually the digital age took over and consumers from all over the country would purchase furniture products online. Regardless of how customers chose to purchase, they always received the best products for their money at Sellman’s.
Also, in 2019 Al’s BP & Convenience Store, owned an operated by lifelong Covington resident Al Hitchcock, sold his business to Casey’s – which is a nationally known company which provides gasoline and a convenience store at the same location.
COVINGTON COMMUNITY PARK IMPROVEMENTS
In April of 2017, the Village of Covington Council announced that they have taken delivery of a new set of park playground equipment. This equipment, which was manufactured by Game Time playground equipment, was purchased and professionally installed utilizing a $10,000 donation from the Community Chest.
In October of 2018, Covington citizens and local churches generously volunteered in the installation of the new playground equipment at the Covington Community Park. Among the local churches who volunteered were the Covington Presbyterian Church, Covington Christian Church, Covington Church of the Brethren, St. John’s Lutheran Church of Covington, Stillwater Community Church and the Fields of Grace Worship Center in Covington. The equipment was purchased through an Ohio Nature Works Grant and a $10,000 donation from the Covington Community Chest. Extensive labor costs were saved through the generosity of the volunteer workers.
POPULATION:
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 2,559 people, 1,011 households, and 702 families residing in the village. The population density was 2,220.9 people per square mile (859.2/km²). There were 1,075 housing units at an average density of 933.0 per square mile (360.9/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 98.79% White, 0.16% African American, 0.04% Asian, 0.43% from other races, and 0.59% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.90% of the population.
There were 1,011 households out of which 30.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.2% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.5% were non-families. 26.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the village, the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 28.2% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 17.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 90.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.0 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $41,042, and the median income for a family was $44,924. Males had a median income of $32,750 versus $24,387 for females. The per capita income for the village was $18,888. About 1.0% of families and 2.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under age 18 and 3.6% of those age 65 or over.
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 2,584 people, 1,037 households, and 706 families residing in the village. The population density was 1,957.6 inhabitants per square mile (755.8/km2). There were 1,156 housing units at an average density of 875.8 per square mile (338.1/km2). The racial makeup of the village was 98.1% White, 0.3% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.2% from other races, and 1.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.6% of the population.
There were 1,037 households of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.8% were married couples living together, 14.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 31.9% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.93.
The median age in the village was 38.7 years. 24.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25.1% were from 25 to 44; 23.3% were from 45 to 64; and 18.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 48.3% male and 51.7% female.
VILLAGE GOVERNMENT (2000-PRESENT):
2000 – Lowell Yingst (Mayor)
Council: Marc Bayse, Robert Cron, R. Scott Tobias, David Beeman, Dick Rise, Donna K. Dewey. Kay McKinney (Clerk).
2002 – Lowell Yingst (Mayor)
Council: Marc Bayse, Robert Cron, R. Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Dick Rise, Donna K. Dewey. Kay McKinney (Clerk).
2004 – Lowell Yingst (Mayor)
Council: Luther J. Landis Jr.,, R. Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Dick Rise, Donna K. Dewey, Gary Bell. Kay McKinney (Fiscal Officer).
2006 – Lowell Yingst (Mayor)
Council: Gary Bell, Luther J. Landis Jr., R. Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Donna K. Dewey, George Karayannis. Kay McKinney (Fiscal Officer).
2008 – Lowell Yingst (Mayor)
Council: Gary Bell, Marc Bayse, R. Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Donna K. Dewey, George Karayannis. Kay McKinney (Fiscal Officer). In 2009 Mayor Lowell Yingst retired and was replaced by Gary Bell. Gary Bell passed away later that same year and was replaced by Donna K. Dewey. Gary Bell’s council seat was filled by Dick Rise and Donna K. Dewey’s council seat was filled by Ann Bell.
2010 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Dick Rice, Joyce Robertson, Chip Shafer, Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Marc Bayse. Carmen Siefring (Fiscal Officer).
2011 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Dick Rice, Joyce Robertson, Chip Shafer, Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Marc Bayse. Carmen Siefring (Fiscal Officer). Dick Rice resigned and was replaced by Lois Newman.
2012 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Joyce Robertson, Chip Shafer, Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Marc Bayse. Carmen Siefring (Fiscal Officer). Chip Shafer resigned and was replaced by Tim Angle.
2013 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Joyce Robertson, Tim Angle, Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Marc Bayse. Carmen Siefring (Fiscal Officer). Marc Bayse resigned and was replaced by Bud Weer.
2014 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Joyce Robertson, Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Bud Weer, Keith Warner. Carmen Siefring (Fiscal Officer).
2015 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Joyce Robertson, Scott Tobias, Doris Beeman, Bud Weer, Keith Warner. Mike Busse (Village Administrator). Carmen Siefring (Fiscal Officer). Frank Patrizio (Attorney). Carmen Siefring was replaced by Brenda Carroll as Fiscal Officer in March of 2015.
2016 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Joyce Robertson, Scott Tobias, Judy Smith, Bud Weer, Keith Warner. Mike Busse (Village Administrator). Brenda Carroll (Fiscal Officer). Frank Patrizio (Attorney).
2017 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Joyce Robertson, Scott Tobias, Judy Smith, Bud Weer, Keith Warner. Mike Busse (Village Administrator). Brenda Carroll (Fiscal Officer). Frank Patrizio (Attorney).
2018 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Dawn Duff, Scott Tobias, Judy Smith, Bud Weer, Keith Warner. Mike Busse (Village Administrator). Brenda Carroll (Fiscal Officer). Frank Patrizio (Attorney).
2019 – Ed McCord (Mayor)
Council: Lois Newman, Dawn Duff, Scott Tobias, Judy Smith, Bud Weer, Keith Warner. Mike Busse (Village Administrator). Brenda Carroll (Fiscal Officer). Frank Patrizio (Attorney).