Florence, Ky. (July 12, 2024)—The Northern Kentucky Area Development District (NKADD) is pleased to announce the establishment of the Community Development Planning division and the appointment of Katie Jo Berkshire Kirkpatrick as the Associate Director of Community Development Planning. The division's purpose is to support communities across Northern Kentucky with the technical expertise needed to turn project ideas into grant-ready plans and to serve as a liaison with state and federal granting institutions when needed. The Community Development Planning team will assist with community development issues, including broadband, brownfields, energy resiliency, hazard mitigation, housing, and water and wastewater planning while also leading the region's Community Economic Development Strategy (CEDS).
Tara Johnson-Noem, NKADD Executive Director, stated, "During NKADD's recent strategic planning process, the feedback we received from our stakeholders solidified the need to expand community development planning services; we are grateful to the R. C. Durr Foundation and the NKADD Board of Directors for making this extension of our current services possible."
Jean H. Mize, Assistant to the President of the R. C. Durr Foundation, explained, " The Trustees of the R. C. Durr Foundation were pleased to support this increase in capacity at NKADD to support the potential of broad, positive community impact across Boone, Campbell, Carroll, Gallatin, Grant, Kenton, Owen, and Pendleton Counties. We look forward to working with NKADD as this program evolves."
Ms. Berkshire Kirkpatrick joined NKADD in 2016. She has taken on various roles in both the workforce and local government services divisions, demonstrating her numerous strengths and versatility. Before joining NKADD, she led economic development organizations in rural communities in Georgia and Kentucky. Her experience includes leading a chamber of commerce, a county-wide economic development agency, and a convention and visitors bureau. She started her career as a historic preservation planner for the Coastal Georgia Regional Development Center, focusing on communities from Savannah, Georgia, to St. Marys, Georgia, and Cumberland Island National Seashore.
Ms. Berkshire Kirkpatrick earned her Master's in Community Planning from the University of Cincinnati and her undergraduate degrees in Economics and Anthropology from Centre College in Danville, Kentucky. She is the proud mom to one son and always looks at the dessert menu before ordering dinner at a fancy restaurant.
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