Kenton County will spend $14.4 million to begin transforming a shuttered golf course into a 225-acre park.

The Kenton County Fiscal Court voted unanimously Tuesday, Sept. 8, to award Prus Construction a $14,452,795 first-phase contract for the project, according to Link NKY. Crews plan to mobilize on the site off Independence Station Road on Sept. 14.

Assistant County Administrator Scott Gunning unveiled the park's official name at the meeting: Fox Ridge Park. The name nods to the property's former life as Fox Run Golf Course and its hilly terrain. Three ridges will anchor distinct zones for family activities, outdoor challenges and nature trails, according to a Kenton County government press release.

The park closes to the public Sept. 14 as demolition, invasive species removal and earthwork begin. It will stay closed through construction, with signage posted at the entrance. The county expects to reopen the park in late summer 2028.

Prus Construction President Michael Prus told the Fiscal Court his team had originally targeted an Oct. 1 start but moved the timeline up by about two weeks. The first-phase contract covers site preparation, demolition, earthwork and utilities. The county has not disclosed a total project budget beyond this phase.

Fox Ridge Park will eventually merge the former golf course property with the neighboring 78-acre Lincoln Ridge Park under one name. The county says the combined footprint will make it the second-largest county-owned park in Northern Kentucky.

Human Nature co-founder Gary Wolnitzek presented renderings to the Fiscal Court showing planned features: a themed children's play area called Fox Den, a splash pad, two climbing towers reaching 35 feet, mountain bike trails, a Go Ape aerial adventure and zip-line course, an accessible tree canopy walk, a dog park and more than 20 miles of trails. Commissioner Beth Sewell noted that more than five miles of trails will be ADA accessible.

About 70% of the site will stay natural.

The county closed Fox Run Golf Course at the end of 2019 after it averaged about 10,000 rounds a year, well below the roughly 30,000-round benchmark for financial sustainability. A National Golf Foundation study recommended the closure. Federal Land and Water Conservation Fund restrictions limited redevelopment to recreational use, so the county hired Human Nature to build a master plan drawing on feedback from more than 600 survey respondents.

Commissioner Joe Nienaber said the park will draw visitors who plan a trip rather than stumble across it. "People aren't going to drive by and say, 'Let's pop in this park.' They're going to plan to go here," he said. "I hope that we pull it off, and I hope that I'm alive to see it."

Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann, who has championed the project since the golf course closed, said in the county's Sept. 9 press release that the name honors Fox Run's history while embracing the property's natural landscape.

A public groundbreaking celebration is set for Sept. 21 at 9:30 a.m.