Northern KY highway may be named for late Cincinnati Enquirer journalist Pat Crowley
A section of a Northern Kentucky highway could be renamed for late, beloved Cincinnati Enquirer journalist Pat Crowley, memorializing his contributions to the state and his “illustrious career in journalism.”
Two joint resolutions from the House and Senate propose renaming a portion of a Campbell County highway the Patrick J. Crowley Memorial Parkway — House Joint Resolution 40 from Rep. Matt Lehman, D-Newport, and Senate Concurrent Resolution 34 from Sen. Shellie Funke Frommeyer.
The city of Southgate passed a resolution at a Feb. 19 council meeting to do the same. Crowley died unexpectedly at his Ft. Thomas home on Dec. 28 at age 63.
Pat Crowley worked as a journalist for 27 years covering Northern Kentucky and Frankfort, including 16 years as a reporter and columnist at the Cincinnati Enquirer.
He covered nearly 20 sessions of the Kentucky General Assembly, including the administrations of six governors, the 1996 and 2000 Republican and Democratic national conventions, and several Senate, Congressional, statehouse, county and city campaigns.
Crowley hosted two long-running television shows in Northern Kentucky: On the Record, a public affairs program, and Northern Kentucky Magazine, a morning news and feature program. He was also a regular panelist on KET’s Comment on Kentucky.
The Kentucky Press Association named him the state’s top columnist in 2007, and he won numerous state and national awards for his 2004 series on casino gambling.
In 2009, he pivoted to public relations, opening a firm called Strategic Advisors.
Under Lehman’s and Funke Frommeyer’s resolutions, the section of U.S. Route 27 — also known as Monmouth Street and Alexandria Pike — from Fifth Street in Newport to Highland Avenue in Ft. Thomas as the Crowley’s Memorial Highway.
“Pat loved the people and communities of Northern Kentucky, especially Fort Thomas. He dedicated his career to making our commonwealth a better, stronger place, and this potential honor feels incredibly appropriate,” said Richard Green, executive editor of the Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com.
Green and Crowley worked together for more than a dozen years at The Cincinnati Enquirer, and they talked frequently about what was unfolding in Frankfort as friends and former colleagues.
“The only thing bigger than Pat’s love of community was his personality,” Green said. “That passionate Irishman is missed by so many, and I know he’d be honored, and probably a bit embarrassed, with this honor.”
In addition to his career as a journalist, Crowley was a youth sports coach at Woodfill Elementary School and for other Ft. Thomas teams, a volunteer, and, according to the resolutions, “a regular speaker at business, political and civic events, a golfing buddy, and of course, an amazing friend to anyone lucky enough to have met him.”
“This body holds in highest esteem those Kentuckians who have made significant contributions to their communities, and in this spirit the members wish to posthumously honor Patrick J. Crowley . . . publicly and permanently for his decades of service to the citizens of Northern Kentucky.”
