FAIRFIELD TWP. — Work will begin next month on widening Princeton Road in a development project that will put Home Depot, Wal-Mart and Lowes stores at its intersection with Ohio 4 Bypass.

        The widening project is the first to be paid for through a tax increment financing (TIF) district that includes about 280 acres along Princeton Road, Bypass 4 and Hamilton-Mason Road, said Ron Randolph, Fairfield Township administrator.

        The special TIF arrangement allows tax money generated by building projects to be diverted for up to 30 years into a special fund that pays for road and other infrastructure improvements. Other business taxes on equipment, machinery and inventory are not affected by the agreement.

        Under the TIF, the Fairfield Schools will get about $2.7 million over the 30 years, of which 4 percent will be forwarded to the Butler County Joint Vocational School District, said Scott Gooding, Fairfield Schools' treasurer.

        “This is a great thing for Fairfield Township,” Mr. Randolph said. “We anticipate growth will be quick in that area.”

        The land in the TIF is included in one of two Joint Economic Development Districts that Fairfield Township and the city of Hamilton formed over the past two years. Those agreements call for a sharing of revenue from Hamilton's 2 percent income tax, based on the services each government provides to the property.

        Mr. Gooding said the TIF is beneficial to the schools because it encourages business development, which increases the tax base, lessening the burden on homeowners. He anticipated the schools would begin receiving revenue from the development in 2003. The stores already planned and under construction are valued at about $10.4 million, Mr. Gooding said.

        Home Depot is expected to open in October while the Wal-Mart/Lowes project won't be finished until next spring, Mr. Randolph said.

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