FAIRFIELD TWP. — People in this fast-growing Butler County community know they're hitting the big time — they're getting their own Wal-Mart. And it's a big Wal-Mart.

        Many in this township, which nearly doubled in population in the past decade, welcome the coming convenient shopping. But others worry about the projected fivefold increase in traffic and about another assault on the country atmosphere that drew them here.

        The shopping plaza is the size of about 10 football fields. And after the store opens March 20, residents won't have to travel to neighboring Hamilton or Liberty Township for food. There's only one major retailer in Fairfield Township, a Home Depot, and just three restaurants, all pizza places.

        “It is going to be great for the whole community,” said Fairfield Township Trustee Steve Morgan. “This is exactly what we have been looking for. Instead of going to West Chester or Liberty Township to shop, we can stay right here. It's also going to bring in some commercial tax base we need.”

        But some homeowners who flocked to the area for its rural flavor worry their winding, two-lane roads can't handle the extra cars the retail giant will draw. Traffic along Princeton Road at Ohio Bypass 4, where the 149,551-square-foot store sits on the southwest corner, is about to skyrocket by more than 500 percent, according to a study by Wal-Mart presented to the township.

        “These roads should have been widened long before the Wal-Mart came,” said Richard Brock, who has lived in the southeastern part of the county all of his 76 years. “They do this regularly around here. They don't get the roads open before they open the shopping centers. It's growing too fast for what's out here.”

        To make way, the intersection of Princeton Road and Ohio Bypass 4 is being widened from two lanes to six for about a quarter mile. Wal-Mart and Home Depot are paying for those improvements. Wal-Mart also is installing a traffic light at the store's entrance off Princeton Road.

        But both roads will remain two lanes beyond the intersections for a long time. Princeton Road won't be widened for at least two years. That's because property tax from Wal-Mart and Home Depot — $171,000 combined — won't hit township coffers until 2003, said Fairfield Township Administrator Ron Randolph.

        Ohio Bypass 4 isn't scheduled for expansion for about five years. But officials with Fairfield Township and neighboring cities hope to persuade the Ohio Department of Transportation next year to widen Ohio Bypass 4 from two to to four lanes sooner, Mr. Randolph said.

        The western section of Princeton Road near the Wal-Mart has been widened to three lanes in each direction — work being completed last week, Mr. Randolph said. The eastern part of the road is scheduled for widening in January and February.

        But with the opening of Wal-Mart, traffic is expected to increase by about 817 cars per day, a traffic report shows. Before Home Depot opened earlier this year, 150 cars or fewer daily tooled along Princeton Road.

        “I am not in favor of having stores at every crossroad, and that's what they are coming to,” said longtime resident Ilena Cornelius, 75. “It's too much traffic and too much aggravation.”

        But other citizens are encour aged by the Wal-Mart plaza, called Shoppes of Indian Springs, and hope it will spur more convenient shopping and developments.

        The Arkansas-based retailer is expected to bring 250 to 300 jobs. This Wal-Mart will have a pharmacy, photo lab, lawn-and-garden section and Murphy's Oil, a tire and oil lube express with gas pumps, said John Bisio, spokesman for the upper Midwest division of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Construction should be finished by the middle of February. A Wendy's fast-food restaurant also is expected to open next to Murphy's Oil by early summer, and other retail sites are available.

        Wal-Mart, which is adding a record number of stores in the next fiscal year, has been interested in the fast-growing Fairfield Township because of its tremendous expansion in the last decade, Mr. Bisio said.

        The community's population jumped from 9,000 to 16,000 since 1991 and about 400 homes have been built in the last two years.

        “We work very hard to mitigate any real adverse effects of development,” Mr. Bisio said. “When it comes to communities, Wal-Mart has not only done well and helped serve a purpose, it also has attracted other businesses and helped those existing businesses bolster their own sales or traffic.”

        A few local business owners say they consider Wal-Mart a competitor. But most merchants are encouraged by the store's presence and hope it will attract customers from neighboring areas.

        “The more people shopping out here, the more customers it will bring,” said Arlene Teague, who opened Fairfield Township's first hair and tanning salon, Heads or Tails, Tuesday in the Green Crest Plaza on Hamilton-Middletown Road.

        “We love it,” added Ruby Edmonds of Perry's Fabric & Uphol stery. While she realizes Wal-Mart will be competition, she said she also knows the growth can't be stopped.

        “I don't like the idea of competition, but it's coming whether we like it or not,” said Ms. Edmonds, who lives in Fairfield Township. “We're not going to stop progress. There's not enough opposition.”

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