FAIRFIELD — A $9 million community cultural center, not a new justice center, apparently will be built first in the city's Village Green area.

        Tentative plans have been postponed to move the current cramped justice center, which holds the police department and city courts, to the Kroger plaza on Wessel Drive across from the Fairfield Municipal Building. At a special City Council meeting Monday, leaders agreed to continue studying the justice-center issue and eventually decide whether to build a new one, expand the existing one or relocate either police or court offices.

        Meanwhile, construction on a brick, 45,000 square-foot community cultural center could begin as early as January 2003, Councilman Mark Scharringhausen said.

        “We are all committed to a community cultural-arts center,” Mr. Scharringhausen said.

        “We feel we have enough data that we're building the right building,” he said.

        But council members are holding off on soliciting construction bids until they hear more financial details on the center.

        The decision to push forward with the community cultural center overjoyed arts advocates, who have been pleading with city fathers to build a center for plays and meetings.

        Fairfield High School's auditorium, which seats about 850 people, often is booked, making it difficult to schedule weekend events, said John Lawson, chairman of the newly formed Fairfield Cultural Arts Commission.

        “The Cincinnati Ballet has been wanting to come to Fairfield and on two occasions we had to turn them down because we could not work out dates for the high school auditorium,” Mr. Lawson said.

        Plans call for the center to rise next to the city's newest park and library and be three stories, including a basement.

        Along with the amphitheater and library already in Village Green, the community cultural center is meant to draw more visitors and expand and define Fairfield's downtown.

        The delay in expanding or moving the 17,794-square-foot justice center from its current location in a former restaurant site on Ohio 4 disappointed those who work there.

        The city had tentatively planned to relocate the justice center to the 77,000 square-foot Kroger plaza, which it plans to buy.

        But many residents and some council members think the Village Green area wasn't the appropriate place for it.

        Mike Tiernan, president of Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #166, was unavailable for comment Tuesday. Reached after hours, FOP spokesman Ken Colburn said the justice center is “ridiculously overcrowded with 45 male officers sharing a single toilet.

        “We are all in favor of intelligent development of the city, but we think the needs should be fulfilled before the wants are,” Mr. Colburn said.

        Email: jedwards@enquirer.com
       

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