FAIRFIELD — A $9 million community/cultural center will rise in “Village Green,” the city's new downtown area, council members decided at a weekend retreat.

        Mayor Erick Cook initiated the hastily called retreat, held Saturday in Colerain Township, so council members could rank priorities for the community of about 42,000 residents.

        “The community center is the single most clear-cut priority right now,” Fairfield Council member Mark Scharringhausen said Sunday.

        “It completes the Village Green's community/cultural vision for the city and brings to closure the plan we embarked on almost 10 years ago to create a centerpiece for the downtown,” Mr. Scharringhausen said.

        A formal vote on the project will come soon, he said. Plans call for the center to be built next to the city's newest park and library.

        Construction on the brick, 45,000-square-foot center that would include a theater could begin as early as January. Council members are holding off on construction bids until they hear more financial details on the project.

        The confirmation Sunday that a community/cultural center is coming pleased arts advocates, who have pleaded with city leaders 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 events, they say.

        Council also decided Saturday to study whether to expand the overcrowded and outdated Fairfield Justice Center on Ohio 4 or search for a new site.

        The debate whether to build a community/cultural center or a new or expanded Justice Center has been controversial in recent months.

        While some want to preserve Village Green for upscale shopping, others say the city could build a new Justice Center on the east side of Village Green.

        The city tentatively had 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 were opposed to that plan.

        Also Saturday, Council agreed to develop the rest of Village Green on the north side of Nilles Road and Pleasant Avenue, and continue Ohio 4 revitalization efforts.

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