By Anna Guido
Enquirer contributor

SHARONVILLE - City Council will be asked tonight to approve an offer to buy out Golden Skates.

If the deal is approved, the longtime Sharonville roller rink at 1640 E. Kemper Road will close in August and reopen in September in West Chester Township, rink general manager Ken Roesel said Monday.

"We're working with a couple of different developers to find a property," Mr. Roesel said. "We're not committed to Union Centre Boulevard, but we're definitely doing West Chester."

Business and city officials have been negotiating a sale of the rink for several months. Sharonville officials want to raze the facility to make way for a fire station.

The new fire station will improve response time and replace a station at Centerdale Drive and Crescentville Road. It also will serve as the new central station and could combine with adjoining city property for any future expansion, Safety Service Director Al Ledbetter said.

If an agreement on sale of the property had not been reached, Sharonville officials were prepared to acquire it by eminent domain. Eminent domain is the right of a government to appropriate private property for public use.

Mr. Roesel said the city offered to pay fair market value for the rink, but he could not disclose the amount pending tonight's meeting.

Golden Skates was built in 1973 in what is now a bustling commercial zone not far from Tri-County Mall. The rink - which draws from throughout the Tristate - is home to skating, roller hockey and dancing events.

The new site likely will include two rinks to accommodate both skating and roller hockey.

Mr. Roesel and rink owner Sam Nelson are planning to discuss their plans at 2:30 p.m. today with West Chester zoning officials.

"We want to start out on the right foot," Mr. Roesel said.

"We want to address any concerns the township may have."

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