County Administrator Robert Horine said construction will start in the spring. The project will consolidate administrative offices of fiscal court, clerk, sheriff, property valuation administrator and the health department.

The new site at 11th and Monmouth streets will be about 50,000 square feet.

"This gives us a single location for citizens and businesses," he said. "It's modeled to meet the needs of Campbell County residents."

The existing location at 24 W. Fourth St., Horine said, is "substandard for the purposes of local government," citing maintenance problems and a lack of handicap accessibility.

Since the building is open to the public, Horine said there are also difficulties managing security. He mentioned Kenton and Boone counties have restricted how the public can access their justice buildings.

"The clerk, sheriff, and (PVA) are in the York Street historic courthouse, which is home to the circuit and family court facilities," he said, "and there are so many people coming in renewing licenses and registering to vote" in a building that should be secure.

The Campbell County local board of health - a division of the Northern Kentucky Independent Health District, a partner in the project - will occupy about 6,000 square feet of the new building, Horine said.

George Moore, director of administration and accounting for the health department, said staff members look forward to the move.

"We're outgrowing our old building - the repairs were becoming larger and more often," he said.

The current site of the Campbell County health department is on Fifth Street in Newport, next to Coconut Grove.

The $8.25 million plan is still in the design phase, under contract with Lexington architects Brandstetter-Carroll & Associates - the firm that designed Newport City Hall at 10th and Monmouth.

Completion is set for spring 2006.

E-mail aremke@enquirer.com