“It’s good for the neighborhood, it’s awesome for the officers, it’s going to be great as a recruiting tool because we’re all fighting for the same people,” said Scott Scrimizzi, Hamilton’s public safety director.
Monarch Construction Company will lead the $32 million Justice Center project that will sit across Hanover Street from the Butler County Jail. The 64,000-square-foot single-story complex is mostly debt-financed, but nearly a third of the cost ― $10 million ― is coming from the city’s pandemic rescue act funds.
The building will also reunite the city’s court with the police department. They previously shared the building on South Front Street, which is an old Kroger building. The building is tentatively scheduled to open in August or September of 2024, and Hamilton Municipal Court Judge Dan Gattermeyer said this new Justice Center, just like other government buildings, will “symbolize what’s good and right and strong about us.”
“If you live in Hamilton, you know when you drive around Hamilton, you see all of these awesome schools, it’s like, ‘Yeah, I feel pretty good about that,’” he said. “This new complex, it’s going to make us all feel so awesome with what’s going on with our city, what’s going on with us. We really can’t wait to get going and get over here.”
Scrimizzi said this building would reduce duplicated services that were needed when the municipal court left South Front Street when the Government Services Building opened more than two decades ago. The new building will save the city upwards of $300,000 annually.
Hamilton Police Chief Craig Bucheit called Wednesday’s groundbreaking “an important occasion” for the community and the police department.
“This justice center represents and investment, an investment in making our community a better, safer place today and for generations to come,” the chief said. “For our officers, the men and women of the Hamilton Police Department, this project serves as recognition, recognition that the City Council, city administration appreciates and values them. Not only do they value and appreciate them, but they are committed to supporting these officers by investing in them with the best facilities to do the important work that they do every day.”
Construction on the Justice Center project is expected to start soon after Wednesday’s groundbreaking. The property is already cordoned off with chain-link fencing, and construction trailers are on site. Scrimizzi said they’ve looked at other police agencies, such as the Fairfield Justice Center, as well as newer facilities, like the Cincinnati Police Department’s District 3 and the Monroe and Sharonville police departments.
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