COLUMBIANA COUNTY Judges meet and choose site for new courthouse

LISBON -- Columbiana County municipal court judges have chosen a site for a new municipal courthouse and are asking county commissioners to approve the location.
Judges Mark Frost and Robert Roberts met privately Wednesday with commissioners to discuss the proposed site, which is in Center Township.
After the meeting, Judge Frost declined to disclose the exact spot, saying he wants to await the commissioners' decision, which could come as early as next week.
The recommended site is one of about 15 locations in and around Lisbon that were considered for the court.
Plans call for constructing a nearly 20,000-square-foot, one- or two-story structure that will house municipal court and the clerk of courts' vehicle title department, which is now on South Market Street.
The county's municipal court is now located in rented spaces in Salem, Lisbon and East Palestine.
Building a new courthouse is part of a plan to centralize the municipal court system.
Officials say a centralized court will save the county money by allowing for a more efficient operation and a possible reduction of staff size.
Estimated cost of the construction project is $3.6 million.
Money to pay for the undertaking will come from a special fund that has been collected in recent years. The fund is fueled by a $10 fee attached to court costs for criminal and traffic offenses.