Swapping and Improving the Ross County Courthouse and LCNB Bank Building

The Ross County Courthouse is set to get some changes, along with the former bank building around the corner on Main Street. It wasn’t the main topic of the county commissioners Monday, but since I have been watching the changeover, I asked them about it.

LCNB Bank moved from the 1950s former Citizens National Bank building at 33 West Main Street to reopen in their almost completed building at 193 East Main Street July 22nd. The commissioners had bought the building in 2017.

They told me they hope to move county offices from the north side of the courthouse into the bank building by the middle of next summer – including their own offices.

Commissioner’s president Dwight Garrett said they want to “make sure that this becomes a true courthouse” with the County Prosecutor’s offices moved from the LCNB building into the courthouse. Hear them in their own words in the video (where I’ve added a little history).

The commissioners are also moving ahead on “tightening the envelope” of the courthouse, after dropping nearly a million dollars on renovating the building in 2006.

County Administrator Brad Cosenza said they now have a copy of their first draft of a study of the Courthouse and Old Jail from contractors Schooley Caldwell, who I know to do good work on historic buildings…like the Carlisle Building, Majestic Theatre addition, and Ohio Statehouse.

When the commissioners started on this process several months ago, Cosenza had explained to me that they wanted to get a lot of little repairs, as well as continued exterior deterioration, taken care of.

Find more in the article on the Scioto Post, including the video interview.

Kevin Coleman covers local government and culture for the Scioto Post and iHeart Media Southern Ohio. For stories or questions, contact Kevin Coleman or the iHeart Southern Ohio Newsroom.