CHAMPION — Township trustees are meeting at their new location with the opening of the administration building off Marshall Avenue NW.

Trustees had their first meeting there Monday and will host a public open house 5 to 8 p.m. Sept. 21.

The new building, which was a former dance studio, houses the trustees meeting room, the zoning office, fiscal officer office, and a community room.

Trustee Doug Emerine said he has spoken to SCOPE and the U.S. Postal Service to see if they would be interested in locating there.

“We are getting community input on what they want to have in this building. What do the residents want to see here?” Emerine said.

He said plans will be to rent space at the building for wedding receptions and events.

Emerine said there is talk of possibly getting an electronic sign placed along state Route 45 to let people know it about the facility.

“This is an exciting day for the township and long overdue,” Trustee Rex Fee said.

He said as the building progresses, he anticipates that in the future “the community will appreciate what we have here.”

Fee said he also has spoken with the Warren-Trumbull County Public Library of having a satellite library location there.

“We want to make full use of this building,” Fee said,

Emerine said there are discussions about local Champion art students doing a mural on one of the meeting room walls. He said the Champion Rotary Club also has said it wants to help.

“This is the community’s building. We want to make it successful for the community,” Emerine said.

Officials said chairs, office furniture and other furnishings were all donated. In addition, there are new chairs for the cemetery chapel.

Trustee Rick York, who was marking his first meeting as a trustee to fill the term of Bill Templeton, who died in July, said he was looking forward to serving Champion as a trustee and being at the new building.

Trustees purchased the 10,000-square foot former dance studio with the purpose of a new township administration building and community center. Trustees approved $250,000 in American Rescue Plan funds they can use for a portion of the purchase, as well as other funds that have been set aside in a capital improvement fund.

Trustees had been meeting at the nearby Champion High School community room, the township zoning office or the road department garage.

In addition to acting as a new administration building, officials said they want to have two larger rooms in the building available for the community to rent for multiple purposes, including banquets and Scout meetings. Trustees said there also is an outdoor green area, which would be used for outdoor events such as the Christmas tree lighting.

Kristy’s Dance Studio was once located there.