When an new open-air retail development scheduled to open in 2014 at the Liberty Way Interchange off Interstate 75 is complete, it will greatly improve not only the Liberty Twp. community, but southwest, Ohio region, according to its developer, Steiner + Associates.

“We improve the quality of life. The project becomes the heart and soul of the community,” said Yaromir Steiner, founder and chief executive officer of Columbus-based Steiner + Associates, “by improving the desirability of surrounding areas and the ability to attract and retain businesses.”

Yaromir presented a project overview of the Liberty Town Square to more than 60 local business owners, residents, state representatives and Liberty and West Chester twp. officials Tuesday night, at the Ronald Reagan Lodge in Voice of America Park.

He said he plans to begin construction on the retail development in about a year, which will include departments stores, movie theaters, public space and gathering areas, office space and housing.

The development will be modeled after Steiner’s former project at Easton Town Center in Columbus and The Greene in Dayton. The first phase is scheduled to cost close to $300 million and planned for 1 million square feet, according to Steiner.

Pat Hiltman, a Liberty Twp. trustee, said the development that the township has been working on with Steiner for more than five years is a “game changer.”

“The most unique thing about this is we’ve broken barriers down. We’ve got a ton of politicians in here — some of us are career politicians and some of us aren’t, but we’ve broken the barriers down and we’re no longer West Chester and Liberty Twp. This is Butler County. In reality, this is southwest, Ohio. This thing is a major game changer,” he said.

“When this came to us, we recognized that and that became part of our vision in Liberty Twp. Hence the name Liberty Way. Liberty Interchange. We tried to create an identity that makes it easier for project like this to take off and be identified.”

Former Butler County Commissioner and State Rep., in the 54th House District, Courtney Combs said Butler Country is going to be “the destination.”

“This is not another shopping center. This a destination and this is a totally new concept. Hopefully, everyone in this room will get behind this project and encourage the powers to be to make sure that this happens in Butler County,” he said.

“If this county would not have taken chances with Union Centre, we wouldn’t had Union Centre, we wouldn’t of had Children’s Hospital.”