Construction began Monday on a school building to replace a historic structure designed by a U.S. architect in Toyosato, Shiga Prefecture, that was the center of a preservation row that led to the town mayor's temporary ouster.

In the town hall, residents handed Mayor Wasaburo Ono a written request urging a halt to construction and demanding that classes continue in the old Toyosato Elementary School building.

The new structure is to be a three-story reinforced building to be completed by next March. Students are currently attending classes in makeshift classrooms on the school grounds.