WASHINGTON CO. EXPO RELEASES 30-YEAR MASTER PLAN
The Washington County Expo has released its vision for further development of the fairgrounds.
County Expo’s master plan, discussed on Tuesday
during Washington County Commissioners Court.
(courtesy Washington County Expo, Hunden
Partners)
During the Washington County Commissioners meeting on Tuesday, Expo Director Harrison Williams discussed some of the specifics of the 30-year master plan, which is now posted online for the public to view on the Expo’s website, www.washingtoncountyexpo.com.
The long-term plan, created in-house in conjunction with data from a market study performed by Hunden Partners out of Chicago, analyzes the current facilities at the Expo, provides recommendations for how and when those amenities should be enhanced or replaced, explores opportunities for expansion, and shows cost projections associated with the upgrades.
Williams said the Expo wants to increase the amount and the type of events it can accommodate, but he is aware that goal cannot be reached right away. Instead, a path must be laid out for controlled growth over a reasonable timeline.
According to the master plan, the estimated project costs for continuing to develop the Expo at the existing site are $141.3 million, including $112.7 million in construction costs and $28.6 million in soft costs. Williams said the estimates serve to evaluate potential improvements and their feasibility, and they do not reflect any current commitments.
Commissioner Candice Bullock cautioned that while the numbers are “scary”, it does not mean the county will try to take care of all of them with one large bond measure. Williams said outside sources of funding are available and will be pursued to address the recommended improvements.
The report also states that moving forward with the upgrades could greatly benefit the local economy. The project is estimated to create more than $1.2 billion in net new spending, $382 million in net new earnings and 234 net new full-time equivalent jobs.
Some of the recommendations for improvements include an indoor arena seating 5,000, a total of 1,700 animal pens or stalls, a 2,500-capacity amphitheater, 30,000 square feet of exhibit hall space, 20,000 square feet of ballroom space, 10,000 square feet of meeting space, and additional parking.
The possibility of relocating to alternate locations was also evaluated, examining sites along Highway 290 or Highway 36, but the report indicates the cost involved would add roughly $20 million to the initial projections for developing at the existing site.
Williams invites public input on the master plan, which has a feedback portal available on the website to submit comments, questions or requests to meet in person to discuss the project further. He also said he can meet with visitors at the upcoming county fair.
(courtesy Washington County Expo, Hunden Partners)
(courtesy Washington Co. Expo, Hunden Partners)
This project is long overdue!!!! If the rent was not so high, the facilities would probably be rented out more. I hope it will not take 30 years to complete, I will have great grandchildren by then. I would like for my grandchildren to enjoy it first. What is going to happen to the RV spaces that the county is renting out? Will they be eliminated? I know doing fair time the renters have to relocate for the whole month of September.
I would suspect the VIP or north parking lot. Trailers with living quarters are going to need a place to hook up. At least 50-75 spaces.
I almost fell out of my seat reading this. First off, is this it the same “Expo” center manager who allowed the facility to flood during the 2021 freeze and didn’t bother to have someone cutoff the water? This “Expo” renaming happened years ago and the signage never even got changed. Now, consultants (or Bob’s if you have watched Office Space) have been called in to recommend a $141M expansion and a bond may be coming our way? We need a new Jr High long before this. Unreal. Just unreal.
The main attraction is the carnival if you ar 18 years and less. Where is that going to be. The little kids look forward to the rides.
I believe that is what the midway is.
Wow…just wow. Where do I start? For one, the fairgrounds are there for more than the fair…like for cutting horse shows, jackpot livestock shows, and other events that go on outside September. In fact, so many times over the years I thought that our fairgrounds were overdue some upgrading. Maybe if they covered the rodeo arena and built 250 stalls, they could bring in bigger jackpot barrel races, potentially USTRC team ropings, PRCA or semi-pro rodeos, and bigger horse shows. These are the kinds of events that potentially have million-dollar impacts to our local economy each time they’re held. As they stand now, those facilities are wholly inadequate to support those kinds of events. Many, if not all of our local competitors who participate in these things, are forced to haul out-of-town, but at least the gas stations benefit from that.
On a side note, it’s a relief that parking will be addressed in the future. Frankly it’s a miracle that no one’s been killed crossing Blue Bell Rd. during the fair, but I digress.
I can’t say I’m surprised by the responses in the comments. This is the same community that said No not once but twice to a new junior high school.
Thank you for understanding. The expo is used for many events year around not just 2 weeks for the fair. The guy running it is trying very hard to improve it and is booking as many events as he can. The size and age of many of the buildings, barns and rodeo arena are limiting them on who wants to rent and use them. Many surrounding counties have invested in their similar facilities.
There are many events held in town that have out grown the fireman’s training center and silver wings and have to limit the amounts of tables or people they can allow to attend. This plan calls for a large building to host these types of events. This plan is a 30 yr plan the main issue I see at the expo is that new things have been added over the years but no master plan was in place so they where just put in the easiest and cheapest place with no thought on how they relate to other structures and their uses. I attended the meeting they had several months ago. There was a good turn out and most of the people there were involved in the fair or rented the barns for events they held. There were very few people like my self who were just taxpayers and not involved with the expo.
Honestly I lOVE this idea! Finally would have an expo facility that would be worth renting out to others. The possibilities of this would be endless and result in more money coming into our commuity. LOVE LOVE LOVE!
Maybe the county should buy the training center from the Volunteer Fire Department, would give them the large building they want and would pass the operation to someone other than the volunteers. Then they could go back to being firefighters and buy the equipment they need,
Where is the new criminal justice building supposed to go. All the hoop la about that building, now nothing, just a new road and bridge facility out in the sticks. Money, Money, Money, just can’t spend enough fast enough. Our local government can lie to us as good as the ones in D.C.
Ain’t that something!! Tem folks in Chicago are sooooo much smarter than us locals. I guess they are gonna pay for all this too. And my biggest question is why do we need all this stuff for a once a year event? Other than the fair, that much stuff is just gonna sit there and need maintenance to keep it up. Crazy idea if you ask me. The fair was much better back in the old days than it has been in the past 25 years. Heck we used to have 10-12 girls vying for queen and they actually went out and sold tickets. Didn’t have tents set up all over town with people selling for them. We paid a heck of a lot less for much better entertainment. Fair has gotten too commercialized just like everything else around here.
Fayette County fair is the same way! Doesn’t even interest me to go anymore! Carnival ticket price has skyrocketed! What is supposed to be a fun family event, can’t afford to take the family! Crazy!
Another aspect to consider is this company that is being used to run this project. They are a DEI loving company out of Chicago. How many local subcontractors do you think they will use to work on this project? All of our hard earned taxpayer dollars will just head straight out of Washington county and into the hands of people that have no idea what our community wants or needs. How were they selected instead of one of the local companies that have tons of experience with local landscapes, building practices and code compliance? I am sure it was done secretively the same way the irrigation building was purchased to store FILES for 1 million of our taxpayer dollars. It seems like the decision making process we have entrusted in our elected officials is being severely taken advantage of.
Once all this is built, where will the carnival rides set up during the fair ?
Don’t forget the extra costs to the county and state for roads hooking into 36 and 105, plus the money to buy up the land on either side to widen the existing roadways, provide a median and designated turning areas with signals, etc. That’s another 80 million plus in ancillary costs.
Is this a joke? I don’t want to pay even one penny for this
$50 a ticket should make it?!?!
The Washington County Fair has nothing to do with this project. In fact they pay the county rent each year to use the facilities for the fair.
they need to to leave the fairgrounds alone and go build an expo center else where just my thought The fairgrounds is for the county fair and rodeo an expo center is for special events that are put on by people that rent the center for different events if it is done right the county could make good money doing this