(La Porte County, IN) - Construction has begun at the La Porte County fairgrounds on a new 4-H show arena that will be about twice the size as the one it’s replacing.  The construction of this new 27,000 square foot building is another step in a long term process of transforming the fairgrounds into a year round destination.

 

In recent years, greater use has been made of the grounds after the fair for major events like concerts, tractor pulls and pyrotechnic shows.  The goal is filling even more open dates on the calendar with other events like trade shows and horse competitions.   

 

“We’re taking this to the next level,” said LaPorte County Council President Randy Novak.

 

Novak has formed an over 30 member committee to help sharpen the future vision for the county government owned fairgrounds along Indiana 2 just west of the La Porte city limits.

 

The new show arena will be at the same spot as the old facility demolished last week.  Dirt was later brought in as fill and the site leveled to prepare for construction expected to begin early next month.

 

Steve Mrozinski, president of the LaPorte County Agricultural Association board which operates the fair, said the need for a new show arena outweighed the fond memories of past fairs and other events like weddings in the structure dating back to the early 60’s.  

 

“It was time for the building to be replaced,” he said during a Wednesday groundbreaking.

 

An increase in La Porte County 4-H youth membership from roughly 700 to over 1,000 since last year and desire to further grow the enrollment was one of the reasons cited for building a much larger show arena.  The arena is where 4-H youth show their cows, goats and other livestock for judging and bidding from prospective buyers during the fair.

 

At some point, the plan is to utilize the new show arena for housing all 4-H youth animals and building a show arena even larger than the one expected to be finished in November.  Currently during the fair, animals like cows, goats and chickens are kept in separate barns reserved for each species.

 

Mrozinski said housing all of the livestock at one location will allow other barns dating back to the 60’s to be torn down so that space can be used for building the new permanent show arena.

 

Garner Construction of Hanna was hired to construct the show arena going up soon at a cost of around $400,000. 

 

Mrozinski said the show arena will be used for winter storage of campers, boats and other large items by the general public and the fees collected along with a percentage of profits from the fair will be used to finance the work.  Other buildings are also used for public winter storage from a decision several years ago to generate revenue from those facilities to improve and maintain the fairgrounds.

 

Mrozinski said space for storage in the buildings is created by removing portable pens used by 4-H youth to keep their animals during the fair. The new show arena will ease what’s become limited storage space from high demand.

 

“They’re full and we got people waiting in line for more,” he said.

 

Other improvements to the fairgrounds in recent years include new, much larger barns for cattle and hogs along with expanded seating in the grandstands, new bathrooms, improved drainage and replacement of old electrical wiring.