Renovations at Spokane fairgrounds celebrated
Recently completed renovations of the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center will help contribute millions of dollars to the local economy and expand the size and range of events hosted there, county and fair officials said during a dedication ceremony Wednesday.
Held in the fairground’s expanded Expo Complex, the event marked the end of a decade-long capital improvements project totaling about $22.5 million. Enhancements to the fairgrounds included replacing the grandstands in the Spokane Indians’ stadium, remodeling the Expo Complex, adding concession booths and redoing the area’s landscaping.
Dolly Hughes, Spokane County Fair and Expo Center director, said a study conducted in 2005 estimated that the fairgrounds had an economic impact of about $24 million that year.
County Commissioner Todd Mielke and others cited the decision to host an Orange County Choppers in America 2006 Tour stop at the fairgrounds in July as a result of the remodel. The cast of the Discovery Channel show “American Chopper” will tape episodes and display bikes during the event, Hughes said.
Only four cities will host OCC events this year, Mielke said.
About 120 people attended the ceremony. Many also took tours of the facility, ate at the complex’s new Plaza Grill concession area and played free carnival games.
Hughes, director since 1998, said during the ceremony that she drew on experience from visiting other fair facilities and solicited vendors’ input to instruct the improvement process.
The result: Large rooms that can be configured for multiple purposes.
Other notable improvements to the Expo Complex, which has nearly doubled in size to more than 92,000 square feet, include the installation of air conditioning and a sound system.
Many visitors cited climate control as one of the building’s best features.
“(Before) it was like being in an oven,” said Curly Werner, a member of the eight-person Spokane County Fair and Expo Center Advisory Board since 1997.
The most recently completed portion of the facility, the conference center, was finished May 1. It replaces the former entrance to the complex and includes an open area that can be sectioned into three rooms for different purposes, a kitchen and a ticket office and cash safe room. The 3,000-square foot space was used to house a beer garden during a recent event.
The Plaza, a 10,000-square foot entrance area, connects the facility’s four large showrooms and replaces a walkway that previously joined two separate buildings.
The new facility also features several new restrooms, including the building’s first family restrooms.