By Tim Evans
A-N and Index Reporter
The Muscatine County Fair Board updated guests at their annual meeting Tuesday evening, Oct. 24, on an amphitheatre stage-remodeling project that is already 75 percent complete as well as a future Activity Center capital improvement.
Tim Nichols, the board’s treasurer and building committee chairman from Nichols, made the capital improvement announcements, pointing out the Muscatine County Fairgrounds in West Liberty is one of the largest fairgrounds in the state, making it an even more difficult task to keep upgraded.
Nichols said, with the aid of a lot of board members and local construction firms, the concrete stage at the amphitheatre is being reconstructed, nearly doubling in size from a 30 x 50-foot platform to 60 x 80-foot, providing more room for acts and equipment – something he said has been needed for some time in replacing the decades old stage that had cracks in the cement and was uneven. “It just wasn’t big enough for some acts,” Nichols said.
He said many grandstands have aluminum seating and, personally, he likes the character that the present amphitheater offers with its wood seating. “It has a feel. It has a history,” he said, although pointing out there could be a demand for better seating at the front of the complex. The present complex holds about 3,000 in the main amphitheater, but can hold as many as 7,500 with expanded seating.
The project was funded largely by profits from last year’s fair.
Nichols went on to talk about a campaign to launch a fundraising campaign for a new Activity Center building, planning to replace the 7,500 foot structure with a 12,0000 square foot building on the northwest edge of the campus. He said the former facility would be razed.
He said the board did their research and looked at a number of other activity centers in the state including going to Anamosa, Maquoketa, Davenport and Lynn County to try to figure out a plan.
Nichols said the board has been working with a local team of advisors to put together the fundraising effort and said, depending on how that develops the new activity center would open in 2025 or 2026. “It will be a big task,” he said.
According to the fair board annual report, the activity center presently is used for about 20 activities a year outside of fair week while it’s also used for auctions and other activities.
“We have quite the facilities here,” Nichols said, pointing out there is a lot of classic buildings that make the fairgrounds a special place. He said many things couldn’t be done without the help of so many volunteers, including fair board members who sometimes put in countless hours to repair structures, paint or help maintain a number of projects on the grounds. “It’s amazing all the talent that’s on this fair board,” he said. “It’s an honor to work with them.”
Anyone interested in finding out more about the Activity Center fundraising campaign or learning more about fair funding or activities should contact fair manager Kelsey Meyers at the fair board office.