Commissioners approve giving fair $750K for multipurpose building

Geauga County commissioners recently voted 2-1 to give the fair board $750,000 to renovate Merchant Hall #2 into a new multipurpose exposition building at the fairgrounds. “The multipurpose building involving the renovation and improvement of Merchant Hall #2 is designed to transform the existing facility into a modern, year-round multipurpose venue supporting agricultural education, community events, livestock activities, and private functions,” fair secretary Meg Noah told the commissioners at their meeting last week. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. Sign Up Log In Purchase a Subscription The project will be completed in three phases. “It allows us to get started on Phase One with the money we currently have from the state,” she said. “It also allows us to look for more money and get the restrooms renovated, which is very important at Merchant Hall 2, because they needed it.” Phase One involves the restroom and shower facility. The initial construction phase already began. It is approximately 2,230 square feet. “We’re focusing on creating permanent accessible restroom and shower facilities to support fairgrounds operations, exhibitors, campers, event participants, and the general public,” Ms. Noah said. They are now renovating the men’s and women’s restrooms and adding showers. Based on the project specifications, each main restroom has four showers, including an ADA-accessible shower, 12 toilets, and six sinks. They also have two additional family restrooms with one shower. “We’re doing everything to make it ADA accessible for the fair and for any event that would want to be held at the fairgrounds year-round as a rental,” Ms. Noah said. Phase Two, approximately 4,660 square feet, will include an indoor event space and catering kitchen. The cost estimate for both phases is $1.9 million. The third phase – which includes additional amenities, site improvements, and exterior enhancements – takes it to $2.45 million. “That is why we’re here,” Ms. Noah said. “We have it estimated at $2.6 million because we don’t have the money to finish Phase Two and Three.” “We are hoping to – obviously, once we get the full backing of the commissioners – that we can move forward with the architects and the construction company to get those final numbers,” she said. The fair received $1.45 million in state funding. Commissioner Carolyn Brakey asked how the project scope has changed over time. “At one point, it was really small, and it seems like it’s gotten a little bigger since then,” she said. “I know you’ve looked at different site locations for this.” “Originally, when the commissioners came to us about a multipurpose building, we were looking at transforming Merchant Hall 2, like tearing it down and making it much bigger than it currently sits,” Ms. Noah said. “Then, we kind of started to look at more of the north end of the fairgrounds, because we had the road access and the utilities were there, and we talked about maybe using where the extension office sits and just tearing that down and building a bit. That was the $5 million building we were looking at, but obviously, we realized that the money wasn’t there for us to build something like that, so we went back to renovating Merchant Hall 2.” The first two phases will hopefully be done before next Labor Day, Ms. Noah said. “The game plan is to have it all closed in by mid December and then start doing the interior work,” senior fair board director Howard Bates said. “We had a little sticker shock here. We started getting these estimates in and stuff. We’d like to build the original building, but at $4.5 million, it’s not going to happen.” He said the county’s $750,000 would likely cover the whole project. “Being in construction for 50 years, every year, wages go up, and materials go up,” Commissioner Jim Dvorak said. Mrs. Brakey asked the fair’s financial contribution. The fair has committed $200,000 and any shortfall, Mr. Bates said. “If the commissioners didn’t give you the $750,000, what’s your plan?” Mrs. Brakey asked. “Well, we’d just do Phase One at this point and continue to try to get more funding,” Mr. Bates replied. Mrs. Brakey said she hesitated to vote in favor of the $750,000 allocation because it was not included in the commissioners’ budget and would require them to shift other priorities. Her greatest concern, she said, was repairing the old courthouse roof. “We’re not going to be able to do that in ‘27 now if we make this commitment of $750,000 to the fair,” she said. “To me, that seems like a bit of a skewing of priorities of us as a board because one of our big things is just maintaining the buildings we already have rather than investing in a building that doesn’t exist yet.” “Frankly, I think that should’ve all been handled in the $20-plus-million courthouse renovation, but that was before I came on the board, but I think it’s a big concern,” she said of the repair work. “Our historic courthouse is the symbol of Geauga County, and I think it’s important we maintain that, and I’m concerned if we push that off into ‘28 what the condition of that roof is going to be like.” “Well, I make a motion for item seven,” Commissioner Jim Dvorak said. It passed 2-1 with Mrs. Brakey voting “no.” Ms. Noah noted that the fair is in the process of using the $111,000 it received from the state capital budget for electrical upgrades, replacing all of the midway panels and large poles.