The arena at the Cumberland County Fairgrounds will receive some $5 million in upgrades thanks to money from the state.
County Mayor Allen Foster said the money will go towards adding a roof to the arena and adding more restroom facilities. Foster said the roof has been discussed for years, and the project can finally happen with the new funding.
“The community complex is a very busy place,” Foster said. “This would help us keep from having events that are rained out. Possibly even more concerts and things like that. Open air’s great until it it’s not, you know, with the rain and the weather. And it’ll just help us to keep those events going in case of weather like that.”
Foster said the fair itself is only for a couple of weeks, but there are 52 weeks in a year. Foster said adding a roof opens the door for more things to happen in the arena.
Foster said Cumberland County is already an award-winning fair, and it has been for a long time. He said the facility updates will further improve the fair experience.
“A lot of the things done in it during the fair week are important, but they also have a couple of events leading up to it,” Foster said. “The Fair Board does, to help fund the fair. If you can keep those things from being rained out, it’s going to be great.”
Foster said the arena bathrooms are needed for all of the events. He said there are lots of festivals and large events there, so having more restrooms adds convenience for the public.
Foster said it is important for Cumberland County to keep investing in the fairgrounds so that it does not become run down.
“One of my pet peeves is that you build something and you don’t take care of it and it turns into an eyesore and rots away,” Foster said, “It’s just like your house. Things get bad, you have to replace your carpet or your flooring. You have to paint every now and then. It’s just one of those maintenance items where we have to take care of what we have.”
Foster said laws regarding design work and the bidding process may slow the project’s timeline, but he hopes to get started in about a year. He said he is thankful to the state and House Speaker Cameron Sexton for making the investment.
