ARAPAHOE COUNTY —Visiting the Arapahoe County Fairgrounds Park this month, it is clear it’s in the midst of an overhaul.
Backhoes move mounds of dirt at the east end of the indoor exhibition center, clearing room for the future foundation for a second exhibition hall. Crews piece together a retaining wall near the new animal wash rack.
When the fair arrives the last weekend of July, officials expect the on Quincy Avenue half a mile east of E-470 will be better suited to host that event — and many others — than it has since . In the years to come, they say, the site should only become more enjoyable to visit.
“The next two years are going to be a challenge, because a portion of the fairgrounds will be under construction,” said Shannon Carter, the county open spaces and intergovernmental relations director. “But when (residents) passed the open space sales and use tax, this was one of our mandates.”
The expansion is taking place on two fronts, Carter said: vertical construction, including a new western, indoor exhibition hall, and a covered outdoor events arena; and a series of open space improvements to the east of those structures. The outdoor work, being completed over the next several years, includes a stream feature, trails, a pond and wetlands and playground space and a new entry from Quincy Avenue, according to the county.
When it comes to this year’s fair, Glen Poole, the county’s open spaces operations manager, said the covered arena will be ready to go, as will a center green park space for vendor booths, and lounging and a relocated uncovered arena that will host a rodeo and demolition derby.
“We’re building this all based on needs identified in our market studies,” Poole said, noting the new hall will add around 36,000 square feet of indoor space.
Jonathan Vrabec, Colorado State University’s 4-H Club agent in Arapahoe County, said he is excited for the new arena, which will allow members to show off their prize horses, cows, sheep and goats without getting stuck in rented tents.
“I think it’s going to allow the kids to have a little more space and maybe have their animals in a little more comfortable surroundings and be able to display them to the best of their ability,” he said.
The building work, which is expected to be completed first, will cost an estimated $7 million, while the outdoor work, to be done in several phases over the next two to three years, could cost $5.5 to 6 million, Carter estimated.
The county is using money generated by the Colorado Lottery — coupled with a bank loan — to pay for the work. The fairgrounds also draw from money raised by a voter-approved , Carter said, first supported in 2003 and extended in 2011. Of that, 4.1 percent is dedicated to county heritage areas, including the fairgrounds, Carter said.
Curtis Bish, principal planner for Aurora Parks, Recreation and Open Space Department, said the city is working to secure funding for a that will extend the Sand Creek regional greenway corridor south toward Aurora Reservoir and the fairgrounds, “increasing the accessibility to those areas for cyclists and pedestrians.”
Arapahoe County Commissioner Rod Bockenfeld said said the fairgrounds is truly a multi-use facility, serving a security purpose through things like housing displaced animals during wildfires, and being next door to the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s training track, as well as brining in revenue by renting space for trade shows and private parties.
Bockenfeld said the fairgrounds provides a perfect venue for the county’s urban and rural characters and cultures to blend, even if for just a few days a year during the fair.
He added: “It was only a few years ago that if you asked Arapahoe County citizens about the fairgrounds they’d say, ‘Where is that?’ Most people know where it is now.”
Arapahoe county fairWhere: 25690 E. Quincy Ave.
When: July 23-26
Info: Tickets are available for $10 plus processing at
