With the official groundbreaking ceremony now in the books, supporters of a new multi-use agricultural facility in Jackson County are hoping they will see the fruits of their labor by summer.
The vision for the facility began almost 20 years ago, according to Marty Clark, the Chairman of the Agricultural Facility Committee. He said he hopes the $4 million facility will be a draw far beyond the borders of Jackson County.
"I think it's not only going to be great for Jackson County, but also for the region and the state and the southeast," Clark said.
Clark, the owner of Clark Hill Farms, said private companies have signed on as sponsors for the facility because they understand the importance of agriculture for sustaining both the regional and state economy.
"We're up to almost $600,000 [in sponsorships] and they're still coming in," Clark said. "Everybody has been real receptive. They get the message that we've got to keep promoting agriculture - if we don't, we're not going to have a future."
The new facility will have 18,700 square feet of multi-purpose space, mainly for livestock shows. That space will also be used for small concerts, trade shows, exhibits, large parties and other events. An 8,900 square-foot arena will include bleacher seating for 300 people. In addition, the facility will have conference room space and a kitchen/concession area.
Sloane Meyer, spokeswoman for Jackson County government, said while agriculture groups - such as 4H - will making primary use of the facility, the county is hoping other groups will take advantage of it, as well.
"We really want it to be something that everyone would be interested in," Meyer said. "They want to do car shows, concerts, possibly moving the farmers market indoors [from downtown Jefferson] so the weather won't be such an issue - many, many types of events."
Meyer said officials are even exploring the idea of resurrecting a county fair, an event that hasn't been held in Jackson County since the 1950s.
The new agriculture facility will be built on County Farm Road at Fowler Road.
The groundbreaking ceremony was held Friday, Feb. 15 at 12:30 p.m.
