Both Kearney and Sarpy County want the State Fair. Kearney would put it near the Archway, while Sarpy County would place it near I-80 and Gretna. Perhaps I'm being overly cynical here, but why should Nebraskans trust those two entities with the Fair? Kearney wants to place the Fair next to the most over-hyped tourist attraction in state history. Who trusts Kearney's predictions about the Fair's likelihood for success at that location after the Archway flop?* And Sarpy County wants to place the Fair next to one of the most spectacular shopping center failures in the state. That hardly seems like a foundation for success.
What's next, Boyd County pitching to site the Fair at the former proposed nuclear waste facility?
* Yes, I hear the Archway is actually pretty neat. That isn't my point. Compare the pre-construction promises with the post-construction reality.
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See what your friends and neighbors have to say about this.
Were the pre- and post-construction realities any better for the Lancaster County Event Center (the likely Lincoln site, if the fair stays here)?
I’ll be sad when we lose the current site for the fair - the old buildings had character that we won’t be able to recapture. But UNL’s been pushing for some time to get that land, and they will. Harvey’s probably secretly disappointed that the fair (which almost disappeared a few years ago) has been making a comeback. It was a perfect setup - neglected buildings…declining attendance…UNL riding in to “rescue” the land and put it towards a better purpose…
I support the move to east Lincoln. Where it stands now that land is much better used for a research park.
Moving the fair to Kearney is not a good idea unless they are thinking of a drastically smaller fair. There just isn’t the population out there to support good attendance. Even if every single man, woman and child in Kearney went to the fair every day attendance would still be pretty dismal compared to it being in a larger population center like Lincoln. My two centavos.
I would support a move to Paxton, so it can be near Ole’s Big Game Lounge. There’s plenty of space for buildings and parking. It’s a win/win. Convenient to get to from I-80 and Highway 30. Look at the crowds that turn out in North Platte for Nebraskaland Days.
I’m with Mr. T. I like the idea of putting it in east Lincoln with easy access and ample parking.
Moving the fair west will mean much smaller attendance numbers unless central and western Nebraskans decide to attend the fair in greater numbers than they do now. I don’t know if Lincoln and Omaha attendees will drive to Kearney for the fair but I suspect some would not.
The fairgrounds now are sorely underutilized and the once stately buildings have been neglected to the point they can’t affordably be repaired.
I like the fair but I don’t think it needs the space it now occupies.
@Fletch - someone told me recently that Ole’s closed! I’m hoping it was a dastardly urban legend. I loves me the Ole’s.
As a relative newcomer to Nebraska State Fairs with no sentimental memories, I find little attraction in the current location. While the big trees are nice for shade and all, the buildings are pretty ratty. (A person could say the exact same thing about the Kansas fairgrounds in Hutchison or the Colorado fairgrounds in Pueblo.)
It can move, as far as I’m concerned, but the WHERE question is a perplexing one.
I might drive to Gretna for the fair. I would NOT drive to Kearney.
I’ve hear the archway is neat, too- unfortunately, it’s pretty expensive. The only time I stopped in, I didn’t have the money to see it.
@CP
Tim Holzfaster is the owner of Ole’s and he asked me to let everyone know that they are alive and well and still open for business.
I’m glad to hear it!
<blockquote>Hey, thanks for the concern but we are still strong after 75 years. A few months back some folks called a radio show in Lincoln and said Cabela
@foxspit - Awesome! Glad to hear it! Trips to Colorado would not have been the same without lunch at Ole’s!
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