The Barrie Agricultural Society has selected a farm at the 10th Line and 20th Sideroad as the new location for its headquarters and event centre, society president John Madden announced at the Essa Township office yesterday (Tues., March 18).
The sale of the society’s previous property, the Barrie Event Centre, was announced in January 2007. It closed earlier this year. The society has been looking for a new home for the past year and a half and decided on Essa because of its strong agricultural community, said society treasurer George Bridge.
“The rural roots are what we’re looking for. They (Essa Township) are really into keeping the rural content, which is big for us,” he said. “It’s an impressive centre going forward and it will be a big boon for the agricultural community.”
The proposed 100-acre facility will feature year-round pavilions, large stables, a show ring, and other buildings, and is expected to cost between $12 million to $15 million.
The facility not only brings the society back to a rural setting, but it also almost triples the size of the property. The Barrie fairgrounds are on Essa Road, just east of Highway 400. The property is about 37 acres, and is surrounded by residential and commercial development.
“The barns and pavilions are going to be quite a bit larger, so they can handle national horse and cattle shows,” Madden said. “We’re trying to pull away from some of the commercial events, and get back into the agricultural events.”
The society said it also wants to make sure the natural characteristics of the land are maintained, and that the property will stay “green.” The site is currently a farm and was the location of the 1997 International Plowing Match. The society said it plans on using grass fields for parking, and will use trees to buffer the buildings from neighbours.
Essa Mayor David Guergis said the announcement is good for the township and the county, and that the future facility could draw a lot of people to Essa, both from across Canada and the world. While he welcomed the announcement, he said it is still early in the planning process, and the project still faces requirements of the township, county and province.
“This is an initial proposal, and we do have to go through the public process,” he said. “I don’t know if I would call them problems, but I would call them hurdles.”
Guergis said he is also happy about the plan for a new name for the society, the Essa and District Agricultural Society.
The society plans to fund construction of the facility with money received from the sale of its previous property. Last year it was announced that a Toronto-based real estate investment firm, Osmington Inc., bought the land for $33 million. Osmington plans on developing the property for retail.
The agricultural society hopes to have the new facilities up and running for its 2009 fair, and have the project complete by 2010.
In the meantime, Osmington is allowing the 2008 Barrie Fair to be held at the old fairgrounds one last time.
E-mail reporter Kurtis Elsner at kelsner@simcoe.com
