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David Nicholas: A decision on a proposed entertainment complex within the Alpena fairgrounds remains unresolved as the busy season of 4-H activities and the annual county fair gets underway.
The proposal from BlackWaters NE calls for renovations and construction to the stage, grandstand, and also some of the barns.
Kayla Wikaryasz has been reporting on this for the Alpena News. I spoke with her about where negotiations stand.
Kayla Wikaryasz: BlackWaters NE is a development company that approached the Alpena County about renovating the Alpena County Fairgrounds in the hopes of creating kind of an entertainment complex. So that would include upgrading the existing stage, the existing grandstands, some of the barns. The hopes is to bring in some events like concerts, some festivals and things like that.
DN: The timeline of this has been fairly drawn out then from the beginning. When was that development first proposed?
KW: So the development company first approached our county administrator, Jesse Asmer, on March 19th. At that point, this proposal was then brought to the fair board on March 24th in a closed session. From that point, a lot of those negotiations and those discussions were happening behind closed doors. The proposal was first brought to the full board in a public meeting on April 17th.
On May 5th, that is when the Fair Society decided to cease negotiations with Blackwaters. And that was when the county decided to take some of the suggestions and some of the concerns that the Fair Board had. and to take that into a new proposal and contract that they're continuing to discuss and negotiate at this point.
DN: And your earlier reporting also brought up the subject of the opposition. And so the question is why are people against the idea as proposed?
KW: There was some concern from the 4-H community that they wouldn't be able to have access to their or to the fairgrounds for their programming and for their members to do their animal clinics, to do their animal presentations when they go at the fair and they're able to show their animals. And that has been a continuing concern from that community and that organization.
The other concern is from, I would say, just regular residents of Alpena County, concerns regarding the environment. Some of the residents that live around the fairgrounds had expressed concern about, noise, about traffic, infrastructure to handle an influx of people coming to Alpena. whether or not we have enough lodging for people, if we have enough people to actually work at the proposed entertainment complex. I do believe at the fair board or had expressed concern at prior meetings about their level of access to the fairgrounds during fair time, host their events and to have their fair as they have, for the past 100 plus years.
DN: Looking at the calendar then, is there an update on when the board takes up the issue again?
KW: We are expecting at least a discussion, potentially a vote on June 9th. We don't have an updated proposal or contract yet. So we're interested in seeing what that's going to look like and if we're able to get that previous to the vote.
DN: Sorting it out as much as we've been able to, we certainly do appreciate it. Kayla, thank you very much for taking the time and your reporting on this.
KW: Of course, thank you for the time.
