Materials arrive for collapsed Lewis County fair building
Construction has yet to start for Lewis County structure, which fell under snow
This story has been corrected from its original version to correct a wrong name of a business.
Lewis County Commission Chairman Greg Johnson said he noticed a big pile of metal on the county fairgrounds when he arrived for the regular commission meeting Monday morning.
The materials have been delivered for the new $925,000 Lewis County Fair building, Johnson said. But assembly of the metal building has not yet started.
“I’m not sure of the sequence but I would say we’re right on schedule,” Johnson said. “It’s kind of a wait-and-see when the contractor can get in there. We’ll probably know more when we know what the weather is supposed to do. There’s been snow there until lately and things are just starting to dry out.”
The new fair building will replace the original 80-foot by 120-foot metal building in Nezperce that was the main showing arena for 4-H and FFA livestock contests. It collapsed Jan. 6, 2022 under a heavy snowfall. The building was a total loss but some livestock pens were salvageable and will be used in the new building, officials have said.
Arnzen Construction of Cottonwood is the primary contractor for the new building. All of the cost but the $1,000 deductible will be paid by the county’s insurance company, Idaho Counties Risk Management Program.
The county also received a number of large donations from businesses and individuals that will be used to pay for insulation and bathrooms in the new building.
The donations include $50,000 from Ag West Farm Credit and $15,000 each from Avista, Cottonwood Credit Union and Freedom Northwest in Kamiah. Cloninger’s Markets donated $5,000.
Lewis County was without its own fair building last September so accommodations were made to use the Idaho County fairgrounds in Cottonwood.
The new building will be situated in the same spot as the old structure. It will be 100-feet-by-120-feet, making it a little wider but shorter to allow more walking space in the alleyway between the livestock building and the sheep, rabbit, poultry and specialty pet sheds. The alleyway also will be paved.
Johnson said people in the community are eager to see work on the new structure to begin.
“I’ve been getting lots of questions,” he said. “People want to know what’s going on. If they see metal on the ground they know something is going on.”
Hedberg may be contacted at khedberg@lmtribune.com.
