Daily Herald opinion: Transportation facility plan an opportunity to revive fairgrounds in DuPage
The large farms that once dotted the DuPage County landscape have long disappeared.
Still, the DuPage County Fair continues to educate tens of thousands of visitors each year about agriculture and the area’s farming roots. The fair serves a valuable role, and we want to see it thrive in the future. However, the county fairgrounds in Wheaton must be updated.
Anyone who has visited the fairgrounds property in recent years knows the buildings are dated. The grandstand seating, for example, has long been unused because of code violations found nearly a decade ago.
Fortunately, a plan to use part of the county-owned fairgrounds for a new transportation facility could result in needed upgrades to the remainder of the 33.7-acre site. DuPage County Board members recently approved a resolution to set aside land on the north end of the fairgrounds for a new facility for the DuPage Division of Transportation.
County officials say the proposed project — currently estimated to cost between $73 million and $82 million — is necessary because the existing highway maintenance facility on the west side of County Farm Road is too small and aging.
The new 160,000-square-foot building would house equipment, vehicles, including snow and ice trucks, and staff offices.
“We have to build for the future,” said county board member Mary FitzGerald Ozog, who chairs its transportation committee.
That makes a lot of sense. The transportation department is responsible for maintaining hundreds of miles of roads in the county. It should have the facilities it needs to do its job.
Still — as senior writer Katlyn Smith reported in a story published on Dec. 11 — officials sought to quell concerns among some neighbors and organizers of the county fair. A nonprofit entity leases the property from the county and hosts other events there.
As part of the transportation facility project, more than 4 acres of green space — the equivalent of three football fields — will be created on the fairgrounds. In addition, officials say the county plans to remove the grandstand and nearby barn stalls arranged in a U-shape.
DuPage County Board Chair Deborah Conroy says county officials see the project as an opportunity for “a rebirth of the fairgrounds.”
While she supports keeping the county fair at the fairgrounds, Conroy said enhancing the property could expand its use. For example, she says there could be more events related to the arts.
“I think we can really revitalize the whole entire space to bring the community together more often,” Conroy said.
If DuPage officials follow through on that approach, we look forward to what is next for the fairgrounds and the county fair in the years ahead.