Defects found with C. Ind. county fair grandstands

MUNCIE, Ind. — A central Indiana county faces a big bill to replace its fairgrounds grandstand after an inspection found numerous safety problems.

Delaware County commissioner Larry Bledsoe tells The Star Press ) that the 3,000-seat grandstand at the fairgrounds in Muncie is now "absolutely off limits."

Officials decided to have the grandstand inspected after the deadly stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair in August. Inspectors found the Delaware County grandstand had places where the superstructure had rusted through and instances where support plates were hovering above their bases.

Fair board president Jim Mansfield says the grandstand was built around 1952 and that demolition and replacement is estimated at $900,000.

Bledsoe says he hopes the work can be done soon, although the county has reduced its fair funding in budget cuts.