Margin Call: Ag Expo Center on a stick

If you can put it on a stick, it sells.
Corn dogs on a stick. Fried Twinkie on a stick. Fried candy bar on a stick. Fried peach on a stick.
Better yet, deep-fry it, then stick it on a stick.
It’s a strategy the Buchanan County Commission may want to consider: Ag Expo Center on a stick.
The proposed center, slated for the intersection of I-29 and U.S. Highway 169 North, is a high-tech, modern fairgrounds. The arena floor would be nearly an acre in size. There are stalls for more than 600 animals. An RV park would have 140 pads.
Looking at the artist’s drawings of the complex, you can practically hear the announcer call for the next class of lambs to enter the show ring. Youngsters in boots and Wranglers brush the hair of docile steers. A refreshing breeze carries the scent of fresh straw, manure and fried onion on a stick.
For so many reasons, the expo center makes sense for St. Joseph, for the region, for the largest industry in the four-state area.
The commissioners believe the facility could be booked nearly every weekend of the year. Besides the arena, they’re proposing a convention meeting space that could be used by many organizations, whether ag-related or not. University of Missouri Extension has talked about moving offices to the new site.
The opportunities for education for students and farmers are exciting to consider. Agriculture has done so much to build this community, from the stockyards and the American Angus Association to Triumph Foods and Ag Processing, it’s fitting to invest in the future of agriculture.
The only problem is the price tag: $30 million. That puts taxpayers on the stick.
The county owns most of the land, but will need to purchase at least another 10 acres. The site work required is tremendous. So is the infrastructure, although they hope to hook in with the Greystone housing project in the area. Wonder if nearby homeowners are aware of the aromas — like fried pickle on a stick — that will be coming out of the barns.
Naming rights are a potential source of income. How does the Boehringer-Ingelheim Ag Expo Center sound? Maybe the BioZyme Livestock Arena.
The commission has done its homework. By equipping the facility to serve as an emergency shelter, it could qualify for federal grants. The county expects to make a return on investment not from renting the facility, but on sales tax that visitors spend at restaurants, hotels and stores.
A lot more research is needed, especially in this economy, to make sure the expo center can be successful. I hope it works. I’ve got a hankering for a corn dog.