Putnam Applying For Funding To Assist With Ag Pavilion Construction

Putnam County seeking grant funding to help with the construction of the Ag pavilion at the new fairgrounds.

Mayor Randy Porter said the county is applying for $2.4 million for what would be the second largest structure on the property.

“We feel good that we might be able to have a great chance of getting this grant,” Porter said. “So it’s a 80/20 match grant. Federal government pays 80 percent, and we pay 20. So anything we get from the grant is less money we have to pay out of county dollars.”

Porter said the county wants to submit the application in December with the hope of hearing back around February. Porter said more grant applications could be coming as UCDD works to find more funding opportunities.

“If everything works right, we may be going back to the commission in the next two or three months with another grant or two we are looking at,” Porter said. “We just have to see how those pan out. We’re always looking for grants out there to help this project along.”

Porter said the Expo Center would be the largest building at new the fairgrounds. Porter said the pavilion would be an indoor facility for shows and events.

“Probably pay somewhere close to 50 percent of the total cost to build that facility, but we will just have to wait and see,” Porter said.

The Putnam Commission approved $2.5 million in this year’s budget to start preliminary work at the Tennessee Avenue location. Porter said the goal is to start moving dirt next spring.