The Victoria Park grandstand was heavily damaged in a fire on May 7, 2024. (Matt Hermiz/Bayshore Broadcasting News)
The Owen Sound Agricultural Society is planning to repair the Victoria Park grandstand and install a new building.
Past President Hiliary Breadner says after the fire which destroyed part of the grandstand and the building under it last year, they are planning to move ahead with demolition plans in the immediate future.
“We are going through with the demolition of the building underneath of the grandstand, that is where the area of seating was affected by the fire. From there we will have to have the engineers reassess the building and make sure everything is good to move forward and build it back to somewhat of its former glory,” says Breadner.
While there are no exact timelines as of yet for when demolition will begin, the organization is trying to work with the City of Owen Sound to come up with an alterative to the building that was lost underneath the grandstand and potentially building it off to the side at Victoria Park.
“Right after the fire we worked immediately with our insurance company to get this all rolling and it has just taken this long to have the stars align and have everything so that we could get to this point,” says Breadner. “It is a relief to see some forward progression.”
To goal is to have the grandstand repaired by the fall fair this September.
