Williams County agrees to negotiate terms for purchase of Upper Missouri Valley Fairgrounds; staff directed to return with agreement

The Williams County Board of County Commissioners on July 15 authorized county staff to continue negotiating terms to purchase the Upper Missouri Valley Fairgrounds and to return to the commission with a written agreement for formal approval. The board’s action was a vote of support for the staff report and direction to finalize details with the fair association. The motion passed on a roll call vote with all commissioners present voting yes.

The vote came after a lengthy staff presentation by Helen (county staff) and discussion with Shane Cymbalek, president of the Upper Missouri Valley Fair Association, who attended the meeting. The county’s original written offer — provided to commissioners in advance — proposed a $300,000 purchase to retire the fair association’s outstanding loan and creation of a grant funding mechanism for future projects. The fair association’s counterproposal requested a different funding structure, including a request for $200,000 annually…