Bedford County fair representatives say $21,000 state grant will fund bleacher, electrical and PA upgrades

A fair representative told Bedford County leaders that a statewide Tennessee Department of Agriculture grant administered through the Tennessee Association of Fairs and Expositions (TAFF) included a Bedford County share of "just a little over 20 grand" — "like 21 grand and some change" — to pay for safety and infrastructure improvements at the county fairgrounds.

The presenter, who did not give a full name in the record and is identified in this article as "the fair representative," said the grant is a one-time award and listed required reporting steps: recipients must submit before-and-after photos, expenditure documentation and impact statements to the association, which will consolidate local reports and seek additional funding from the state.

Why it matters: the county fairgrounds host vendors, livestock shows and children’s programming, and the representative said improvements are intended to boost safety, event capability and longevity of equipment. At the meeting the representative highlighted several specific projects and estimated costs: replacing bleacher carriage bolts with galvanized bolts ("the carriage bolts alone are almost $2,400"), replacing walk boards using 2x8 treated lumber, finishing LED lighting in the building center, replacing metal-halide fixtures at the edges, upgrading box fans, replacing and labeling circuit work inside building 2 and replacing GFIs in the livestock barn. The representative also described plans for a permanent livestock PA and a sitewide PA to support weather announcements and event communications.

The representative said vendors and event operators would benefit from a larger transformer and upgraded distribution panels to allow trailer hookups and better power distribution. He said a small 15-foot three-tier aluminum bleacher was obtained via sponsors and placed on the grounds separately from the grant-funded work.

On how the money is handled, the mayor said the grant funds "comes to me. We already have money in hand. We are ready to proceed." The representative identified Kyle Robinson as vice president involved in leading the project and said he and Robinson are heading the improvements.

The presenter characterized the statewide program as covering 57 county fairs and said the total grant pool was $1.5 million; he also cited an industry figure — that fairs "bring in totally combined in excess of 315 billion dollars into the state of Tennessee" — presented as the speaker's claim in the meeting record. The transcript contains a mix of acronyms for the association (recorded as both "TAF" and "TAFF"); this article uses TAFF and expands it as Tennessee Association of Fairs and Expositions for clarity.

Next steps: the presenter said the fair will turn in required paperwork to the association so it can pursue additional funding and push for a recurring statewide line item for fair improvements. The presenter also said he would ask the county to consider a small budget allocation next year to stretch the local funds farther. County leaders did not record a formal vote on these items during the meeting.

Quote from the meeting: "Our portion of that was just a little over 20 grand. Like 21 grand and some change is what our portion of that was for Bedford County," the fair representative said, describing the award and how it will be used.

The fair representative gave contact directions for follow-up (he named "Bill" and a person recorded in the transcript as "Mr. Pharaoh").