Financing approved for new 4-H building

By JoAn Bjarko
North Forty News

Plans to open a 4-H building at the Larimer County Fairgrounds in 2006 are moving ahead with a decision by the county commissioners to borrow $3 million from a reserve fund.

The Dec. 20 decision came just in time to order a steel building and possibly have the 27,000-square-foot facility open by fair time.

The end-of-year financing flurry followed the mid-December announcement that McKee Charitable Trust gave $800,000 toward the $4.32 million building, which will be called the Thomas N. McKee 4-H, Youth and Community Building. This is the single largest gift ever received by the fairgrounds complex.

McKee, a farmer, businessman and philanthropist, died in 1980. A condition of the gift requires that the new facility be available to other nonprofit groups. Fairgrounds director Jay Hardy said he will develop a policy for that purpose, although scheduling priority will be given to 4-H groups.

Although funds are not yet available, the commissioners also told the staff to include an indoor shooting range in the plans. Shooting sports is one of the most popular 4-H programs.

Commissioner Kathay Rennels suggested the county call together the shooting range task force that looked for property several years ago and give it the mission of finding the money to build at the fairgrounds. Estimated cost is a minimum of $2 million. The task force would also have to develop a method to pay for operation and maintenance.

"Because this is such a stretch, we have to look at the shooting range being 100 percent self-supporting," said budget director Bob Keister.

The fairgrounds is borrowing the $3 million from the solid waste department's reserve for future landfill replacement. The debt will be repaid at the same rate of interest that the fund would receive if invested by the county treasurer. About 2 percent currently, the interest rate will vary with the market. In comparison, the county would pay around 5 percent interest if borrowing from an outside source.

"This is a bold proposal," public works director Marc Engemoen told the commissioners, adding that the financing plan for the 4-H building stretches the fairgrounds to the limits of what it can repay.