The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

Although the year is gradually coming to a close and the target September completion date has come and gone, the Blaine County Fair Foundation (BCFF) hasn't broken stride in their efforts to get the Indoor Event Center built and operational. In a meeting in September, the BCFF approved a contractor bid from Rock Bottom, LLC, a company owned and operated by Cody Kissner of Chinook. Offering the best price, Kissner was the only one to bid within the BCFF's budget.

Before the recent heavy snowfall and below zero temperatures, Kissner and his crew of seven guys were already at work, digging trenches for setting rebar and eventually pouring cement. However, all work has stopped until the weather warms and the site dries out somewhat.

"We were hoping to pour cement by Friday, November 15, but the weather has put that idea on hold," Kissner said. "I'm glad to have this job so close to home because if we have a good day weather-wise, we can rush over and make some progress, and we can get some revenue for the guys during the wintertime," he added.

Kissner, who has been working in stages and under separate contracts on the project since early October, had wanted to get the foundation phase of the project underway more promptly, but funding complications and securing certain permits prevented progress. "We were waiting for a report from an engineer about the snow load," Kissner said. The project stalled until that report was complete.

The snow load concern arose after part of the roof at a Montana State University fitness center in Bozeman collapsed in early March. Assessments from engineers involved in assessing that situation suggested that the older materials and the unprecedented snowfall in Montana this past February may have contributed to the collapse of the roof on the Bozeman campus.

"The building that we acquired from Malstrom Air Force Base is made of similar materials and from an era when buildings were engineered for normal precipitation, so we were waiting to determine a course of action," President of the BCFF, Dale Williams said. "Montana's 2018-2019 winter was an unusual one, but we don't want something similar to what happened in Bozeman to occur here," he stated.

Glenn Huestis, a local resident, purchased the surplus 100 x 200-foot metal building from Malstrom Air Force Base and donated it to Blaine County several years ago. Before being rescued from a county storage area, the building in a box sat on Poor Farm Lane in Chinook. Local historians claim that this was called the Poor Farm and served as housing for the poor during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl Days.

According to BCFF Secretary, Laura Kleinjan, initial site work for the Event Center was completed by Moxley Construction last fall, and the BCFF hopes to see the foundation phase complete before the end of this year since they are still trying to satisfy the constraints of the Montana State Tourism Grant that they were awarded in March 2018.

About their current contractor, Rock Bottom, Kleinjan spoke with confidence and enthusiasm: "We're so excited to have Cody. He is such a hard worker! He has been an asset to us because he has negotiated prices and secured discounts since we have non-profit status. Plus, he's using all local workers on his crews and buying materials and supplies from local businesses in Havre, Chinook, and Harlem, and that was one of our goals for the project."

If the concrete gets poured and cures yet this fall, the next phase of the building will continue in mid-January when crews will erect structural beams, followed by the siding and roofing phases.

Although the Indoor Event Center will eventually have bathrooms, those won't go in immediately, even though the plumbing is all readily available. "Luxuries will come as the donations and grants continue to flow in," Kleinjan said.

And fundraising efforts have gone well. "With our commemorative brick project, we've sold 35 bricks to date, bringing in over $6,000," Kleinjan reported. "Several businesses have purchased custom bricks to advertise, and other people have purchased them as memorials for a loved one, family ranch, or individual and had them engraved with a special message," she explained.

Although the bricks will be permanently displayed in the Indoor Event Center, the BCFF hopes to give them all a ride and the donors some exposure during Chinook's 34th Annual Parade of Lights, which is scheduled for Friday, November 29.

Memorial Bricks are available in two sizes: 4" x 8" or 8" x 8". The smaller bricks can be personalized with up to three lines of text, 20 characters and/or spaces per line. To the larger bricks, two additional lines of 20-character text each can be added. Any symbol-whether a comma, period or dash-is considered a character, and spaces also figure into the character count. For an additional cost, individuals can add brands, logos, or custom clip art. They can even purchase a mini replica of their brick.

To purchase a brick, interested persons can contact Kleinjan by calling 406-390-2651 or emailing Blainecountyfairfoundation@gmail.com. Kleinjan will personally work with individuals to develop a design. Memorial Brick order forms are also available at the Fair Office located on 300 Cleveland Road West in Chinook.

All money raised from the bricks will go directly to fund the building. Kleinjan wished to remind everyone that no county funds or taxpayer money is being used to construct this building. "Every penny has been donated through fundraisers, such as the Brew Fest on January 26 and the Community Garage Sale held on October 26."

According to Kleinjan, donations have come from as far away as California. Various grants for LED lighting and overhead doors for the building have also been awarded. "This project has been in the works for over three years now and will be a reminder for generations to come as to what a small community can do when we all come together for the common good of our town," Kleinjan said.

"Donations of any amount are tax deductible," Kleinjan added. Anyone wishing to contribute to this project can make checks payable to Blaine County Fair Foundation (BCFF) and mail them to BCFF, PO Box 1207; Chinook, MT 59523.

When completed, the Indoor Event Center will be available for private event rental and public use-from hosting professional dog trainers to holding car shows and bull and horse sales. "It will also provide a place for 4-Hers to practice showing their livestock; it wouldn't be exclusively for horse events," Kleinjan said.

"The facility will have a dirt floor, but when rainy weather threatens an outdoor event, it can move indoors and still get attendance. With all of these options, the Event Center can be a money-maker for the annual county fair as well as ensuring that it generates revenue for the day to day operation and maintenance of the fairgrounds," she added.

In Kleinjan's opinion, continued support of BCFF fundraisers will help to make these plans a reality. "We've experienced such generosity from the community so far, not only from support of our fundraising efforts but from our fair board members, who all volunteer and donate countless hours of their own time. I can't begin to name all of the generous people, but we want to give a shout out to Ted Powell for his gravel donation, to Red Rock Power and Triple T Sales for donating the use of equipment, and to Moxley Construction for all of their aid and assistance."

With additional time, planning, and capital applied to the Indoor Event Center, the more likely it is that Blaine County will benefit from the project. Just as Kevin Costner's character in the 1989 film Field of Dreams (Universal Pictures) listened to intuition in building a baseball diamond, Blaine County communities are putting in the effort to attract more donors and more willing hands in order to eventually draw an economic payoff.