Table of Contents
About Northeast Regional Park
By mutual agreement, Boone County transferred property ownership in 2020 of the 135-acre property formerly known as Boone County Fairgrounds and Central Missouri Event Center to the City of Columbia for “public recreation and entertainment purposes” with the understanding the property would come under the management of the Parks and Recreation Department. This property serves as a regional park located in northeast Columbia.
Currently, the Northeast Event Center on the property is available for rental. The Northeast Event Center is under a lease agreement with Veterans United from Oct. 1 through Dec. 31. There is an annual lease agreement with UPS for a portion of the site’s parking lots. The property is also used annually for the Boone County Fair. The agreement between Boone County and the City of Columbia allows for continued use of 23 acres of the property for the Boone County Fair for a period of at least 10 days per year. The City of Columbia and Boone County Fair, Inc. have entered into an operating agreement to honor that commitment.
Parks and Recreation staff is conducting a feasibility study and facility assessment to determine future uses at the park. Upon completion of the assessment, Parks and Recreation will conduct public input meetings to develop a master plan for the property and to identify possible funding sources for property improvements.
For more information, see the City Council legislation related to the transfer of the fairgrounds property ownership.
Acres: 135
Park Hours: 6 a.m. – 11 p.m.
Rental Information
To rent indoor space, see Rental of the Northeast Event Center (available Jan. 1-Sept. 30)
Uses not allowed:
Overnight camping
Livestock stabling
Buildings on site
In 2001, the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism – University of Missouri did a “Site and Space Analysisopens PDF file ” that included an inventory of the buildings on site, listing 21 buildings. Building dimensions and features have not been verified by Parks and Recreation. The Manager’s Residence is no longer on site and has been removed from the list. The Sapp Arena was constructed in 2009, after the 2001 inventory was conducted, and has been added to the list.
Park history
Year Property Acquired: 2020
Purchase Price: $0 (Ownership transferred)
Acquired From: Boone County
This history of the fairgrounds property was compiled from the following documents:
- Boone County Fairgrounds – Site and Space Analysisopens PDF file
Prepared by: The Department of Park, Recreation and Tourism, University of Missouri – Columbia, September 2001 - History of the Boone County Fairopens PDF file
Columbia Daily Tribune, December 1, 2017 - City Council Legislation
May 4, 2020 - News Release: Sapp Building Covered Arena Opens with Large Horse Show
Boone County, November 13, 2009
Late 1800’s
The earliest documented landowners used the land for row crops and livestock raising, with wagon roads extending along the west and the Wabash Railroad bordering on the east side. The O’Rear cemetery originally was located in the center of the property and was moved to the southwest corner of the property for the building of the fairgrounds. The O’Rear family owned the land from the late 1800’s until the turn of the 20th century.
1952-1959
John H.H. Maxwell owned the land when the regional airport moved on to a portion of the property. In 1952 the E. W. “Cotton” Woods Memorial Airport was constructed. The airport operated until 1959 when it could no longer meet FAA requirements for runway length.
1971
John H.H. Maxwell owned and worked the land as a dairy farm until 1971.
1973-Late 1980’s
The Aero Industrial Enterprises possessed the property from 1973 until the late 1980’s. After selling property to Aero Industrial Enterprises, Mr. Maxwell resided in a house on the north central portion of the property off of Oakland Gravel Road. The zoning remained agricultural until the arrival of the fairgrounds.
1991
1999
The large debt load led to financial difficulties for the Boone County Fair Board, which prompted the sale of 135 acres, now known as the Central Missouri Events Center, to the Boone County Commission for $2.6 million.
2001
A Site and Space Analysis of the property was prepared by the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism – University of Missouri. The analysis included an inventory of the 21 buildings on the site.
2007-2009
In 2007, a consultant recommended a covered equestrian arena as the number one way to increase revenues at the Boone County Fairgrounds. When Billy and Glenda Sapp of Columbia donated a 22,000 square-foot building to the County in 2008, the Boone County Commission decided to use the building for a covered warm-up arena at the Fairgrounds. The building was taken down and transported from Old Hawthorne to the Fairgrounds with the help of community volunteers and the Boone County Fair Board. Construction of the arena began in the spring of 2009. Community support for the arena has also included monetary donations from MFA Oil, MFA Charitable Foundation, Boone County Farm Bureau and Boone Electric. A Thanksgiving weekend horse show held on November 27-29, 2009 marked the grand opening of the Sapp Building Covered Arena at the Boone County Fairgrounds.
2014
Boone County voters rejected Proposition EPIC, an eighth-cent sales tax to support operations at the Central Missouri Events Center, in August 2014 with 18,165 “no” votes to the 9,206 “yes” votes.
2015
The Boone County Commission closed the Central Missouri Events Center on Jan. 1, 2015, following the failure of Proposition EPIC, but allowed the fair board to host the fair on the site that summer at a cost of $30,000.
2016-2019
In 2016, the Boone County Fair was moved from the Central Missouri Events Center to the Sturgeon fairgrounds for the first time. The fair remained in Sturgeon 2017-2019. In 2019, the Boone County Commission entered into a three-year lease agreement with UPS and and a three-year lease agreement with Veterans United for use of various areas of the property.
2020
In 2020, the Boone County Commission will transfer ownership of 135 acres of the Boone County Fairgrounds (a.k.a. Central Missouri Events Center) without cost to the City of Columbia to be used “for recreation and entertainment purposes,” with the understanding that the property would come under the management of the Parks and Recreation Department. Boone County retained ownership of Tract #2, the area west of the property between N. Oakland Gravel Road and U.S. Highway 63.
As per the agreement, the City of Columbia would honor the existing lease agreements and allow continued use of 23 acres of the property for the Boone County Fair for a period of at least 10 days per year, per an operating agreement between the City of Columbia and Boone County Fair, Inc.
Parks and Recreation intends to conduct public input meetings in order to develop a master plan for the property and identify possible funding sources for property improvements.
Capital improvement projects and council items
| year completed | project description | council items |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Council Item: Property transfer of ownership | View Council Item |
| 2021 | Council Item: Authorizing usage agreements with Veterans United and Boone County Fair, Inc. | View Council Item |
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