JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A new building at the site of the future Jacksonville Fairgrounds was damaged during stormy weather Sunday afternoon.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
Action News Jax first reported in 2022 that the Fairgrounds are moving out of Downtown Jacksonville and over to the Westside next year.
Thankfully, it sounds like this will not cause any major delays in terms of completion.
Read: ‘It’s going to be a different fair:’ Construction greenlit for new fairgrounds on Westside
Jacksonville Fairgrounds CEO Bill Olson tells Action News Jax that the majority of the damage was done to the columns and beams of what is supposed to be the future Fairgrounds Expo.
Olson said most of the damage happened to the columns and beams. Construction of the expo began just last week and about 20,000 square ft. of the skeleton was already built.
“The total building is about 80,000 square feet. They had a little under half of the main hall done,” said Olson.
The full $60 million project was originally expected to be finished by late this year or early next.
“The lighter runners for the roof and that kind of stuff which is light metal will probably have to be replaced, but the bigger dollar number stuff would be ok,” said City Councilman Randy White.
Read: Company owned by Shad Khan buys Jacksonville Fairgrounds
White, who represents the district, told Action News Jax this is absolutely repairable, but there will be at least a two to three week delay.
“It was pretty windy this morning and you never know what it’s going to cause. Obviously a down burst. It must’ve come through here and tore through the building they started last Tuesday,” said White.
White adds nobody was working on Sunday morning, therefore no injuries were reported.
The damage estimates are still unknown.
Read: Two-way travel to be reintroduced to streets in Downtown Jacksonville
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
