By Jeremy Peppas
Stephens Media

LITTLE ROCK — Officials today narrowed the search for a possible new site for the Arkansas State Fair to three Central Arkansas locations.

The Arkansas Livestock Show Association’s executive committee picked two adjacent locations in the Galloway area of North Little Rock near Interstate 40 and a third location on I-440 near Jacksonville.

The cost of the land factored heavily into the decision.

“As you know, one is free,” said Basil Shoptaw, a civil engineer with Thomas Engineering who helped put together the recommendations.

The free location was identified as No. 8 of the 19 locations originally considered by the committee — about 1,200 acres along I-440 just outside the Jacksonville city limits. The city offered the site.

“I still think we’ve got the best site,” said Jacksonville Mayor Gary Fletcher. “We’ve got a blank canvas out here.”

The sheer size of the site, the second largest of the original proposals, would give State Fair officials great latitude to plan new facilities, Fletcher said.

The other two locations are adjacent to each other at the Galloway exit on I-40 East.

“There was really nothing unattractive about the sites,” Shoptaw said.

All three feature extensive acreage and have access to I-40, a key criteria for the search committee, and contain at least 350 acres with adjacent property that also could be made available.

Terry Hartwick, president of the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce, said the two North Little Rock sites totaled 1,600 acres that could all be made available to the fair, if needed.

“Like I’ve said from the very beginning, north of the river is very attractive,” Hartwick said. “The fair, where it is now, it needs to be moved, and I think it is a good thing to be going forward.”

Since 1945, the State Fair has operated on 149 acres along Roosevelt Road in south-central Little Rock. Fifty-two acres are unusable because of train tracks that run through the property.

Shoptaw has said a study commissioned by the city concluded renovating the current location would cost about $57 million.