Friday, officials with the Santa Rosa County Board of County Commissioners and the Santa Rosa County Fair Association (SRCFA) unveiled a new plaque at the June Ates Arena in honor of June Hodgson Ates and her “dedication to the youth of Santa Rosa County.” The ceremony falls in conjunction with the renaming of the fair to the Santa Rosa County Fair and Youth Livestock Show. Both emphasize the county’s growing interest in agricultural education. Officials took this opportunity to discuss the growth of agricultural education in the county and efforts to meet this growth with phased infrastructure.
As the press release from the BOCC said, “The arena, completed in 2013, provides a venue for a wide variety of outdoor events from equestrian activities, heavy equipment and car shows, music festivals, and livestock competitions. Additionally, the area may be used as a staging area for personnel and supplies after a disaster.”
Speaking before the small assembly Friday, lead facility planner and fair volunteer, Kyle Holley, praised the relationship between the BOCC, the owner of the arena, and the SRCFA, the organization charged with running it voluntarily. This arrangement, Holley later noted, allows the county to pay for projects without spending tax dollars on the labor.
For its part in running the June Ates Arena, in a press release, Holley wrote, “The Santa Rosa County Fair Association has focused its community impact primarily on the development of a true agriculture complex known as the AGRI-PLEX to enable youth programming and larger events. The Junes Ates Arena…is considered by planners the first phase of the AGRI-PLEX and has enabled explosive growth in local youth livestock raising and showing; participation of local youth has increased 300 percent.”
This growth translates to 27 students expected to show steers, 15 students expected to show breeding heifers, over 50 students showing hogs, 20 students showing dairy and market goats, and 30 showing poultry totaling 142 participants just from Santa RosaCounty according to Santa Rosa County Fair and Youth Livestock Show planners, Holley said.
According to Robyn Enfinger, instructor for the Milton High School Agriculture Technology Academy, the second phase would see the development of the 25 acres above the arena for the purpose of hosting more and larger events and concerts. She said with more room, they could house animals over night for multi day equine and livestock events.
The next step to get there will be funding this second phase. Section 288.1175 of Florida Statutes specifically designates the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services as the state agency responsible for screening applicants for state funding and for certifying an applicant as a qualified agriculture education and promotion facility.
Holley submitted this second phase to the Department of Agriculture and asked for $643,000. The department ranked the project number one among the 21.
However, this place is where the county has been stymied. Holley said this is the fourth year the project has been ranked number one but every time the Department of Agriculture passed it over. While Holley said he didn’t understand why the project keeps inexplicably missing the mark, he said the local delegates are a committed and coordinated voice.
According to the letter Holley received after sending the application for the project, the 21 ranked projects “will be submitted to the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House and the Governor’s Budget Office for funding consideration.”
Keep up with the Press Gazette to see if this is the year the state recognizes Santa Rosa County’s efforts in agricultural education.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Officials seek growth for county Agri-Plex and honor June Ates