To construct an Arts and Heritage Center on the fair grounds. The Sibley County Fair will erect an Arts and Heritage Center with a 40 foot stage and two dressing rooms. The building will primarily serve as an educational arts and culture center for the fair. The fair will present acts on the stage from six to eight hours per day during the fair.
To rehabilitate the original horse racing judges’ stand. The stand is the last relic of the 143 year old fair grounds and dates back to the late 1800’s. The stand is comprised of a first story entry and refreshment area, and an upper section for judging the races. It’s 360 degree observation of the track was made possible by its hexagon shape and large doors that could be lifted when needed on each side. This is the first stage of the multi-year restoration of this prized building and is an important part of the plan to initiate a daily educational program at the fair.
The proposed project area covers roughly one hundred square miles within Sibley County, but also includes a small portion of Nicollet County where Judicial Ditch 1A runs into the south branch of the Rush River. One lake and seven streams are part of the proposed project monitoring sites. Of the seven stream locations, two are part of the High Island Creek Watershed, while the remaining five are part of the Rush River Watershed. The lone lake, Lake Washington, falls within the Bevens Creek Watershed.
The City of Rochester is proposing to modify the Silver Lake Dam with a fish passage rock arch rapids in 2025. This project is the first step in a comprehensive, long-term approach to modify all low head dams in the City to improve habitat connectivity in the South Fork Zumbro River network. The existing dam will be moved 700-ft upstream from the Broadway Avenue bridge, and fish passage ramp and wave pools constructed downstream of the dam crest. The dam conversion will add 16 miles of connected habitat and benefit state-threatened and native mussel species, as well as smallmouth bass.