New fair layout to delight fairgoers this September
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Happy Days are here again as the 2022 Western Fair returns this September.
“An exciting new annual fair layout is in store for fairgoers in 2022,” says Reg Ash, CEO of the Western Fair Association.
The redesign of buildings, midways, parking and agriculture offerings will provide a more cohesive and interconnected fair experience come the start of the fall classic. The re-design will take all the fun of the midway, outdoor food, exhibitors, attractions and entertainment and wrap them around a new home for community displays, competitive arts, indoor attractions and arts and culture exhibits — the Agriplex.
Many fair fans will remember the Agriplex as the home of animal exhibits, livestock breed displays and farm programming, and most recently a vaccine clinic throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. This fall the fair team will convert the ’plex back into a big, modern indoor display space for London’s award-winning fair.
The Agriplex will be a game-changer for indoor exhibits, attractions and community competitions at the fair. Traditional fair display buildings of the past, on the north side of the grounds, have all been successfully repurposed. London’s Best Market lives in the beautiful old Confederation Building, and the Canada and Progress Buildings now serve as the Western Fair Association’s new agri-food hub – The Grove.
Animals and farming displays, an important educational element of an agricultural fair in an urban centre, will move to the Raceway’s handsome Paddock facility. The barn, built in 2001 for housing horses during the Western Fair District’s race season, will transform into a more intimate and interactive agriculture experience. The space is an exciting project for the fair team to re-develop for our livestock and animal experts, as well as the thousands of fair guests who make a visit to the barn a must-do activity when at the fair.
Music and concerts will also evolve to provide a new indoor experience for fair attendees, with the Western Fair Sports Centre’s Olympic Bowl converted from ice surface to concert space for a couple of nights this fall.
“A newly designed fair is just one of many changes to the district, and our team, since our last event in 2019,” says Reg Ash, CEO.
Western Fair Association’s board, management and staff have accommodated many changes throughout the last two years, and the organization continues to innovate to serve its agricultural mandate in new ways. “Our traditional fair footprint was inevitably going to change by the advancement of The Grove — our new agri-business hub which repurposed many older fair buildings, and the introduction of London’s Rapid Transit along King, Ontario and Dundas streets, as well as Queens Park on the North side of the grounds. The reimagined fair blueprint will prepare us for future success and functionality of our ever-evolving London landmark,” says Ash.
The Western Fair’s team of dedicated employees are happy to get back to business and launch the new fair and new layout, with all the fun, rides, food, competitions, music and animals our customers have come to love. The pandemic has reminded everyone how much we miss being together and the significance of community, and the annual fair has been that memorable meeting place for all for more than a century, surviving wars, fires, depressions and now pandemics.
The Western Fair, one of Canada’s largest fairs and a Top 10 event in Ontario, is excited to welcome fair fans and families back to its first fair in two years, Sept. 9-18, 2022. Happy Days are here again as rides, food, entertainment, indoor displays and competitions, animals and attractions decorate the grounds for a last blast of fun this fall. Check out admissions, promotions and fair information at westernfair.ca further details, attractions and entertainment announced throughout the summer.
This story was provided by Western Fair District for commercial purposes.
