• By Todd Luck
• Posted Wednesday, August 18, 2021

County accepting feedback on proposed Multi-Use Event Center with online survey

Forsyth County Government is accepting public input on the proposed Multi-Use Agricultural Event Center through an online survey located on the county’s Parks website, www.forsyth.cc/parks, now through September 12.

The Multi-Use Agricultural Event Center was part of the 2016 County Parks and Recreation Bond passed by voters in 2016. The $5 million project was to develop, plan, and construct an agricultural multi-use event center at an existing Forsyth County park. After studying numerous sites, staff made a presentation to the county commissioners in a publicly televised and live streamed meeting on November 19, 2020 to recommend locating it at Tanglewood Park. After the County Commissioners were briefed in a public meeting in July on a staff recommendation for a firm to design the facility and, if the design was later approved, to also build it, notable public opposition was expressed about the project.

The county then delayed consideration of the item and held several public input meetings on it and is now accepting feedback on the project and its potential location at Tanglewood via the online survey through Sept. 12. Staff will report the results of the meetings and the survey to the commissioners, as they decide what to do next with this project.

Survey participants are encouraged to review the information on the webpage for this project before taking the survey. This includes concept art of what a multi-use center might look like, information on the project and sites that were studied, and 2016 bond information.

The webpage also includes research that staff did on finances of existing agriculture event centers in the state. Like most government recreational facilities, this center is not designed to turn a profit, but to provide a service to the community and attract visitors to the area that will spend money, which will contribute to the local economy and generate tax revenue.