New pedestrian bridge is being installed at Cedar County Fairgrounds

HARTINGTON – The Cedar County Fair wants to make it easy for attendees to connect with the activities at the annual event.

Members of the County Fair Board have been working hard and volunteering their time to complete a literal connection – the construction of a new pedestrian bridge – in time for the 2024 edition of the county fair, scheduled for July 17-21.

Fair Board President Greg Heine noted the point of the bridge – which will cross over the Norwegian Bow Creek – is to allow access to the fairgrounds from about two-and-a-half acres of land that are home to campsites and a parking area.

“We needed more campground space and needed more parking space,” Heine said. “We own that land over there and we just never had access to it because it's always been separated off.”

The bridge will measure 10 feet by 70 feet and be made of a red steel deck that sits on top of a concrete foundation and has ramps at each end to be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

“This is an easy way to add a really nice feature to our fairgrounds – a nice, cool bridge that goes across the creek,” Heine said. “On top of that, it's right next to our grounds. It's about the only way we could expand right here. It'll be a really cool sight once we get it all put together.”

He also described the bridge, which was designed by an engineer, as “an easy way to add on two-and-a-half acres” by providing a crossing over the creek to the Southeast Campgrounds.

“We're adding 10 spots over there,” Heine said of new campsites. “It's got the ability to be up to 50 spots over there. We're only adding 10 this year, just to get those filled.

“When we keep filling those, we'll add some more,” he said. “Before that, we had about 45 spots. This (project) is going to put us up to 55. By the time it's all said and done, we'll be at 95.”