'Still work to do': 5 years later, Lubbock County Expo Center needs $17M for project
Almost five years after Lubbock County voters overwhelmingly supported a proposal to build a large exposition center in the county, project organizers are continuing to ask for the public's patience — and money — as they work to make the Lubbock County Expo Center a reality.
The project was spurred by a 2018 voter-approved increase to the county's hotel/motel and short-term rental car taxes and has yet to officially break ground five years later, although some work has been done at the site. As a public-private partnership, a steering committee was formed to oversee private fundraising efforts. Randy Jordan, chair of that committee, said Tuesday that although the committee has secured several substantial contributions, $17 million are still needed to fully fund the project.
"We're getting closer to our fundraising goals, but folks, we've still got a lot of work to do," Jordan said.
Jordan said the tax revenue toward the project is now projected to be around $40 million, with about $30 million already raised on the private side. The cost of the project has ballooned from the originally estimated $50 million to $87 million.
Lubbock County voters OKed the ballot item in November 2018 to use hotel/motel tax to fund an Expo Center to replace the now-razed Lubbock Municipal Coliseum. At the time, that was estimated to raise upward of $30 million, with the private steering committee responsible for raising funds to cover the rest, according to Avalanche-Journal reports from the time.
At least three businesses have made significant contributions to the Expo Center so far, though the committee has not released the details of those sponsorship deals. The Helen Jones Foundation committed $10 million to the project in 2022 and Jordan said the committee received another "substantial" foundation contribution last week, though he declined to name the foundation or reveal the amount of the donation.
More: Terry County Tractor sponsors Expo Center
Jordan said architectural and construction plans for the facility are already completed, but construction on the 500,000-square-foot center at North Loop 289 and University Avenue will not begin until the committee is confident they have the funding to complete it.
"The county nor our board is going to break ground until we know that we've got the funding in place to be able to do that, to be able to support that budget," Jordan said.
Some work has been done at the site to date. Workers dug an elevator pit earlier this year to prevent the City of Lubbock construction permit from expiring in mid-May.
The steering committee released final renderings and a virtual tour of the Expo Center Tuesday, and Jordan stressed that while little has been done at the 133-acre site so far, progress continues slowly.
"It's a challenge, not a roadblock," Jordan said. "What we've had to do is pray every day that God would give us the wisdom and the knowledge to be able to find that pathway so that we can get there."
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: 5 years later, Lubbock County Expo Center still needs $17M for project
