Ground was broken Friday afternoon for a new Blue Grass Stockyards that will replace the old facility, which burned to the ground in Lexington seven months ago. The $12 million facility will be built on 100 acres off Ironworks Pike near Interstate Highway 75.
“In the end, sound decisions were made. It’s the right kind of facility – modern, high-tech and in the right place to best serve the farmers, near the interstate,” Lexington Mayor Jim Gray told a crowd of guests gathered under a tent in a field where the new facility will be built.
In addition to the sales venue and offices, the facility will be able to host various agricultural events and businesses. About 50 people will work at the new site. No completion date was announced for the project.
Gray praised the many parties involved in the decision-making process for the new stockyards, including associations, as well as city, state and federal officials.
“It would take strong leadership to make the decisions we needed to make about where and how to rebuild the market,” said Gray. “They were determined to keep this center in Lexington.”
About 106,000 animals were sold at the Lexington market in 2015, plus another 50,000 sold online, according to city officials. Farmers were paid $200 million for that livestock. In seven locations, the market sells about $600 million in cattle each year.
“This means jobs for Lexington and the Bluegrass region. It supports our agriculture heritage,” said Gray. “We’re keeping the largest cattle market east of the Mississippi River right here at home.”
Jim Akers, chief operating office for Blue Grass Stockyards, talked about the shock he, other company officials and farmers felt when the massive fire hit the old stockyards in January.
“When you go through something like what we went through the last few months, you learn about people in the community that just understand about rolling up their sleeves and making things happen,” said Akers. “It has been wonderful to have the loyalty of our customers through this time.”