New rodeo grounds a possibility for Standard

By Adreena Duffala Times Contributor and Janet Kanters Times Editor

The Standard Rodeo Society is hoping to expand its rodeo grounds to a new site within the village.
On Jan. 7, the village held an information session for residents to speak to the society’s proposal for a permanent outdoor rodeo arena to be built near the site of the former school.
Robyn Zakariasen, secretary of the rodeo society, took residents through the society’s vision of what the new grounds would consist of. Beyond the obvious arena for rodeo-related events, the society proposed to develop a park-like setting, with picnic tables, planting of trees, washrooms, a parking lot to accommodate visitors, and hopefully an extension of the village’s Memory Lane.
To cut down on heavy traffic through the village, the society would make every effort to ensure participant traffic would access the rodeo grounds from the east on Township Road 251.
Zakariasen stressed the need for a safe location for the rodeo, as it cannot continue at its current temporary location next to Highway 840. The current temporary location cannot adequately offer space for emergency vehicles, animal warm-up, spectators, and an increase in walking traffic along the highway as visitors frequently visit Standard’s local amenities.
Residents at the public hearing were given opportunity following the presentation to voice concerns and support for the proposed venture.
Although there was some initial pushback from village residents to the idea, Standard mayor Joe Pedersen said “even the people that maybe were not too happy about the location are still happy about the concept. So, I think there is support there.”
Pedersen said the rodeo society continues to work out the details of the project and going forward, will look at a couple of other location options within the village.
“The Standard Rodeo Society and the Village of Standard are currently working together to ensure that the proposed expansion of the rodeo grounds moves forward in a mutually beneficial location within our community,” said Zakariasen. “We are grateful for the community and area support of the expansion, and the understanding of residents on the current location’s safety and location size concerns.”
Pedersen maintained that the former school grounds are still an option.
“It’s certainly not dead over at the school grounds,” he noted. “Maybe there could be some more work by the rodeo society to make it a little more attractive. It’s certainly a project that I think has a lot of potential.”
A kid’s rodeo started in Standard a few years ago, and Pedersen said it turned out to be quite a success. The kid’s rodeo takes place during the village’s annual Sports Days, which includes a parade, softball tournament, kid’s zone, food concessions, beer gardens, and farm and ranch competitions.
“With the baseball and rodeo and things like that, it makes for a kind of a crowded sports grounds,” said Pedersen. “We’ll keep looking at some of the other sites; maybe something will be there. It’s certainly not a dead issue at this point. But it’s a work in progress.”
It is expected the rodeo society will cover the majority of the cost involved in setting up a new rodeo grounds. Pedersen said there would be very little cost to the village. “We would probably upgrade some infrastructure or whatever, but the rodeo society will likely cover the majority of the cost.”