New Convention Center in the Works for West Fargo

A new space for shows and conferences may be coming to the metro

WEST FARGO, N.D. — A new convention center is in the works for West Fargo.

The Red River Valley Fair and the city are working on this $20 million project.

In the midst of a growing community, some say the Fargodome is not enough.

“Which is a great problem to have, the Fargodome is busy,” said Charley Johnson with the FM Convention & Visitors Bureau. “It’s busy all the time.”

That’s where this potential new convention center comes into play.

Developers are making plans and renderings of the place which would be used for large scale events, meetups and trade shows.

Their main idea is to have three rooms with a 500 person capacity and one larger ballroom for 3,000 people.

They might also have restaurants and hotels attached to the convention center.

“We have a concept that we think will work,” said Matt Marshall, West Fargo director of economic development and community services. “But there’s still a lot of study to do.”

They’re saying it’s more than an opportunity for events and conferences.

It will bring more visitors to the metro which brings more revenue to other businesses.

“Of course, there will be some residual effect that go into our hotels and restaurants as well as the other economic activity that a facility like this can generate,” said Marshall.

“It was the perfect place for a convention center,” said Bryan Schulz, Red River Valley Fair’s general manager. “We’ve got about 350 acres out here right now.”

Charley Johnson says event centers like this can bring in more permanent residents to fill in the many open jobs Fargo-Moorhead has.

“The more we can do to get people to visit, the more they will possibly consider the idea of, ‘hey, that’s a pretty cool place, maybe I want to move here if there are jobs available,” said Johnson.

He says the FM area has actually missed out on big conventions like the North Dakota Association of Counties due to the lack of space.

Johnson thinks there should be more convention space in the city of Fargo even if West Fargo gets this one approved.

Apparently, there’s just that many opportunities for events here in the metro.

Officials say the center would be built on the west side of Bonanzaville, south of Main Avenue.