The Clark County Fairgrounds — the county’s largest tourism generator that produces about $105 million annually — will expand after a donation of land by the city.

The Clark County Agricultural Society will purchase an adjacent 186-acre property from the city of Springfield for $1, possibly allowing it to provide more parking, campgrounds or both for visitors. The Clark County Auditor’s Office has appraised the property at more than $1.29 million.

City commissioners approved the sale of the property, previously known as the Shelly Co. gravel pit and covered largely with a lake, at Tuesday’s commission meeting.

The expansion could make the fairgrounds even more beneficial, said Tom Franzen, the city’s economic development administrator.

“We certainly see that as an economic benefit and one of the largest economic engines from a tourism prospective,” Franzen said.

The fairgrounds,which currently include more than 119 acres, pumps an estimated $105 million per year into the local economy, according to tourism multipliers used by the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce.

Clark County Fair Executive Director Allan Hess said the fairgrounds is outgrowing its site, and the lake property was essentially the only area where it could expand. Hess estimates that about 70 acres of the property can be used for extra parking, additional camp space or other uses, but nothing has been finalized.

“We’ve been talking to the city about this for years … Even though there’s not a tremendous amount of ground, most of it’s water, we can still use that land that’s available for those purposes,” Hess said.

The land could also be used for 4H or FFA aquaculture projects or other water-related activities.

Hess wouldn’t rule out the possibility of extra parking or camping areas for next year’s Clark County Fair, but said the fair board still has a lot of planning to do to make that possible.

“It really depends on money and what we have to do for parking and camping,” Hess said.

The lake property came into the city’s ownership as part of the original PrimeOhio Corporate Park development. The land was annexed by the city as part of a corridor to extend utilities to develop the industrial park.

The Shelly Co. mined the land for about 25 years, Franzen said, and once they finished and met reclamation standards through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the lake property became the city’s sole responsibility. The city has maintained the land since the mining efforts ended in 2011.

Initially, the city believed the lake could be used by the fairgrounds or the National Trail Park and Recreation District. After reviewing the property, the city believed it could be used by the fairgrounds.

“We see the fairgrounds as a tremendous asset to this community,” Franzen said.

In 2005, the Turner Foundation and other stakeholders commissioned a 25-year strategic plan for developing the assets within the fairgrounds. Mike McDorman, chamber president, said a conceptual drawing included the lake with a fishing pier, camping area, an amphitheater, waterfront park, a festival lawn, the Champions Center, a new fair headquarters and maintenance facility, more parking and landscape improvements.

“There’s a lot that was put into this conceptual drawing and the fair, with limited resources, has been working toward that plan,” McDorman said.

According to the chamber, the fairgrounds provides about a third of the area’s overall tourism. The county generates an estimated $326 million in tourism per year.

The lake property could have a big impact on the fairgrounds, McDorman said, bringing the opportunity for more development, especially with its location near Interstate 70. The fairgrounds currently accounts for about half of all hotel stays in Clark County through events like antique shows, car meets and equine shows.

“It’s a key strategic asset that brings people from all over the country into Springfield and Clark County,” McDorman said. “We want to continue to grow that asset.”

A committee within the fair board has been formed concerning the possible expansion. Hess hopes to have plans in place early in 2013.

“A lot of that will be determined when we decide what our actual use is going to be around the water and what we can afford to do, as far as liability and insurance purposes are concerned,” Hess said. “It’s still a gravel pit, so that’s a concern to us.”

Hess said he’s pleased the city has been working hard to help the purchase become a reality in the past 10 years.

“We’re happy that the city is willing to do that,” Hess said.