See inside $12M rebuild of McDaniel Arena at Benton County Fairgrounds
This weekend marks the debut of the new and improved Dan McDaniel Arena at the Benton County Event Center & Fairgrounds in Kennewick.
Benton County will hold a public open house from 2-4 p.m., Saturday, July 18, to show off a $12 million rebuild that doubled seating capacity and modernized the aging structure.
That includes LED lighting, new bathrooms and ample seating and access for people with disabilities.
The open house is coupled with the arena’s first event. The Monster Truck Insanity Tour begins as the open house wraps up.
The open house is free. Tickets to the monster truck show will be available in person or online.
Economic development initiative
The rebuilt arena is an investment in the Tri-Cities, said Tom French, manager of the Benton County-owned property. The arena, formerly known as Sun Downs, was renamed in 2019 to honor longtime fair volunteer Dan McDaniel.
Designers chose 6,000 seats to position the fairgrounds to attract events to Kennewick, particularly road shows traveling between Seattle and Boise.
The arena rebuild is part of a larger $15 million investment to attract more business, including events.
The county-owned property is closely associated with the top tenant, the Benton-Franklin Fair & Rodeo, but it hosts a wide variety of other gatherings, including weddings, concerts and trade shows.
It generates significant activity and is a key pillar of the Tri-Cities’ tourism industry, worth nearly $650 million to the local economy in 2024, according to Visit Tri-Cities.
Even as the county works to broaden the fairgrounds commercial appeal, French said it isn’t losing sight of its history.
“It’s still the fairgrounds. We never want to lose that identity,” French said.
Larger package of updates
The updates began in 2025 with construction of a new parking lot, entrance and landscape refresh that saw it remove a handful of scraggly pine trees. That phase finished before the 2025 fair and all the trees have been replaced.
Arena work began when last year’s fair wrapped up. The project was timed to conclude in time for the 2026 fair, Aug. 25-29.
Fowler Construction is the general contractor and the work is funded by the county’s economic development fund.
All seats are shaded
The new arena may look like a classic grandstand risers resting atop a steel structure. However, the design offers significant protection against the Tri-Cities’ hot summer sun.
A shade wall runs the full length of the top of the stands. All seats are shaded by 5:30 p.m. and the rest of the arena is shaded by about 6:30 p.m. the seats are still metal, so word to the wise: Bring something to sit on.
The new arena offers significant updates too. The one it replaces had little to offer people with disabilities, including those who use wheelchairs and mobility devices.
Now, an extra wide ramp leads to the elevated concourse and open seating areas with room for both wheelchairs and seated companies. The ramp doubles as an exit when there are lots of people moving in and out of the arena.
It also leads directly one of McDaniel Arena’s most popular features, the “over-the-chutes” zone.
Over the chutes is a catwalk running atop the far wall, over livestock chutes. It boasts a few small structures that fans rent during the fair, their version of sky boxes.
Over-the-chutes is unchanged except for new paint.
Cowboy mural preserved
The project also preserved the memory of the cowboy mural commissioned by the fair. The original couldn’t be saved since it was painted on concrete. Instead, the image was digitally reproduced and an identical duplicate hangs above the stands.
Fairgoers will get plenty of opportunity to inspect the arena during the 2026 fair. The fair refers to it as the Speck Dealerships Arena. Go to bentonfranklinfair.com/events for a full schedule.
- Aug. 25: Horse Heaven Round-Up - Opening Night, 7 p.m.
- Aug. 26: Concert, Skillet, 7:45 p.m.
- Aug. 26: Horse Heaven Round-Up Rodeo - My first Rodeo Night, 7 p.m.
- Aug. 27: Concert, Lee Brice, 7:45 p.m.
- Aug. 28: Concert, The Art of Rap.
- Aug. 29: Horse Heaven Round-Up Rodeo Patriot Night, 7 p.m.
- Aug. 29: Concert, El Jerry, Gerardo Coronel, 7:45 p.m.