The Anderson University mascot, The Trojan, wasn’t the only one jumping for joy Monday when AU announced plans to purchase 78 acres of land belonging to Strates Shows, operator of the Anderson County Fair. University President Evans Whitaker, his trustees, faculty and students and just about everyone else sees nothing but pluses from a move that will open up many possibilities for the 97-year-old institution.

The announcement comes on top of a donation of 125 acres adjoining the fair property by John and Marie Pracht a few months ago. The combined acreage will almost quadruple the university’s footprint. For the first time in its history, Anderson University’s future won’t be limited by its landlocked location.

For some years, the university has been acquiring individual properties, mostly homes in its Boulevard neighborhood, as they became available. But that has been an expensive and slow process. The opportunity to procure such a large piece of land couldn’t be passed up, according to university Trustee Hugh Durham, a Realtor.

The wide-open, flat spaces will be used first for badly needed athletic field expansion, according to President Whitaker. AU has long had vibrant sports programs, from soccer and basketball to wrestling and tennis, but not much room for practice and competition. Its baseball team uses the old municipal stadium (which it shared with the ill-fated Anderson Joes team last summer), and the university would love to have its own stadium. The fairgrounds includes several large buildings, one of which is being eyed as a practice facility for wrestling.

As the university grows, the land also offers possibilities for student housing, academic buildings and offices. Such expansion will take planning, money and time, but with the land in its hands, the university can start going down that path.

As for the fair, Strates Shows executive Jay Strates said it plans to return in the spring, and he is looking for a location that can accommodate its traditional exhibits of flowers, photography and needlework, as well as the midway and food vendors. No fair was held this fall as the negotiations with the university progressed. We hope the fair will find a suitable home that will continue to attract visitors to Anderson and give people a chance to display their talents. It seems to us that the Anderson Sports and Entertainment Center would be a natural place and it has hosted virtually every attraction the fair has offered, from amusement rides to a circus to country music acts.

We add our congratulations to AU on this momentous occasion.