Letter to the
Editor
Over the last few
years, the fair board has been accused
of a lengthy list of mis-attributed
offenses – the unnecessary and
inefficient road around the fairgrounds,
the new arena that didn’t meet the
proscribed needs, vendors who chose not
to abide by contracts or cooperate in
following established rules, and the
office’s refusal to conduct fair
business as the Fair Association and
Fair Board directed.
Many of these misconceptions would be
cleared up with a better understanding
of the function and purpose of the
Association and its Board. Annually, the
County Commissioners contract with the
Fair Association to operate the Spring
and Fall fairs. Under this contract, the
Association takes on all
responsibilities for the fairs with the
exception of maintenance of the
facilities. The Association elects a
15-person board (representing the 15
communities of the county) from its own
membership and to represent itself and
organize its activities. Under the Fair
Board and Association’s operations, the
Fairgrounds produces more revenue in
less than two weeks than the other
scheduled events for the rest of the
year.
The Fairgrounds Office, on the other
hand, operates the grounds and
facilities for all activities outside of
the fairs year-round. The fair
facilities manager (not a fair manager)
is ultimately in charge of these
operations, and oversees the function of
the office. The office staff also serves
the Fair Association by performing
office duties, such as mailing
contracts, collecting Association mail
and being the Association’s
communication link to the community. The
office manager is also not a fair
manager.
All of the above-mentioned offenses were
in the purview of the office, not the
Association or its board. The
Association makes no decisions on roads
or construction, offering only
suggestions based on the ideas of the
membership. The vendor problems arose
out of altered contracts disseminated by
the office staff, from refusal of
concessionaires to follow established
fair rules, and from miscommunication by
the office staff with those vendors and
the county commissioners. The office
further interfered with other aspects of
the fair as well, including the
exhibitor guide, camping and parking,
payment of premiums and other monetary
awards, communication with fair
volunteers and budgetary issues.
The county commissioners hold their own
level of responsibility in these
matters. When office staff accused the
Fair Board of causing some of these
problems, the commissioners did not
discuss the complaints with the Board.
When angry vendors or volunteers
complained, the commissioners again
chose not to communicate with the Board.
When the Board tried to communicate with
the commissioners, they were simply told
that complaints were unacceptable; yet
volunteers who complained to the
commissioners about the office were told
the matter was being handled through
Human Resources and was not of any
concern.
The Fair Association is the body of
community volunteers interested in our
kids and our agricultural way of life in
Grant County. The Fair Board consists of
people within that body who have stepped
up – elected by the Association – to
take the ideas of the Association and
turn them into a great showplace for our
communities. The Fair Office and the
County Commissioners have chosen not to
communicate with this body of
volunteers. Instead, they intend to
create a small advisory – not functional
– board appointed by the commissioners,
who may or may not accept the ideas of
the Association and who will simply do
the will of the commissioners.
This handful of people is somehow
expected to do the year-long work of 15
Association representatives in less than
six months, with the office staff at the
helm. Despite any claims to the
contrary, the fair office is already
asserting its assumed authority; once
the change is in effect, the process to
remove the influence of the office will
revert back to relying on the Human
Resources office and the Commissioners’
lack of concern. This is a recipe for
disaster, and sadly, it’s forecast for
our fair’s Centennial year.
Now, more than ever, the commissioners
need to hear the voice of the people in
Grant County. Despite any problems in
the Fair Board’s past or any failings
inherent in the nature of large bodies
of opinionated volunteers, it’s these
opinions that create debate and
discussion, and thus develop a better
fair. We need the ability to decide for
ourselves what we want to see at our
county fair – more revenue streams, or
more kids and agriculture, as is our
purpose. Please write and call your
county commissioners, and demand that
they reconsider this troubling decision.
The Fair Association’s Board of
Directors
Gary Ribail, Chair
