Struggles arise for county fairs

Fairs see attendance falling.

CINCINNATI (AP) — Summer fairs in some of Ohio’s bigger counties are struggling because of eroding community support, safety concerns and competition.

The Hamilton County Fair, whose 153rd edition begins Wednesday, once drew about 30,000 people each year. But attendance dropped 40 percent between 2003 and 2007, hitting an all-time low of 12,458 last year.

Other local fairs around Cincinnati are doing well. However, farther north, the Franklin County Fair outside Columbus also experienced a big drop in attendance.

Hamilton County Fair managers blame last summer’s heat wave for part of the 2007 attendance drop, but they acknowledge their fair needs help.

Between fairs, most of its income is from renting out buildings, but officials say it’s difficult to book buildings in poor condition. The county donates $3,300 — the minimum the state allows.

Last year, gunshots were heard around the fair as people were leaving, organizers said. Many fear that the event might be near its end.

“We can’t seem to get anyone to want to do anything for us and help us out,” said Patrick Ekardt, president of the Hamilton County Agricultural Society, which runs the fair. “They’re just not interested in it.”

Some society members believe a different location and new buildings would renew the fair.

The volunteer Agricultural Society is divided over a proposal to sell the fairgrounds in Carthage, north of downtown, and move to a more rural spot in western Hamilton County. One site being discussed is Crosby Township, home to the former Fernald uranium processing plant.

Supporters of the move say youths have caused problems during recent fairs; the fair spends about $12,000 a year on security.

“The reason our buildings are empty is because the groups who used to come here are afraid to come,” Monetta McCarthy, a member of the Agricultural Society, said at a recent fair meeting. “We have to unite and get the fair moved if we want to still have a fair.”

The property, tucked among factories and car lots off Interstate 75, is seen as prime for redevelopment. The land is likely worth more than $1 million, fair officials believe.

Hamilton County isn’t alone in seeing interest decline in county fairs.

In Franklin County, fair attendance plummeted from 200,000 a year in the 1990s to 30,000 in recent years. Fair officials blame the poor condition of the buildings there, too. One county commissioner pushed to move the event from west-side Hilliard to Grove City, south of the city.

Instead, the county and local agricultural society spent $400,000 on a face-lift for the grounds. The event sold 11,000 more tickets last year than in 2006, bumping attendance to 37,640.

Back in Hamilton County, the Agricultural Society last made a profit in 2005. The society lost more than $56,670 in 2006 and $6,609 last year. A $50,000 gift from billionaire Carl Lindner this month will help pay for operations for the immediate future, but officials say it won’t be enough to fix up the grounds or buy new land.

Norman Purdy, 91, of Springdale, has been involved in Hamilton County’s fair for 40 years and spent 30 of them as its board president.

“Little by little, it started going down,” he said.

He attributes the decline to dwindling farmland and competition with other entertainment choices such as Kings Island and the Reds baseball team.