By CELESTE BAUMGARTNER
Ohio Correspondent

HAMILTON, Ohio — The economy has been devastating for county fairs in some areas of Ohio, said Dan Martin, president of the Ohio Fair Managers Assoc. The organization keeps the Ohio county fairs up-to-date with all of the rules and regulations of the fair industry.

“The county funding issue with (The Ohio State University) extension is really taking a toll on some of the counties,” said Martin, who is also the manager of the Butler County Fair. “I think we’re going to have to take another approach on how funding for the county extension is handled.”

In many counties, by current rules, the county contributes a set amount of dollars and OSU extension gives the balance. Many counties, especially those that have lost industries, can’t come up with their share of the money and extension will not provide funding.

Also, if counties lose their extension services, Martin would like to see those kids be able to participate in 4-H in adjoining counties; that is not permitted now. Carroll County’s extension office is going to close at the end of the Ohio State Fair.

“Their 4-H program is in limbo right now – that is a bad situation,” he said. “Some fairs have levies up (for vote) this fall. Hopefully they’ll pass, but if they don’t more fairs will lose their junior fair and extension program; it is a bad situation right now.”

All of this will come up for discussion with OSU at the fair managers’ annual convention next January 2011 in Columbus. Close to 2,000 delegates will attend. Ohio is strong in the number of county fairs held each year, Martin said.

“We’re the largest county fair convention in the United States. It is a pretty big deal as far as getting all of the county fair organizers together and going over rules and regulations. Ohio is very strong in county fairs,” he added.

The Butler County Fair, under Martin’s authority, is one Ohio fair that is flourishing. The 2010 fair attracted 96,164 visitors, up from 89,292 last year.

“We do this for the kids,” he said during the recent fair. “We have over 1,400 junior fair kids in our program and that is an important part of our fair. We want to continue to have that. We’re strong financially. We’ve had a good fair this week.”

What is Martin’s favorite aspect of county fairs? “Food,” he said without missing a beat. “There’s nothing better than fair food. But in all honesty, our motto is, ‘It is a family tradition since 1851.’ You get to see a lot of people you don’t see throughout the year – it’s interesting.

“This is my 23rd fair and we’re getting kids that were in 4-H years ago that are now bringing their kids to the fair. It is neat.

“So, we’ll be ready to crank it up and start planning in August for next year,” he said. “I’d like to thank everybody that participated in the Butler County Fair this year and to invite them back for 2011.”