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Prize money is dwindling for Michigan county fairs

By SHELLY STRAUTZ-SPRINGBORN
Michigan Correspondent

GREENVILLE, Mich. — Fairs in Michigan are scrambling to patch holes in their operating budgets after the state cut $1.46 million previously allocated for prize money for this summer’s fair season.
An executive order issued by Gov. Jennifer Granholm on May 5 reduced the Michigan Department of Agriculture budget by more than $11 million. The order included elimination of $1.46 million for prizes at local, county and state fairs.

Montcalm County 4-H Fair Assoc. President Pat Shuster said the fair in Greenville is losing about $8,000 in funding due to the state’s latest round of budget cuts. The board will meet next week to make a final decision about whether it will continue to pay premiums during this year’s fair.

Fairs in Michigan typically receive about 50 to 55 percent of their premium money from the state, which is then matched by each fair to make up 100 percent of the total premium cost.

“What is being talked about is paying a participation premium,” Schuster said, which would amount to a portion of the amount 4-Hers normally would receive in premium money. “We just have to figure out how to pay our part.

“I think the board is going to want to pay the portion that we normally pay, but it’s just how to do that.”

Other than paying youths, Schuster said fairs are struggling to determine if other events, such as horse pulls, barrel racing and harness racing will continue.

“We’re being told that other fairs are just covering the cost of premiums paid out for these types of events,” Schuster explained.
“When you look at how much money we take in on ticket sales for spectators versus the amount it costs to put on the event, we can’t really afford to do that.”

Fairs in Michigan already lost matching funds for building and grounds maintenance a couple of years ago. This amounted to as much as $15,000 annually, which was paid as a 50-50 match for expenses such as building repairs, lawn maintenance and other related expenses.

“We made that money up by renting out some ground that we own and by hosting a concert by country music star John Berry in the winter,” Schuster said.

The Kent County Youth Fair in Lowell typically pays out about $25,000 in premiums each year to its exhibitors, according to Fair Manager and President Ron Wenger. “We’re going to have to cut our premiums, that’s all,” Wenger said.

However the fair board has not officially determined how it will do that.

Wenger said the board had anticipated losing its premium money in 2010 and had been planning for that, but with the latest budget cut, “they pulled the rug out from under us for 2009.”

He said the fair “can’t afford” to continue paying premiums at the full level.

“We have a disclaimer in our fair book that says if we get into a financial crunch, we don’t have to pay the amount printed in the book. What we’re planning on trying to do is to pay half,” Wenger said, which would be between $12,000 to $13,000 in total premium money. “We’re still going to be about $2,500 short. We’ll have to try to make that up somewhere by finding a sponsor or doing a fund-raiser.”

To be most fair to all participants, Wenger said the board is considering making across-the-board cuts in premium payments. “We would just cut all premiums right in half,” he said.
Other concerns, which don’t affect the fair in Lowell, are that big fairs are also losing premium money that would be paid to open class exhibitors.

“The big fairs with the open classes are really sweating it,” Wenger said. “If they can’t pay for those open classes, those exhibitors won’t come.”

A decrease in exhibitors and attendees could mean a downturn in income from parking, food sales and more.

Celebrating its 75th year during the fair Aug. 10-15, Wenger is hopeful that the Kent County Youth Fair will not suffer from lost attendees.

“Last year we had the biggest attendance we have ever had because everybody stayed close to home instead of traveling,” Wenger said. “We have been very careful not to cut the quality of our programming. With attendance growing, we know we are doing something right.”

Nearly 50,000 Michigan youths participate in livestock and community arts exhibitions each year, according to a news release from the state’s Department of Agriculture Director Don Koivisto.
Koivisto wrote that “Michigan fairs are an important part of our state’s growing agriculture industry, helping to maintain a much-needed connection to rural traditions while highlighting modern agriculture practices.”

In Michigan, 86 local, county and state fairs are conducted throughout the summer.

6/3/2009