No Fair

Decision to cancel event called ‘heartbreaking’ but necessary

COEUR d’ALENE — COVID-19 added another victim to its growing list of canceled events: the North Idaho State Fair.

Kootenai County commissioners voted 2-1 to support the fair board in discontinuing preparations for the North Idaho State Fair and Gem State Stampede scheduled Aug. 25-29.

After receiving a strong recommendation from Panhandle Health officials on June 26, board members reevaluated the state of the fair, taking into account all guidances, alternatives, as well as Kootenai County’s recent increase in COVID-19 cases.

Much to their heartbreak, the board unanimously decided to cancel the fair and begin searching for opportunities to allow 4-H youth to complete their yearly projects.

“Safety of our fair family and community, as well as the financial future of the fair, were our top priorities in coming to this incredibly heartbreaking decision,” said Alexcia Jordan, fair general manager.

In a special meeting Tuesday afternoon, the commissioners heard testimony from Jordan, Panhandle Health Director Lora Whalen, and county residents about the future of the fair. Six of the eight individuals who testified opposed the decision to cancel the fair, calling it unnecessary, an overreach of power, and against the wishes of the community.

Whalen pointed out that Panhandle Health considered multiple factors in its recommendation such as hospitalizations, persons in the intensive care unit, and ventilator availability.

Currently, Kootenai Health doesn’t have any patients in these situations, but Whalen warns that with the community’s current trajectory, it won’t stay that way.

“What we’re looking at today is the result of behaviors a week and a half and two weeks ago, so what is this weekend going to lead to? All sorts of more cases and it is a wear on our system,” Whalen said. “I certainly don’t want us to be in a situation like what happened in Ada County, where in one day last week they had 109 new cases come in. I don’t want this disease to affect us economically more than it already has. I don’t want to see anything having to shut down.”

Last year, the North Idaho State Fair brought 97,000 visitors to the Kootenai County Fairgrounds in just five days. This year, board members said they were expecting attendance to increase due to the cancellation of the Spokane County Interstate Fair and several Fourth of July events, and the community’s growing desire to return to normal.

According to Jordan, the staff and board had been working optimistically for the last three months and were ready to hold the fair until Gov. Brad Little’s recommendation to remain in Stage 4 rendered any plans unusable.

“This is not a decision that comes lightly for anyone on this board or on our staff, it’s blood sweat and tears and I promise you it’s been a lot of tears to get to this decision,” Jordan said. “The risk is just too high, the unknowns are just too great and our future fair requires the tough decision today. If you truly love what we bring to our community, and I know I do, and our fair board does, you’ll understand this is a tough decision our board needs to move forward with.”

The North Idaho State Fair relies on a strong turnout each year as well as other event rentals to survive financially. However, due to COVID-19, no events have been held since mid-March.

With less than 4% of the fairground’s annual budget coming from tax dollars and a lack of county funding, the amount of preparation and investment needed to pull off the fair would have involved a financial risk of over $800,000.

According to the North Idaho State Fair and Gem State Stampede board, if the event were canceled later in the summer or if the state slipped back to Stage 3, the entire future of the fair would have been jeopardized.

Due to this, the fair board decided to conservatively move forward planning next year’s fair, scheduled for Aug. 25-29, 2021, and make sure it is the best the region has ever seen.

“Our primary considerations must be protecting both the heritage and the financial health of the fairgrounds,” Commissioner Chris Fillios said. “It would not be fiscally or ethically responsible to continue committing resources for the fair, knowing that a last-minute cancellation could irreparably damage their long-term financial stability. The Board of Commissioners has every confidence in our fair board and staff. We know this has been a difficult decision for them and look forward to seeing them come back bigger and better than ever next year.”

Plans for 4-H programming will be sent to participating families in the coming days. All tickets already purchased for the 2020 North Idaho State Fair, carnival, and grandstand events will be refunded in the next two weeks.

For additional questions about ticket refunds, contact the Fair Board office after July 15 at 208-765-4969.