Fair Board ready for this year’s County Fair

By Wendy Post —

Anyone that has worked on a planning committee for an event knows the hard work that goes into organizing things, raising funds, gathering volunteers, and sorting through logistics; work that begins for the following year, once things are over and cleaned up. We see this year after year. Some of the faces on the planning committee change, but the goal remains a common one – to bring the agricultural community together for one more year.

This year’s Tioga County Fair, set for Aug. 6-10, has been a yearlong planning process, but according to Fair Board President Eric Johnson, they are ready to go! Arts and crafts will arrive at the Arts & Crafts Barn on Sunday, and the 4H animals will begin to arrive on Monday.

Tuesday at the fair is free admission, as there will not be any rides or Midway. There will be a pie contest and plenty of other activities, however, and many things to see as excitement builds for the upcoming grandstand shows, the rides, and the thrills!

On Wednesday, Gillette Shows returns with the rides and midway. With the smell of funnel cakes, a Ferris wheel backdrop, and the anticipation of the guests arriving to take in a derby and ride some rides makes the hard work worth it; at least for Johnson.

Each year the fair board members work on a variety of projects to keep the fair running, which includes taking care of the 4H buildings, structures, and equipment. Johnson noted that there are 14 members on the fair board, and four on the executive committee. This committee, according to Johnson, continues to work on improvements and enhancements to the fairgrounds.

A couple of things that the board and executive committee have worked on is acquiring equipment and tools needed to maintain the fairgrounds. Some recent acquisitions include a Harley Rake, for grading soil on the track; the addition of steel and improved airflow on the cattle barns; three new portable bleacher sets for the grandstand area; and a portable bathroom that the board acquired through an auction.

The best thing about having a portable bathroom, Johnson stated, is that it can be moved if it floods. With limited facilities at the park, Johnson and the board felt this an immediate need.

According to Johnson, the bathrooms were bought from auction by the Agricultural Society and then moved to the fairgrounds by G&I Homes. Martin’s Plumbing hooked up the water and sewer.

Holbrook Precasting set up the holding tanks, Derek Hicks set the tanks and prepped them, and Ridge Excavating and ICR Electric all stepped up to get things in place near the cattle barns.

Three new sets of bleachers, at the tune of about $75,000, have been added to the grandstand area to increase seating capacity.

“We’re working hard,” said Eric Johnson, who is serving as board president for his first year, and added, “We’re getting things done.”

For fundraising, Johnson said the board sent out fundraising letters early, and were pleasantly surprised that some new folks, as well as the sponsors that continue to support the event, jumped on board. They also have some new vendors that are coming in this year, all generating income for the fair board; monies that filter back in for improvements to the fairgrounds.

One of the projects most recently completed was to increase the airflow in the cattle barns. By removing the windows, adding steel siding to the ends and putting in new overhead doors, they were able to enhance the security of the barns as well as improve the way the air flows, keeping the animals comfortable during fair week.

Upgrades at the fairgrounds, according to Johnson, have cost about $600,000 over the last ten years, with most of the improvements executed by the Agricultural Society and Fair Board.

It’s a labor of love for the 14-member board, and for the hundreds of volunteers that have contributed their time and efforts to keep this longstanding fair running for years to come.

To check out all of the details, and to learn more about what to expect this week at the fair, check out the fair guide, published as a supplement to The Owego Pennysaver Press.

You can also visit www.tiogacofair.com to learn more.

See you at the fair!