Fair board reshapes vision for complex, self
Repair of pavilion roof, public poll and new modeling software frame fair board’s next steps
After years of watching the Columbia County Event Complex’s premiere venue slip into disrepair, and parts of the fairgrounds sit idle in the realm of revenue potential, fair board members are saying enough is enough.
The 11,500-square-foot pavilion building at the complex has seen better days. After last week’s rain burst, several puddles have collected on the octagon-shaped pavilion’s concrete floors, and the only thing protecting the main electrical panel from a steady water drip is a clear sheet of plastic.
“We are already putting out buckets in that building,” says Fair Administrator Ronda Courtney.
But relief is on the horizon. Mike Malarkey, a Scappoose resident, of Portland’s Malarkey Roofing Products donated materials to fix the pavilion building’s roof. The donation allowed the fair board to hold down its expense on the roof repair to under $50,000, and work there has begun.
Sale of a two-acre piece of the fair’s 72-acre complex to the Columbia River People Utilities District for a new substation, an action that has gone through the ironing out phase for the last two years, is nearing completion.
Fair planners would like to see the $200,000 generated from that sale go toward improvements at the fair so it could better serve as a Columbia County commodity.
In fact, the fair budget reflects the sale revenue, though it’s not likely that all of those funds will flow into the fair’s bottom line.
“We really haven’t decided,” says Columbia County Commissioner Rita Bernhard, who is the county’s designee to work with the fair board. Bernhard acknowledges that the pavilion building’s roof is in dire need of repair, and said the Malarkey donation is a “godsend.”
County fairgrounds receive money from several sources, including a transfer from the county’s general fund — really state money intended for economic development purposes — and direct state lottery dollars for agriculture programs.
In 2009, the fair had anticipated $37,000 from concerts expected at Columbia Meadows, though an unfavorable economic climate for big concerts scuttled those plans. Next year, the fair is banking on $20,000 from those concerts, though it’s a gamble that might not materialize if the luxury market for ticket purchases doesn’t improve.
Those uncertainties from outside funding sources, says fair organizers, is really at the crux of their latest dilemma: How can the fair evolve into a self-sustaining beacon for county economic development?
Steve Knebel, the newest addition to the fair board, says he feels the burden is fully on the fair board and Courtney.
“We’re trying our best to raise funds on all these projects, and it’s all on us,” Knebel says.
At times that burden can be aggravating, especially as it relates to the board’s efforts to move their priorities forward at a time when the county is focused on finding a way out of its own budgetary quagmire. Knebel points to one incident when fair board chair Evelyn Hudson had to write a personal check of $500 for a $1,500 charge for the city of St. Helens to conduct an urban growth boundary review, Knebel says.
In another case, Knebel had been working on a federal grant for a new radiant heating system for the pavilion, and says when the county became aware of that effort county personnel asked to take it over.
The problem, however, is that the county never submitted the grant application. As an explanation, Knebel says he was told it was incomplete, and that the county’s priority was to vie for a federal grant to install a new HVAC system at the Columbia County Courthouse.
“It’s the principle more than anything,” Knebel says. “I had an excellent opportunity to get the $16,000 for the new radiant heating system.” His expectation now is that a portion of the property sale funds will be used to purchase the system instead.
Bernhard admits there was some confusion about that particular grant, and says it has kick-started a broader discussion about how the county pursues project grants, especially as those dollars pose more budgetary opportunities than ever before.
Knebel and Courtney both point to the challenge of balancing the community needs versus developing a sustainable business plan for the fair. Last year, that challenge resulted in some heated exchanges between the fair board and local charitable organizations over the cost of renting out the energy-inefficient pavillion.
“There’s a fine line between supporting the community and cutting your own throat,” Courtney says.
Fair game
Two main efforts are in the works to advance the fair board’s mission. One involves polling the public about what it wants in terms of fair complex offerings and constructing a master plan for the fair’s future. The second includes the purchase of modeling software that will allow fair organizers and its clients to design events and facilities for better marketing inside, and outside, of the community.
“It will be quite extensive, but I think it’s the first step for us in looking at the bigger picture,” Courtney says of the software, which is expected to cost around $1,800.
Gaining a sense of what is desired at the fairgrounds, in terms of developing a master plan, could also be a prelude to going after a voter-approved bond down the road. It also could identify other funding and use opportunities beyond its current practice of space rentals, such as designating the fairgrounds as a federal recovery zone for emergencies that could put it in the running for additional federal dollars.
“There is nothing we couldn’t do out there,” Knebel says.