Officials plan to host youth competitions, animal sale
Walworth County, one of few holdouts in the state still planning to host a fair this summer, announced on Thursday it will bow out as the threat of COVID-19 grows.
The Walworth County Agricultural Society board voted Wednesday to cancel the 171st Walworth County Fair, according to a news release issued by the organization.
The board also canceled its popular Ribfest, which had been rescheduled from July to mid August. However, officials said, junior fair exhibits including livestock, woodworking and other projects will proceed, but will not be open to the public.
The annual meat sale will also be held, but details of that event are still being determined, the group announced.
Organizers said the decision to cancel the fair was based on the steady increase in COVID-19 cases in surrounding states and other areas of Wisconsin. The fair – touted as the largest county fair in the state – is held over the Labor Day week and attracts “hundreds of thousands of visitors” from a wide radius, fair officials said.
“The board was concerned these events could pose a risk to Walworth County residents by attracting visitors from areas with much higher COVID-19 infection rates,” said Larry Gaffey, Walworth County Fairgrounds general manager.
“Ribfest and the fair are the largest events we hold at the fairgrounds, attracting people from as far away as Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and other counties in Wisconsin,” he said. “The board feared the influx of visitors could strain the county’s public health system.”
Organizers had worked with the Walworth County Department of Health and Human Services to develop health and safety plans to make the two events as safe as possible, organizers said. Both the fair and Ribfest had been reimagined to reduce congestion and enable easy social distancing. Events had been moved outdoors and the carnival had been spread out to reduce congestion, according to the release.
Officials said they will soon announce plans regarding the animal sale. They were determined to preserve many of the events for youth.
“We are concerned about the public health, but also feel an obligation to the young people who have spent a year or more raising livestock, doing photography, gardening crops, woodworking and working on arts and crafts,” Gaffey said. “COVID-19 stole part of a school year from these kids. We will not allow it to ruin their dream projects as well.”
He said smaller events hosted by independent event organizers remain scheduled for the fairgrounds. These independent events attract mainly local visitors.
The 171-year-old fair is one of the longest-running events in Wisconsin. Fair officials highlighted a University of Wisconsin economic impact study found the fair annually creates more than 30 local jobs, contributes over $7 million to the local economy, and generates significant revenue for retailers, restaurateurs, and hospitality companies in the area.
In addition, the fair serves as the year’s largest fundraising activity for many local non-profit organizations and church groups.
