For years, there has been a rousing debate about the Colorado State Fair’s wobbly finances, and whether the event ought to move to a more populated area of the state in order to boost attendance and raise revenues.
The latest audit, which showed yet another operating loss — this one $2.3 million — has renewed questions about the state-run institution.
Rep. Jim Kerr, R-Littleton, said the fair’s 23 full-time employees for an 11-day event is “a stretch.”
As it’s configured, it seems impractical, from both political and logistical standpoints, to move the fair. It has been in Pueblo for nearly 140 years, and a daunting amount of infrastructure has built up around it.
Some 5,000 kids participate in the FFA and 4-H programs. The fair has 57 buildings, including three sets of dormitories, on 100 acres. Other events and government uses take place the rest of the year. The utilities alone cost $1.1 million annually.
Chris Wiseman, the state fair’s general manager, said there is not another facility in the state that could accommodate the event.
Perhaps the question we ought to be asking is whether Coloradans want to dedicate limited resources to that scope of operations at the same time the state is contemplating cutting funding for education and services for developmentally disabled.
It is a variation on the debates that are taking place at all levels of government about various services and programs. Can we afford the government we have?
As we said, the state fair showed a $2.3 million operating loss for the fiscal year ending in June. When offsets are considered, such as grants and contributions from other government sources, the net loss was $379,000.
The fair has never broken even without government assistance, and its prospects for doing so aren’t particularly bright. Administrators have pledged to seek more donations and corporate sponsorships. They’ve already upped prices for both admission and rides.
State Rep. Sal Pace, D-Pueblo, attended the meeting Tuesday in which the audit was presented. He said fair expenditures were an investment.
“If the fair loses money, it’s like saying the Department of Corrections or any other state operation loses money,” Pace said, according to a story in The Pueblo Chieftain.
“Everything in the state costs money, so naturally the fair costs money too. We decided as a state that it’s worth investing money in it.”
Have we decided that as a state? As finances get ever tighter, perhaps it’s time to look at the matter anew and ask whether Coloradans want such an expansive institution, and whether other communities might have facilities and ideas for holding a state fair.
Gov. John Hickenlooper, who is embarking on yet another statewide listening tour, plans to ask Coloradans about the future they envision for the state. The state fair ought to be one of the items on the agenda.
