Fairgrounds board to draft public memo on arena sound complaints; master plan committee to study technical fixes

April 16, 2025 — Park County Fairgrounds and Parks Board members agreed Wednesday to prepare a public memo addressing repeated complaints about arena sound and to direct the Master Plan Committee to investigate technical options ahead of the summer rodeo season.

Board members said the memo should tell the public the board has heard concerns, summarize preliminary findings, and explain next steps. The board asked the Master Plan Committee to gather complaint data, consult with sound engineers about speaker placement and direction, and measure decibel levels at early events — in particular at the June 30 wild horse and burro sale and at later rodeo dates.

Board members noted two complicating factors: (1) some events bring their own supplemental sound systems, which the fairgrounds cannot directly control; and (2) enforcing a hard volume cap at outdoor events may be difficult. The board discussed measuring baseline decibel levels from the fairgrounds system and distinguishing sound from the installed system versus secondary systems added by event promoters.

The group agreed the Master Plan Committee should prepare a draft public notice or memo summarizing the issue, possible solutions, challenges and an action timeline for the full board to review before the first major events. The board proposed posting the memo to the fairgrounds’ website and social media and, if time permits, publishing a brief notice in the local newspaper.

No binding policy changes or volume limits were adopted at the April 16 meeting; the board emphasized the effort is investigatory and intended to show the public that the board is actively reviewing options.