Dawn Caldwell speaks to Legislature’s ag committee as she seeks third term on Nebraska State Fair Board

Senator Barry DeKay, chair of the Nebraska Legislature Agriculture Committee, opened a confirmation hearing on appointee Dawn Caldwell’s reappointment to the Nebraska State Fair Board, during which Caldwell described financial and facilities improvements at the fairgrounds in Grand Island and outlined priorities if she is reappointed.

Caldwell, who said Governor Pillen asked her to serve a third and final three-year term on the fair board, told the committee the fair ‘‘was not in a good financial state’’ when she first joined and that a combination of leadership changes, staff stabilization and a flood-mitigation project funded by ARPA have helped restore the event’s operations and guest experience.

The confirmation hearing focused on the fair’s facilities and finances: Caldwell and Nebraska State Fair Executive Director Jaime Parr described ongoing work on stormwater and parking improvements funded by an ARPA grant, ownership and operating arrangements with Fonner Park and local partners, and priorities for more exhibit and vendor space.

Caldwell said the ARPA-funded work is ‘‘well underway’’ and that securing ownership of a parking lot and improving the concert and equine venues have been priorities. ‘‘We are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel,’’ she said, adding that the fair’s master plan calls for additional expo and equine buildings. Parr said the ARPA project is contracted and expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

Parr, who has run the fair office for about 26 years, said the State Fair pays the operating expenses for its August–September term while Fonner Park owns the campus. ‘‘We do cover the expenses for the facility…we have the full month of August and the full month of September,’’ Parr said, describing the fair’s relationship with Fonner Park and with the Heartland Events Center, which she said is owned by the City of Grand Island and operated under contract by an event operator.

Committee members asked about priorities and revenue. Caldwell identified preserving youth and agricultural programming, improving guest experience and expanding vendor and exhibit space as top items. Parr and Caldwell listed the fair’s revenue streams as gate admission, entries, sponsorships and a constitutionally authorized share of state lottery funds. Parr told senators the fair aims to continue increasing attendance and to support exhibitors; Caldwell said the board has worked to raise premiums for competitions.

Supporters who testified included longtime fair staff and local volunteers. Traci Meneke, one proponent, told the committee Caldwell ‘‘is a champion of agriculture’’ who has ‘‘poured her heart into the State Fair Board.’’ Jaime Parr said Caldwell ‘‘has been integral’’ to stabilizing the grounds and staff and recommended reappointment.

The hearing record included operational details provided by witnesses: the fair employs about 18 full-time, year-round staff members; volunteers can number as many as about 700 during the fair; the fair’s attendance target is described informally as exceeding 300,000; and the ARPA work is expected to finish in 2026. Senators also discussed the fair’s move from Lincoln to Grand Island (the transcript references the Fair’s years in Lincoln and notes the Grand Island campus has hosted the fair since 2010) and the role of University Extension, 4-H and FFA in running youth competitions.

No formal committee vote or recommendation appears in the hearing transcript provided. The committee concluded the confirmation hearing after proponents spoke and no opponents appeared.

A transcript of the hearing will remain part of the public record; if the committee schedules a subsequent business meeting or vote on Caldwell’s reappointment that action was not recorded in the provided transcript.