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Kalamazoo County says no county fair in 2025; leadership aims to return fair in 2026 and funds research
Summary
Commissioners and the county's parks leadership told the board the county will not hold a full county fair in 2025, intends to return in 2026, and has allocated about $100,000 to study options and support 4-H and fair operations. The board also discussed a planned downtown parking garage tied to a justice-center area projects.
Kalamazoo County commissioners said Feb. 4 that the county will not hold a county fair in 2025 but intends to restore the event in 2026 and has directed funding to support planning and research.
"We are going to have a county fair it's just not this year. In 2026, we intend I think to have a county fair and support our 4 H group," Vice Chair Pro Tem said during public remarks and discussion. He told the board the Parks Department and Fair Commission have struggled to secure enough volunteers and capacity to stage a full fair this year.
Vice Chair Pro Tem said the county has set aside about $100,000 to research options and help preserve 4-H participation; he said much of the Expo Center and parks work is supported by revenue sources other than the general tax levy. "...the money that the county has put in, dollars 100,000 to research this and put forth stuff and then hopefully get things going so that we have a county fair back hopefully in '26," he said.
Board members also discussed the need to expand parking near the Justice Center because construction of a nearby events center has reduced available public parking. County administration is advancing a Facilities Master Plan that includes a parking garage; the initial kickoff meeting for the parking garage was scheduled for the week following the meeting, and partners from Metro Transit and the City of Kalamazoo were invited.
No formal vote to reestablish the fair in 2026 was required at the Feb. 4 meeting; commissioners requested continued coordination with the Parks Department and Fair Commission on options and timelines.
