Story County fair association asks supervisors to maintain increased funding for fairgrounds operations

Leaders of the Historic County Fair Association told Story County supervisors on Feb. 4 that recent repairs, rising rental activity and new youth programs support maintaining — and possibly increasing — county financial support for the fairgrounds.

The association said the county’s 2024–25 budget includes $61,500 for the fair and that the group’s written request submitted to staff put the request at $55,000. Association leaders discussed how that money is used and why they asked for continued support.

The association reported completing a major round of repairs and repainting across several buildings on the fairgrounds and said a planned project for this year includes a dedicated office and handicap-accessible restrooms in the mid-fair area. "If you happen to get a chance to go down to the fairgrounds, you'll notice that many of the buildings are repainted," Amanda Johns, fair manager for the Historic County Fair Association, said during the meeting.

Johns and association leaders also described programming changes. During last year’s fair they added free youth activities including an outdoor movie and a dodgeball tournament; they said youth participation in Story County remains strong compared with neighboring counties.

On revenue and expenditures, the association provided prior-year financials in the meeting packet. County staff and association representatives discussed a rent line that the association said is about $7,000 and is paid for use of the community building by other organizations; the association treats rental income separately from the requested base operating assistance. The association told supervisors that rental revenue can grow if rates and bookings hold: at one point association representatives said rentals had been "up to almost $90,000," and they discussed whether maintaining higher rental rates could push annual rental receipts closer to $100,000.

To manage rentals and take pressure off the fair manager during the summer season, the association recently hired a rental coordinator and earlier hired Amanda Johns three years ago to manage a wide set of duties that peak during fair season.

No formal motion or vote on the association’s request occurred during the work session. Supervisors and staff asked clarifying questions about budget lines, rent and staffing; the discussion closed with the association thanking the supervisors for past support.

Looking ahead, association leaders said the board will decide whether to keep the current level of county support or request an increase in the next budget cycle.