California Mid-State Fair
Can’t Wait To See You! Paso Robles Event Center Announces 75th Annual 2021 California Mid-State Fair is scheduled for July 21–August 1 By Camille DeVaul
A
fter a year of a devastating pandemic that led to numerous cancellations of the county’s most beloved annual events, the Paso Robles Event Center announced on May 10, that the 2021 California Mid-State Fair is happening as scheduled! The theme...“Can’t Wait To See You!” which is quite fitting for the year we have had shelter in place for most of 2020 on into 2021. This year’s Mid-State Fair is getting ready to make up for lost time as they will be celebrating their 75th Anniversary a year later due to COVID-19. The annual event will have animals, agriculture, live perfor-
mances (more information to come), carnival rides, shopping, exhibits, and food… all happening during the originally planned dates of July 21 through August 1. As safety continues to be the top focus during this time, the fair will be following all state and local health mandates regarding COVID-19. It is also possible that certain attractions will need to have reduced capacity, depending on state and local health guidelines in place at the time of the 2021 fair. In March, Tom Keffury, Mid-State Fair spokesperson, explained that the public’s safety is their top priority. “We have to do it safely, it is our priority, but if we can do that and we are allowed to do it, we want to do it because we feel there is a demand from the public and from our vendors who want to do it,” said Keffury. Keffury explained that Plan A for the Mid-State Fair was to have a fair, with all California’s safety measures in place. However, at the time Plan, A could only happen if the county moves into the yellow tier. Governor Gavin Newsom announced in March, then again in May, that most restrictions, mask mandates, and the colored tiers would be lifted as of June 15. This will be a welcome change for Californians and allow more attractions and events as the Mid State Fair Committee planning get underway. Staff at the Mid-State Fair have been looking at large-scale open venues like Disney World for methods of operating a COVID safe event with carnival and food vendors. Disneyland California recently reopened on April 30 after being closed for over a year. Food, carnival, and shopping vendors have already been contacted by Mid-State
Fair staff. According to Keffury, vendors are unanimously in support of the fair. The annual Mid-State Fair accounts for 90 percent of Paso Robles Event Center’s revenue. Not having the 2020 fair meant millions of dollars of revenue lost for the event center and Paso Robles businesses, according to Keffury.
While the event center has received numerous donations and some income from the county who rented two buildings on the property for COVID vaccine clinics and testing, the revenue was not enough to sustain the event center in the long run. “People want to get back and do it...they know they have to do it safely, they want to do it safely,” said Keffury. At the time of going to press, specific programming elements, including live performances, are still being developed and will be released at a later date. Fairgoers will need to check the website for the most up-to-date information. Admission tickets for the 2021 Fair will go on sale in early June and be sold exclusively online at MidStateFair.com. Interim CEO Colleen Bojorquez said, “We are truly grateful that we can once again invite our community to celebrate one of the great traditions of our area. From the entire staff and Board of Directors, we can’t wait to see you!”
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