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Agricultural Society: Fair ‘running smoothly’

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Aiden Doucette, 5, of Auburn, rides the carousel at the Farmington Fair on Wednesday.
Aiden Doucette, 5, of Auburn, rides the carousel at the 174th Farmington Fair on Wednesday.

FARMINGTON – While kids on thrilling rides  shrieked from the midday, members of the Franklin County Agricultural Society gathered for their semi-annual meeting in the secretary’s office Wednesday to see how things were going during this 174th fair week.

Board members were reminded that last year’s total gate take was down by $1,400, the Maple Avenue gate was “running smoothly” and the $100 society membership was too steep for many. A membership allows the card holder, spouse and children under 18 unlimited attendance at the fair. It also was hoped it would help offset the rising costs of running a fair.

The board of trustees treasurer, Marcus Rowe reported that the gate for the first three days of the fair was up by $500 over previous years’ records. The $100 membership tickets were down by $4,000 from 13,000 or $14,000 over the same period last year.

Society board trustee and livestock superintendent, Rupert Pratt said the board will be evaluating the membership cost for next year.

“We’ll be looking at it. Maybe we didn’t make the right decision. We’ll be making changes to make it better next year, Pratt said.

Randy Hall, the society board’s president, noted of the membership price, “we discussed it at great length” and he added, “we’ll work to rectify it, to make it work next year.”

Overall, there’s been a downward slide in the number of farms participating in and spectators watching, the dairy, sheep and other shows.

“There aren’t as many farms and not as many farmers can take the time to do it,” Hall said. “I remember when there were many dairy farms around here and they all came to exhibit.” Pratt said he’s working on getting more willing to participate.

On the positive side, the new requirement of carrying card passes instead of having lists of names at the gates has meant less waiting time for fair-goers, particularly at the Maple Avenue gate. And the new drag race event held Monday night, Drag your Neighbor, in which drivers challenge other drivers to a race at the race track, proved a crowd pleaser.

“It was a huge success,” Hall said, and he predicted next year the event will be even bigger.

The fair continues through Saturday evening with the also popular demolition derby beginning at 7 p.m.

Big turnout on the ride special Wednesday  during fair week in Farmington.
Big turnout on the ride special Wednesday during fair week in Farmington.
Riders head up into the clouds, their cars spinning and many screaming at the fair on Wednesday.
Riders, many shrieking, head up into the clouds at the Farmington Fair on Wednesday.
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19 Comments

  1. I hope it isn’t too late for FCAS. Some feel the damage is done.There are many upset people at this time.The fair used to be place for family time at a reasonable price. I understand the cost have gone up and an increase may have been needed but not to this extreme. Maybe FCAS Officers and Trustees should think hard about what they are hearing from the community.The community has supported the fair for years and I hope a resolution can be made. Good luck

  2. For the first time in 29 years my wife and I did not buy our annual pass. Last year our pass was $40, and this year it jumped to $100! We always bought a pass, even though we only spend a few hours at the fair, because we want to support this great institution of the Franklin County Agricultural Society and all that it stands for throughout the area.
    But to suddenly raise the cost of the annual pass, and especially for loyal fair-goers, was just too much. I don’t see how that many people in this economically depressed area of Maine can afford that cost…and that cost is just to enter the fairgrounds. I hope the board will find their way to rescind this price hike and once again reward returning ‘customers’ with a reasonable and affordable entry fee. Otherwise, I’ll be back in a couple more years when I can come in on Seniors Day for only $2 – now that is a deal (though I fear it may cost much more by the time I get to take advantage of this deal). I think the annual fair is a boon to our area and I hope that the board will find a way to balance the costs and keep the price in range for the common folks.

  3. That’s good business….. give up $4000 to make an extra $500. Plus all the sales lost by season ticket holders who would make purchases inside the fair. That hurts the vendors, many who are local or locally supplied while in town. That one decision affects alot more than just the gate revenue.

  4. When it costs $75.00 for two small children and an adult to just get into the fair for bracelet day, it is TOO much. Forget getting any food or drinks! Seriously? The prices are ridiculous. A jump from $40.00 to $100.00 for a family pass is a bit don’t you think? People cannot afford this and will not attend. Period.

  5. One adult – $6
    One child – seven years old – free
    One child – nine years old – $2.00
    Two bracelets – $40-
    Lunch packed at home – free

    Total: $48.00 for

    Five hours at the fair –
    – animal barns
    – rides
    – exhibits
    – pulling rink
    – watching races

    A bargain!

  6. The fair management did many non vender volunteer groups a disservice in that they failed to notify them that no longer was the list at the gate going to be the way they operated, but instead the workers had to have PASSES. Nothing wrong with that change except that some groups WERE NEVER NOTIFIED hence were caught flat footed with workers needing passes but with no time to provide them to those workers who lived far away. Some groups learned about the change by rumor. It became a real struggle to get the passes to the members of groups who volunteer huge amounts of their time and effort . . It showed a lack of attention by the fair administrators. One group asked the Maple street gate people if passes could be left in named envelopes for workers who were going go come in. The answer was “No.. If we did that we’ have to do it for everyone.”

    A waitress at a local restaurant told me that over the years she would buy a family pass for $40. Now that the price jumped to $100, she decided they would not go to the fair.

  7. Reply to Always Learning
    2 adults – $ 12.00
    4 teenagers- 24.00
    pack meal free
    4 bracelets 80.00
    all the others stuff
    total $116.00 (4 hours Where is the bargain)

    With all that said we saved and my kids all had fun and I did too. Question: Who won the Oxen Horse pull last night?

    We will probably be at Farmington Fair next year.

  8. The photos are absolutely fabulous! Congrats to the photographer!

    Going to the fair is a luxury in most families now and raising the price from $40 to $100 in one year not only prohibits many from using that plan, but also probably irritated many who used to purchase it and they chose not to attend at all. Doesn’t sound like the wisest choice to increase profits. Back to the drawing board for next year.

  9. I know many people that didn’t buy a membership because they go daily for the harness racing. Paying $6x7days=$42. I would pay that instead of the $100…. Foolishness

  10. Well said Tim… and concerned… we have bought a family ticket for 39 years. Always enjoyed going the farmington fair.. never in a million years would I think I missed going.. well guess what.. its Thursday and I haven’t gone yet… so sad.. loved the fair but what I have heard this week. It very sad and a very disappointing… good luck FCAS.. for making ends meet…

  11. Whole week family pass is still $40.00.
    One adult whole week is $25.00.
    Only the membership went from $40.00 to $100.
    People used to by the membership just for the week of fair going.

    The fair is still a great deal! Most don’t need the membership! enjoy the fair everyone!

  12. I love the fair. I love visiting with all of the vendors. Take for example my position. My boss rents 2 spaces in the car barn and requires workers to help man the spaces. They get two tickets for coverage, only we need more. However, 2 of their employees have their own family passes. 2 spaces, 2 family passes.
    In case anyone wants to know the car barn rental spaces went up in price last year to $300 a space. For me I have a spouse and 3 children. Ages 10, 8 & 6. I would literally have to have my whole family go every day to equal the value of the $100. I thought the membership renewal was cheaper as a reward for those who loyally support the fair. Yet the first year membership is the same price? And it’s cheaper to pay gate price.
    This year price vs. value was not there. We did not rent 2 spaces in the car barn. Both families didn’t buy a family pass. You lost out over $800 just from us. Not including the food and drinks we buy or the fact that we give away over $1000 worth of product and give away free popcorn. Nice job.
    Raise parking $1. Charge $1 for kids over 5. And honestly, I would have paid $60 for my family pass.

  13. Everybody seems to want to get into fair for nothing. The membership passes have been abused for years. Fcas is The cheapest in the state. 6 bucks to get in or 35 a week…. Fryeburg fair for example.. 10 to get in and 65 for weeks pass… Think about that…. Movies cost 6 bucks just for 90 min…it costs hundreds of thousands of dollars to put on a fair, they can’t give it away forever. I’m sure the trustees will reevaluate the concerns and make an adjustment.

  14. I have had a membership in FCAS for over 40 years. Many years I have not attended enough to be worth the price of annual membership, but havepurchased the ticket every year to support the Society. But not this year – not at $100!

    If Confused is correct, I certainly would have paid $25 for a week-long pass, but IF that figure is correct, it certainly wasn’t publicized- the figure I saw was $35 for the week-long pass, and nothing about a family pass.

    Prices are up, the economy is down, and people can’t afford that kind of admission prices. I would think the revenue issue could be better addressed by looking for some better entertainment to draw people in, and keeping admission prices down.

    I hope next year the trustees will reconsider and bring prices into line with what people in this area can afford.Otherwise, I fear this could be the beginning of the end of what has for years been a great annual event.

  15. Please realize that the fair did not run smoothly for a certain aspect of the fair volunteers. Read my comments above. Many groups who volunteer to help were treated inconsiderately.. Some who work for nothing had to pay to come in to work. Let us hope the fair administration makes adjustments next year.

  16. Small children 7 and under get in free…. Ages 8. – 11 pay just 2 bucks…how are those prices unreasonable? And 6 bucks for 12 and up still very reasonable. Lots of families with small children just pay 12 dollars and kids get in free. Sounds pretty reasonable to me. I will support the fair as long as I’m alive, it does great things for Franklin County.

  17. Due to the big jump in the price of a Family Pass this year, many people refused to pay the $100.00 for the renewal. My question now is, if they drop the price to a resonable amount, are the people that bought the ticket every year going to have to start at the beginning and pay the 1st time buyers price? Seems though the Fair Officials should chock this up to a learning experience and make it right for the people that purchase their Pass annually.

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