After ‘brutal’ pandemic years, Stanislaus County Fair readies full return next summer
After being disrupted the last two years by COVID-19, the Stanislaus County Fair plans to come roaring back next summer.
The annual agricultural expo at the Stanislaus County Fairground in Turlock is slated to return to its pre-pandemic form for its traditional 10-day run July 8-17 next year. CEO Matt Cranford called the last two years “brutal” for the fair, but starting next year, all of the favorite attractions should be back, including the midway carnival rides, live concerts and more.
The last full fair was held in summer 2019, when some 260,000 people attended. In 2020, the first year of the pandemic, the fair was canceled altogether. This year, the fair was run on an abbreviated schedule with limited programming. Held over three weekends in July, the 2021 fair featured no midway rides or live concerts.
The pandemic has hit the Stanislaus County Fairground hard these past 19 months, forcing closures as well as layoffs. Cranford said virtually all of the fair staff were let go, close to two dozen employees who helped plan and organize the annual spectacle. Cranford said only two people remained on staff: himself and a maintenance worker.
He is in the process of hiring back and adding new staff to get ready for the 2022 event. This will be the 109th annual expo, and Cranford expects turnout to be high thanks to two summers’ worth of pent-up demand.
“It’ll be coming in with a bang. It’s going to be a big one,” Cranford said. “We’re excited to be coming out of this difficult period.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the fairgrounds haven’t been entirely dark. Cranford said the venue has been able to host some smaller events, including car shows, swap meets and festivals. The fairgrounds also hosted some pop-up drive-in movie screenings at the start of the pandemic.
The grounds have found other uses amid the pandemic, too, including as a distance-learning day camp for students last year and as an emergency overflow center homeless shelter this year.
Cranford said while the intention is to put on a full fair with all of its normal attractions and events, contingencies likely will be built into the schedule as planning gets underway. Currently, he said, one of the biggest obstacles is seeing what is available. He said some suppliers and vendors have shut down amid the pandemic, so fair staff will need to see who is still providing midway entertainment, food, music and more.
“We’re trying to find out what we can do that will be new and exciting and different for people,” Cranford said. “We spend the entire year planning the county fair, so to not be able to do that for two years has been brutal. We want (this year) to be a good coming out, welcome back party for people.”
This story was originally published October 27, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
