Scott Williams, swilliams@wolfrivermedia.com
The operators of the Shawano County Fair could soon have a new long-term lease on the county-owned fairgrounds property.
The proposed 10-year lease with the Shawano County Agricultural Society also calls for the county to pledge $35,000 a year in funding for repairs and maintenance on the fairgrounds.
Members of the county board are being asked to approve the new lease to replace one that expires Dec. 31 with the agricultural society.
The private group leases the fairgrounds for $1 and then manages the estimated 40-acre property year-round, organizing the county fair and other events for the general public.
County Supervisor Bob Krause, chairman of the committee that oversees the fairgrounds, said the county is fortunate to have a group willing to devote so much time and energy to the public, especially with the county fair. Other counties, Krause said, spend hundreds of thousands of dollars a year planning their county fairs.
“This group has really shown that they can do the job,” he said of the agricultural society. “They’ve done an awesome job with it.”
The society previously operated on a five-year lease, but requested a 10-year agreement this time to facilitate more long-range planning.
The commitment of $35,000 in county maintenance funds would replicate an arrangement that the county in recent years had approved on a year-to-year basis using revenue from a farmer’s lease on surplus county land elsewhere.
Dale Hodkiewicz, president of the agricultural society, said he was pleased with the new lease negotiated with county officials.
“We’re satisfied,” he said. “If it goes through the way it is, we’d be more than happy.”
The agreement is scheduled for county board consideration Dec. 16, following more committee reviews.
If implemented, the lease would start Jan. 1 and would solidify until 2026 the agricultural society’s role as organizer and presenter of the county fair, as well as stock car races at Shawano Speedway and other popular events.
Other county supervisors said they, too, support the new deal and are happy to extend some added longevity and security to the county’s relationship with the agricultural society.
“It only makes sense,” said Supervisor Kathy Luebke, another member of the Agriculture & Extension Committee.
Noting the success of the county fair, Luebke said the commitment of $35,000 a year for repairs and maintenance are a relatively small investment in an arrangement that brings Shawano County so many benefits economically and culturally.
“It outweighs itself big time,” she said.
Leaders of the agricultural society have recently unveiled plans for a major remodeling of the Junior Fair Building, which is home to 4-H club members and their families throughout the county fair. As proposed, the upgrade would cost about $170,000 and would be a joint project with the county.
Supervisor Randy Young said the fairgrounds complex is getting older, so he is pleased to see the new lease earmark county funding for upkeep.
Coupled with the 10-year term in the new agreement, the funding provides a stable framework for the two sides to continue making plans and working together long term, Young said.
“It’s been a good relationship,” he said. “And I don’t see that changing.”