River Bronson, 5, checks out the display of newly hatched chicks at the State Fair. P. Kevin Morley/Richmond Times-Dispatch View More Images from this story Visit the Photo Place

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Will crowds, vendors follow the fair?

Will State Fair still have same draw in Caroline County

By COREY BYERS

Date published: 10/6/2008

HENRICO

Music blasts from various games and vendor booths, while the scent seeps out of a tent housing freshly prepared turkey. Visitors to the rabbits, geese and other caged animals point excitedly and take pictures.

These are the rides, animals, sounds and food the fair will offer next year in Caroline County--but will the screams and crowds follow?

State Fair and county officials hope so.

At one entrance of the Richmond Raceway Complex yesterday a woman's voice on a loudspeaker encourages visitors to follow the fair to the Meadow Event Park. A fair employee perusing the gardens wears a T-shirt with a similar message. It's the last day of an 11-day run, but promoting next year's venue has already started.

How many people go to the new venue on State Route 30, and how many follow from the Richmond area are yet to be seen.

Some vendors and guests had mixed plans for attending the 2009 fair.

Scott Jones, owner of The Sussex House in Wakefield, said the extra 20 minutes to drive to Caroline is still worth it for the sales of his antiques and collectibles.

Jones added that while it's "sad to see" the event leave Richmond, it's time for the fair to have a place of its own. "When you have 100,000 people coming by, it puts your name out there," Jones said. "With that kind of exposure it really increases our business."

Out-of-state vendors Tracey Griffin and Rick Evina said they'll probably skip next year's fair.

Griffin, who worked for Alabama-based clothing company Blount Outdoors said business was way down.

"This is the worst I've had in seven years," Griffin said.

Evina, who works for Michigan-based Woodland Creek Furniture, had concerns about vendor access and amenities, such as parking, rather than the number of visitors.

Both want to talk to other vendors about the 2009 conditions before renting space in 2010.

Some visitors said they don't plan on attending after the fair moves because of the extra distance. "We're five minutes from here so it doesn't take very long to get here," said Richmond resident Kristina Francis.

Located 35 miles south of Fredericksburg and 25 miles north of Richmond, the new site puts the fair within a 60-mile radius of approximately 2.3 million people--including the populous Northern Virginia area.

This year's attendance count was unavailable yesterday, but fair spokesman Jay Lugar said the number of visitors should hit the event's five-year average. Nearly 270,000 people went in 2007.

Ashland resident Rick Lawrence said he lives a few minutes from the Caroline site and will take his family next year.

He frequently drives by the new park, which is under construction. Fair officials are aiming for a more pastoral atmosphere compared with the raceway complex. "I can't envision what it's going to be compared to this."

Corey Byers: 540/735-1976
Email: cbyers@freelancestar.com

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Date published: 10/6/2008