Fair parking reviewed

Grant County board to possibly pay rodeo group

GRANT COUNTY - The Grant County Fair board is examining whether to pay a portion of parking pass sales to the Columbia Basin Rodeo Association.

The fair charged attendees $2 each time they parked or $5 for a season pass. The Moses Lake Drill Team Booster Club was paid $10,000 take payments.

Fairgrounds manager Bill West said in a previous interview the change was made to prevent people from double or triple parking which happened in previous years.

Nic Dirks, the rodeo association president, said there was some confusion about the change, and when they decided they didn't want to charge for attending the rodeo, they found they didn't have any say in the process. According to the contract with the county the rodeo has access to the Blue and Green parking lots.

"We weren't specifically advised of the situation as far as parking until Wednesday or Thursday. There was speculation, there was testimony or comments given to the county commissioners that the rodeo association was advised," Dirks said. "Yes we were told the fair may be charging for parking, but in a situation like that we feel that we don't have time to chase down the rumor, you don't have time to chase down rumors, and we felt that if something was going to drastically or dramatically affect our business practices, we would have been told about it."

In response, Mike Cobb, the association's vice president said they would like the revenue from Blue and Green parking from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on the days of the demolition derby and the rodeo.

"Basically we felt during the hours of noon and 6 o'clock pretty much everybody that came to those parking lots were probably coming to the fair," he said. "So we feel a third of that money should be ours, after you take out your expenses.

Fair board member Joan Prchal questioned the idea that the rodeo association wasn't notified.

"We put ads in the paper (not the Columbia Basin Herald) in March, April, May, June, July," she said. "Every month, we were telling people that we were charging and all of our advertising said that we were charging. We're practically the only fair that doesn't charge."

West said they should have officially notified the association about the change.

"We will do better," fair board member Bonnie Rea said. "We will do better … If you guys know a better way, if we have to park them and charge it. If you know a better way to do it, we want your input."

In response, the fair board decided to send the rodeo's request to committee to look it over. Dirks and Cobb said the fair and the rodeo need to work together and there wasn't any intention of moving the rodeo to a different date.

"We are not out here to grind an ax," Dirks said. "We understand for the one week, we are the largest venue including the Gorge. This is what the local people come out to see."

The board also decided to appoint a liaison to the rodeo association. Fair board member John Eschenbacher said this would help communication between the two organizations.

Dirks said he agreed with the suggestion.

"We realize that we have to work together instead of grinding an ax with people, and we don't intend to," Dirks said.