To save the fair, manager retires, gets re-hired as
part-timer
To save the fair, manager retires, gets re-hired as part-timer
With the elimination of nearly $200,000 in annual state funding for county fairs threatening the future of the annual San Benito County event – not to mention the other 200 events that bring more than 100,000 people to Bolado Park each year – longtime fair manager Kelley Ferreira came up with a novel plan to save money. He retired.
Instead of just stepping away entirely from the job he’s held for a quarter century, however, Ferreira offered to retire as a full-time state employee and be re-hired as a 20-hour-per-week, un-benefited employee starting this week.
“I took a major hit, but I’m allowed to work 20 hours per week as a retired annuitant, and I’ve pledged that whatever it takes beyond that I’ll do,” he said. “For two months, I worked on a plan. We knew major changes were required. I’ve been in this for 25 years in this community. You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. I love the fair; it’s been a big part of my life. This is what we had to do to make this work.”
As a state employee who had worked long enough to be eligible for retirement, Ferreira’s move allowed him to become an hourly contractor for the district, meaning the district won’t have to pay benefits or his full-time salary.
Other steps were taken to save even more money.
Ferreira’s co-worker, Chris Regan, volunteered to take a 25 percent pay cut and Ferreira helped another employee find part-time work elsewhere. The Saddle Horse Show’s office manager also took a 50 percent pay cut.
Fair exhibitors and vendors were notified of the budget situation, which also prompted cuts in maintenance and fair entertainment funding and the elimination of cash premiums paid to winning fair entries. Those winners will now just receive ribbons.
The fair uses a work program through the county jail to help maintain the grounds, do upkeep and set-up for some events, so that service will be used to pick up some of the maintenance slack.
“We were proactive,” Ferreira said. “When I got word in August that our state funding was completely eliminated, we had to do something.”
Tom Slavich, vice president of the 33rd District Agricultural Association, which is in charge of the fairgrounds, said Ferreira “really didn’t want to retire, but that’s the way it worked out.
“The fair will continue and the public probably won’t notice that much of a difference except for reduced office hours throughout the year,” he said. “It’ll be the same type of fair that it’s always been. Kelley was very concerned, so he went out and was able to negotiate some cuts from people that supply entertainment. He made cuts where he could.”
Looking toward the future, Slavich said he and the rest of the board don’t know whether or when the state will begin to fund fairs again.
“We’re going to take everything a year at a time,” he said. “As long as we can have (Kelley) or as long as he wants to work there, we’d love to have him.”
Board member Anne Hall noted that Ferreira has run a “lean” operation for years and that “it worked out conveniently that Kelley was in a position to retire. We had to work within the budget we were given.”
“There’s a concern long-term because ultimately Kelley will retire and we’ll have to hire someone else,” Hall said. “We’re hoping that’s a ways away. In the meantime, there’s definitely going to be a fair this fall. We’ve come up with a plan to live within our means.”
In a written statement that he plans to send to fair vendors, volunteers and other participants, Ferreira said he was “happy to report” that the fair would continue.
“We all realize how important the fair and the facilities are to our community,” he wrote, adding that monetary contributions to the fair “would be greatly appreciated” and would be used solely for the year-round upkeep of the facility.
“With over 17,000 fair attendees and the help of over 100 volunteers at fair time, including the 200-plus events throughout the year, totaling 100,000 guests per year, we are dedicated to making the facilities prosper into the future; with the traditional memories we all have of it today.”
In related news, the 33rd District Agricultural Association has tabled plans to develop a master plan for the Bolado Park Fairgrounds after the park’s Heritage Foundation put on hold plans to fund the anticipated $20,000 cost of the project.
“They had some concerns about the status of the fair, in terms of state funding and there were concerns about what they wanted to spend their money on,” Hall said. “The master plan is a project that the fair board is still pursuing – it’s still a priority.”
The district received two bids for the development of the plan, which Hall said is important to the fair because “there is a lot of infrastructure that is failing or has gaps, so we want to make sure that whatever money we have gets spent on long-term needs. It’s important in terms of fiduciary responsibility to have a plan of where we want the park to go. It also gives the heritage board a vehicle to approach donors if we have a good master plan.”
The fair board, at its meeting in December, asked Hall to look into other potential funding for the master plan project.
“One aspect we want to look at in a master plan is what we can do to optimize income,” Hall said. “We need a better rental facility so we can gain additional revenue. The pavilion is great and we keep it rented regularly, but it’s not a new building and it needs some renovations.”
Hall acknowledged that concerns about whether the company approved to create the master plan was local “probably played a role” in the tabling of the issue.
“One of the bids was local and one was not,” she said. “I’m a local business owner, but sometimes there is expertise that is not available locally that can still be helpful.”
At the fair board’s next meeting on Jan. 10, Hall hopes to have more information on potential funding sources for the master plan.
