Fairgrounds halts Gold Country Fair date shift discussion, seeks input from agricultural community

The fairgrounds board tabled a plan to move the Gold Country Fair to June in 2027 after receiving information from the agricultural community about the significant impacts the proposed shift could have upon hundreds of youths, numerous animal programs, volunteers and other associated fair operations. "It's not an insignificant shift to make a three-month change for the kids and large livestock," Mike Clader said during public comment. Large animals like cattle take at least one year to raise, not including the gestation period. "The gestation period for cows is 283 days," JC Baser said during public comment, noting the preparation period for cattle is about 2.5 years. He added that breeders are already performing invitro fertilization for calves in 2028. "It's not possible to make a three-month adjustment" to an early June 2027 date. Representatives also noted that moving the Gold Country Fair to early June created a "stacking" problem with the Placer County Fair in Roseville, which occurs the last week of June. Placer County is one of the few counties in California that has two fairs. The separation of the county fair and Gold Country Fair by several months allows youth to raise more than one animal and improve their showing techniques between the events. "If we stack the fairs, kids are going to have to choose one fair or the other," said Jason Koepke. "Kids will also have to pick one animal." Between the 4-H program, Future Farmers of America and other agricultural programs, nearly 1,000 youth could be negatively affected by the date change, agricultural representatives noted. Because of the close proximity to the Placer County Fair, shifting to June would severely limit the availability of butchers needed for processing purchased animals, negatively impacting Placer County Fair livestock sales. The separation of the fairs also allows livestock buyers the ability to raise funds for a second livestock purchase. "Buyers need time to recoup," said Koepke. "(Buyers) are not going to show up at the next fair," which would affect livestock showing at the Placer County Fair. Shifting the fair to June also impacts the Fast Fridays motorcycle races, which are now in their 31st season. Dave Joiner, Fast Fridays promoter, noted adjustments had already been made for the rodeo, pushing the start of the season from May 10 to May 22. Shifting the Gold Country Fair would further affect operations which bring thousands of people each weekend to the Auburn area during the May-to-October season. The fairgrounds board initiated the discussion about switching fair dates following notice from the California State Fair that it was moving from its historic July timeframe to late September/early October starting in 2027. The Gold Country Fairgrounds received a courtesy heads up from its carnival vendor that the state switch might create logistical challenges for the carnival and other vendors which are core revenue generators for the Gold Country Fair. "The animals are also a strong revenue source for the fair," Liza Stefani reminded the board. "This brings in families" which not only includes the youths who show animals but the families who bring their children to see the different animals at the fair. Following public comment, the fairgrounds board set aside any further consideration of date changes and then asked the agricultural representatives if they would participate in a survey to help determine better date options while fairgrounds staff investigated possibly contracting with other large carnival providers to address that issue. "This is not a one-way street, we want to collaborate," said Eddie Vegaalban, board member. "The feedback is of great importance." This year's Placer County Fair @theGrounds in Roseville is scheduled from June 25-28. The Gold Country Fair in Auburn is scheduled from Sept. 10-13.