BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Ryan Alsop, the chief administrative officer for Kern County, issued a statement on Thursday concerning the status of the fair emphasizing that the county is not preventing it from going on this year.
"No official of the County of Kern has communicated to the Association that we are not allowing a Fair to be conducted this year," said Alsop in his statement.
Kern County Fair Board of Directors Chairwoman Blodgie Rodriguez said that the decision to postpone the fair was a matter of space because the fairgrounds were the home of Kern Public Health’s mass vaccination site. But Tuesday the county made it clear that the fair and the vaccination site could coexist. Alsop said that the county would be open to the idea of helping bring back the Kern County staple in 2021.
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“If they decide to do it we will accommodate with our operations out there,” said Alsop on Tuesday. “The county is not standing in their way. At no time have we told them not to have the fair. That’s their decision.”
On Thursday, Alsop added: "the County of Kern has absolutely nothing to do with conducting the Fair, nor is it a decision of the Board of Supervisors. The Kern County Fair is an event conducted and under the authority of the 15th Agricultural Association of California, a State Agency, which is also known locally as the 'Fair Board,' where each member is appointed by the Governor of the State of California."
READ ALSOP'S FULL STATEMENT:
“Local media outlets continue to report on the status of the Kern County Fair this year.
First, so that it is clear to everyone, the County of Kern has absolutely nothing to do with conducting the Fair, nor is it a decision of the Board of Supervisors. The Kern County Fair is an event conducted and under the authority of the 15th Agricultural Association of California, a State Agency, which is also known locally as the "Fair Board," where each member is appointed by the Governor of the State of California.
Second, no official of the County of Kern has communicated to the Association that we are not allowing a Fair to be conducted this year.
Lastly, if the State is going to allow such an event to be conducted, and the Association determines that it is going to conduct a Fair, doing so commensurate with State public health directives and guidance, the County of Kern will accommodate by simply restructuring our ongoing testing and vaccination efforts around the event.”
