Let's Crowdsource: Tell Us How You Want to Use the OC Fairgrounds
08/07/2018
Your input for the OC Fairgrounds (aka Orange County Fair and Event Center or OCFEC) Master Site Plan is needed because the Master Site Plan process will start after the 2018 OC Fair closes in August and finish by the end of December 2018. Two prior Master Site Plan proposals included converting OCFEC into a convention center (September 2017) and demolition of the Equestrian Center to create an RV park (April 2018). The April 2018 proposal included $170 million in bonds for a series of projects with the nearly half a billion dollars in debt payments on the bonds forcing OCFEC either into bankruptcy or to more than quadruple revenues to simply make the debt payments. Only one meeting was allowed for Public input during these two proposals even though the Public owns the property.
There has been a lack of participation by the Public and FANS of the OC Fairgrounds is providing a channel for Public input.
Let's Crowdsource: Tell Us How You Want to Use the OC Fairgrounds (OCFEC)
Friends and Neighbors of the OC Fairgrounds (FANS of the OC Fairgrounds) is crowdsourcing how the OC Fairgrounds (OCFEC) can be used in the future to better serve the needs of the Public who own the property. We want to know your vision of how the OC Fairgrounds (OCFEC) should be used in 5 years (2023), 10 years (2028) and 15 years (2033). Here are some questions to get your ideas going:
- What works well and what needs to be improved?
- Are there activities which should be expanded or shrunk?
- Are new activities needed and what are those activities?
- How can the OC Fairgrounds (OCFEC) better serve the community?
- The property is supposed to serve the needs of all of Orange County. What are those needs and how can those needs be addressed?
Ideas which are submitted will be posted and the Public allowed to review and comment on the ideas. During the Master Site Plan process during late 2018, these ideas will be brought forward to show how the Public wants to use the OC Fairgrounds (OCFEC.) Any member of the Public can submit ideas. We ask that submissions be no longer than 6 US letter sized pages with all pages in PDF format.
How to Submit Your Ideas
Email your submission as a PDF attachment to [email protected] with the Subject Heading: Crowd Source Submission
Each Submission Needs a Cover Page
- Your name.
- The ZIP code in which you reside. (Anyone, who lives anywhere, can make a submission and it will be considered, this information is to allow us to determine the geographic effect of our outreach.)
- A contact phone number or email address at which you may be contacted if there are any questions about your submission.
- The following language: I am submitting the following proposal for use of the Orange County Fairgrounds and I agree that the 32nd District Agricultural Association of the State of California can use anything in this submission for the Orange County Fair and/or Fairgrounds.
Your cover page may include:
Any other statement or background information regarding your relationship to the Fairgrounds, the Fair, or your submission, that you wish to include. As discussed below, this statement will NOT be included in the portion of the submission that is made available for review to the public.
Submission Recommendations
Although there are no formal format or content requirements for your submission, we request that you:
- Focus on USES, i.e., how you want to see the fairgrounds used, both for the annual Fair use (if any) and year-round use (if any)
- Discussion of facilities, demolitions, modifications, upgrades, or additions should be tied to USES
Although not required, the following suggestions, may assist you in preparing your submission:
- Include specific discussion of USES of current major Fairgrounds Facilities, the PacAmp, Centennial Farms, the Equestrian Center, Heroes Hall, the Action Sports Arena/Speedway, and the Ag-Barn facilities
- If the envisioned uses will significantly increase the number of visitors to the Fairgrounds, you may wish to address, at least generally, impacts on and possible ways to address traffic, parking, and noise issues
- If you think it is helpful in understanding your submission, address, at least generally, operating costs for, or revenues from, the identified uses.
What Will Happen to My Submission
Approximately one week after it is submitted, your cover page will be removed from your submission and your submission will be assigned an ID number. All submissions, except those which would subject the Friends and Neighbors of the Orange County Fairgrounds to potential legal action, will then be made available to the public for review and comment.
Submissions will be available to review at Crowdsourcing the OC Fairgrounds Master Site Plan.
Comments regarding submissions (referencing the ID number) may be posted in the comments section of this post.