FANS of the OC Fairgrounds

April 2018 OC Fairgrounds Master Site Plan Concept and Proposed Phasing Released

04/03/2018

The OC Fairgrounds (Orange County Fair and Event Center aka OCFEC) has released the draft of the process for the Master Site Plan and draft proposal with phasing of costs. Problematic elements featured in the prior Master Site Plan proposal such as demolition of the recently constructed Main Mall and construction of massive convention center buildings have been removed from the proposal. The proposed phasing of the construction is:

Phase I - Expand Administration Building at a cost of $22.9 million.

Phase II - Replace livestock barn, upgrade Action Sports Arena & equestrian facilities relocation and upgrade at a cost of $21.8 million.

Phase III - Repurpose current equestrian center space at a cost of $16.1 million.

Phase IV - Build new education center and upgrade Centennial Farm at a cost of $27.4 million.

Phase V - Install perimeter fence at a cost of $9.4 million.

Phase VI- Relocate Main Entrance to align with Main Mall at a cost of $50.8 million.

Phase VII - Build parking garage and bridge to OCC at corner of Fairview Road and Arlington Drive.

A draft proposal is posted to be considered at the April 2018 Board meeting and is available for download here. Download CHJC-OCFEC-Board-Presentation-April-2018-FINAL-DRAFT_040218

The constraints placed on the proposal included:

No negative impact on the annual fair
Engage the OC Marketplace ownership on proposed changes
Review parking and engage Orange Coast College in parking opportunities
Insure education facility needs are reviewed
Re-visit community opportunities
Review Equestrian Center and Equine opportunities

The Master Site Plan Process Milestones to date are:

Early to mid-2016 developed a Request for Proposal (RFP) to find a Master Site Planning (MSP) consultant
Awarded a consulting contract to Johnson Consulting November 2016
First quarter of 2017 information gathering
January 2017 OCFEC Board of Directors stakeholder meeting
March 2017 OCFEC staff stakeholder meeting
April 2017 on grounds partners stakeholder meeting
May 2017 facility users stakeholder meeting
June 2017 Community partners stakeholder meeting
June 2017 Town Hall public meeting
September Board of Directors workshop
Late 2017 early 2018 Develop CEQA consultant RFP

The next steps are:

April 2018 Board of Directors workshop – work towards finalizing draft MSP concept
Date, TBD, (Evening, May 2018) hold public meeting to present the draft MSP concept
April 2018 award CEQA consultant contract
Over the next several months work through the CEQA process

Posted at 11:34 AM in Agriculture, Carnival, CEQA, College Park, EIR , Equestrian Center, Finances, Master Site Plan, Meeting Presentations, Neighbor Issues, OC Fair, Traffic, Year Round Events | Permalink | Comments (0)

Submit Your Ideas for the OC Fairgrounds Master Site Plan

03/30/2018

Under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), an agency such as the OC Fairgrounds (Orange County Fair and Event Center aka OCFEC aka 32nd District Agricultural Association) is supposed to propose more than one project to be considered. Bringing forth one version of a project and declaring that the project brought forth is the only way to satisfy the need for the project is not supposed to be the way things are done under CEQA. This is referred to as consideration of alternatives where a reasonable range of feasible alternatives must be considered.

If you have been noodling around with ideas about how the OCFEC can better serve the community and fit into the residential neighborhoods around the property, now is the time to start putting your ideas on paper to get them ready to submit to the OC Fair Board (Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, Stan Tkaczyk.)

A map of the OCFEC is is available here and on Google maps. Use of the OCFEC is governed by legal settlements limiting noise levels in the neighborhoods to approximately the noise limits in the Costa Mesa municipal code (and again in 2012) and limiting the total number of people on the property outside of the annual OC Fair to a little over 25,000 persons, which is the number of persons accommodated by the onsite parking without resorting to offsite or neighborhood parking.

Creating overlays of your proposal and the existing facilities can be the easiest way of communicating your vision. You may also want to include a description of what the purpose is of your proposal including the community need your proposal serves. Start thinking and sketching because the community served by the OCFEC, which is all of Orange County, needs ideas to better serve the community.

Start sketching out your ideas and we will publish information about how to submit your ideas when the information is available.

Posted at 01:30 PM in CEQA, College Park, Costa Mesa, EIR , Master Site Plan, Neighbor Issues, Traffic | Permalink | Comments (0)

Community-Centered Alternatives to Consider for OC Fairgrounds Master Site Plan

03/29/2018

During May 2017, a group of residents met with OC Fairgrounds (Orange County Fair and Event Center aka OCFEC) staff and presented their ideas for how to improve the OCFEC during the Master Site Plan process. The complete presentation is available here Download Community Master Plan Executive May 17

Highlights from the presentation are follow.

Proposals center on the Community, Agricultural, Recreational, Educational Space and Programming (CARES Space and Programming). This is a community-centered series of alternatives. These are reasonable and feasible alternatives which maintain current programming while allowing for increased use by both the community and revenue generating groups.

Alternative 1 is to remodel and improve existing structures which are currently in use.

The next 4 alternatives create green space by relocating parking to a parking structure behind the billboard at the corner of Newport Blvd and Fair Drive. A legal settlement with the City of Costa Mesa limits occupancy outside of the annual OC Fair to about 25,000 persons, which is about the number served by the current number of parking places. No new parking spaces need to be added because of the cap on occupancy. However, parking can be relocated to create open space and make the OC Fairgrounds feel more like a fairground and less like a huddle of buildings hiding in the back of a huge parking lot.

Alternatives include moving the main entrance to Newport Blvd and making the needed changes to make traffic move quickly off the 55 Fwy and into the parking lots. Stacking traffic waiting to park or making cars turn onto Fair Drive and then onto Fairview Road or even onto Arlington Drive to park should be eliminated because OCFEC has more than enough space to stack cars waiting to park on their property and not on City streets.

Walking paths are included in the Alternatives to connect the Arlington Drive trail with the interior of the property to provide recreation the the community and to aid in pedestrian flow inside the property.

Unlike the Master Site Plan proposals brought forward by Johnson Consulting, the open space was supposed to be open space with grass or plants and not trees in a parking lot as proposed in the proposals from Chicago based Johnson Consulting. The alternatives also maintain the current footprint of the annual OC Fair.

What are your ideas for a new Master Site Plan for the OCFEC?

Posted at 02:08 PM in Carnival, College Park, Costa Mesa, EIR , Master Site Plan, Meeting Presentations, Neighbor Issues, Traffic, Year Round Events | Permalink | Comments (0)

OC Fairgrounds Master Site Plan Information from March 2018 Board Meeting

03/26/2018

During the March 22, 2018 OC Fair Board meeting at the Orange County Fair and Event Center, the following updated information regarding the Master Site Plan process was provided:

A workshop will be held during the Thursday, April 26, 2018, Board meeting. The meeting starts at 9 AM with the workshop scheduled to begin around 10:30 AM. If you want to speak during the workshop, your card to speak must be handed in before the meeting begins at 9 AM.
More than one site plan concept will be brought forward to the Board Directors.
Work product from Johnson Consulting hired to manage the Master Site Plan process will be posted on the OC Fair website on or around April 2, 2018. The work product posted is promised to be the same as the information given to the Board.
A second workshop to be held in the evening during early May has been promised but not scheduled as of this time.
A request for proposal (RFP) for services related to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) has been released.
The Board Directors will review draft concepts at the May 24, 2018, Fair Board meeting. The formal CEQA process will start after the draft concepts are reviewed.
No final selection of a plan will take place until after the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is certified.
The CEQA process is expected to take 6 to 8 months.

OC Fair Board Director Contact Info Added May 3, 2018

Chair Barbara Bagneris [email protected]
Vice Chair Robert Ruiz [email protected]
Ashleigh Aitken [email protected]
Nick Berardino [email protected]
Sandra Cervantes [email protected]
Doug La Belle [email protected]
Gerardo Mouet [email protected]
Newton Pham [email protected]
Stan Tkaczyk [email protected]

Questions to Executive Management can be sent to CEP Kathy Kramer [email protected] and VP of Operations Ken Karns [email protected].

Posted at 12:54 PM in CEQA, Costa Mesa, EIR , Master Site Plan, Neighbor Issues, Traffic, Year Round Events | Permalink | Comments (0)

Master Site Plan: "Development Report"

03/12/2018

The Master Site Plan process is a revenue centered process, not a community, education, agriculture, or recreation centered process. This is the section from the winning proposal for the Master Site Plan process which discusses the plans for development of the Master Site Plan. It should be noted that multiple requests have been made for documents regarding this work and no documents have been produced. [A] This section is from pgs. 24-25 of the C. H. Johnson Consulting, Inc. proposal:

TASK 8 – MASTER SITE PLAN DEVELOPMENT

This task will produce a Master Site Plan Report containing summary of key findings and initial recommendations for planning and future use of the Fairgrounds. Our recommendations will stem from a thorough understanding of background data, community input, operational and facilities optimization, market demand, and the OCFEC mission, thereby translating community-based programming and operational strategies into physical place-making that serves the County for generations to come.

The master site planning will include evaluation of local market demand to formulate and evaluate alternative approaches to uses, relationship of uses, phasing, and integration of existing activities.

The cohesive development of a comprehensive, data-driven, visionary MSP will be the culmination of the well- established fluid exchange of information (data) and ideas from the Internal and Community Stakeholders which will empower the 32nd District Agricultural Association’s Board of Directors to make the most informed decisions regarding the future of how OCFEC will fulfill its Mission Statement: “Celebration of Orange County’s Communities, Interests and Heritage.”

TASK 8.1 – MASTER SITE PLAN

Following the Options Workshop/Meetings, and based on additional input from internal and community stakeholders, we will prepare a Master Site Plan with initial recommendations for future use of the OCFEC site and facilities.

Our team’s approach to physical master planning will stem from an understanding of local conditions and an intimate relationship with the site, including topography, drainage, existing uses, relationship to surroundings, and the social context of human activities. It will incorporate sustainable, low impact development techniques that will allow a more intensified program of uses to “sit lightly” on the land. The master plan will be suitable as a basis for detailed site planning and entitlement processing to be conducted as part of a future contract.

The master planning process will translate community-based, evidence-driven programming and operational strategies into physical place-making. This will include alternative land use concepts that describe different approaches to uses, relationship of uses, phasing, and integration of existing activities.

Establish zones for County Fair and other major events, active and passive open space, neighborhood and community destinations and recreation, and economic “drivers” including an optimized mix of new infill development.
Integrate usable buildings and outdoor spaces that will provide efficiency and serve as high-functioning venues for community activities.
Address site drainage through sustainable system integrated into the roadway and open space network.
Incorporate sustainable landscape strategies and a multi-purpose open space system.
Design for walkability and interconnected urban form and compact relationship of complementary uses.
Create possibilities for a hierarchy of circulation, entry, identity, and image for key landmarks, with more private or support uses buffered and served by more minor roadways.

TASK 8.2 – PREPARE REPORT DELIVERABLES

The Consulting Team, in conjunction with the Executive Management Team and Key Management Support, and Master Site Plan Committee, will prepare drafts and a final fully documented 10-Year OCFEC Master Site Plan that addresses the best options for the District and addresses all of the key issues and planning process listed in your RFP. A presentation will be made to the full Board of Directors for review prior to implementation.

[A] The documents showing the work performed may have been disposed of or in the custody or control of another unnamed state or local agency or may not be able to be located according to CEO Kathy Kramer.

Contact CEO Kathy Kramer at [email protected]

Contact VP of Operations Ken Karns who is in charge of the Master Site Plan at [email protected]

Contact Fair Board Directors Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, Stan Tkaczyk by emailing Summer Angus [email protected]

C. H. Johnson Consulting, Inc. from Chicago, IL is the contractor for the Master Site Plan process. A copy of the entire proposal is available on the "OC Fairgrounds Documents" page listed on the right side of this page. We have no idea why the OC Fairgrounds hired a company from Chicago and could not find a planning firm in the Los Angeles-Orange County area or even in California.

This is one in a series of posts looking at individual Master Site Plan tasks to gain a greater understanding of how the OC Fair Board Directors (Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, Stan Tkaczyk) and Executive Management want to push the OC Fairgrounds away from being the fairground we currently enjoy.

Posted at 08:09 AM in CEQA, Contracts, EIR , Master Site Plan, Pacific Amphitheatre, Traffic, Year Round Events | Permalink | Comments (0)

More About the Master Site Plan Process: Financial Plans, Projections & Funding Sources

03/10/2018

The Master Site Plan process is a revenue centered process, not a community, education, agriculture, or recreation centered process. This is the section from the winning proposal for the Master Site Plan process which discusses financial plans and projections. It should be noted that multiple requests have been made for documents regarding this work and no documents have been produced. [A] This section is from pgs. 23-24 of the C. H. Johnson Consulting, Inc. proposal:

TASK 7 – FINANCIAL PLAN & PROJECTIONS [A]

This Task commenced in Task 5 and will be finalized in this Task (Task 7). It will consider the initial work done by all parties and will result in finalized financial projections, considering revenue, expenses and profit from each business element as well capital improvement assumptions prepared by HPI.

Based on the market data and demand projections, working closing with the Executive Management Team and the Audit Consultant, the Consulting Team will prepare a 10-year operating pro forma for the proposed OCFEC initiatives discussed in the previous tasks. The model will list all revenues and fixed and variable expenses in line-item detail throughout the period of the projection, and include data for each individual type of business use initiative.

The analysis will document OCFEC’s approach to delivery of services, such as staffing, food and beverage, parking, and other major line items affecting the operation, thus providing the District with a clear understanding of how the initiative will earn and spend money, fit into the broader operations of the OCFEC, and what the expected financial picture will be at the end of each year. To the extent that public dollars are to be used to support operations, capital improvements, or other items, these sources will also be considered and integrated into the financial analysis.

We will also offer a specific discussion regarding revenue sources that are available to public assembly facilities, including benefactor naming rights and other specialized revenue streams, such as advertising, and based on market conditions.

The Team will outline potential funding sources that could be considered for the proposed OCFEC business initiative, as well as for ongoing operating support, that will consist of a detailed analysis for each option. These approaches may include private investments, incentives, sales, meals and room taxes, Tax Increment Finance Districts, revenue bonds, empowerment/enterprise zones, tax-exempt bonds, and taxable bond revenue streams, among other tools.

[A] The documents regarding the work performed may have been disposed of or in the custody or control of another unnamed state or local agency or may not be able to be located according to CEO Kathy Kramer.

Contact CEO Kathy Kramer at [email protected]

Contact VP of Operations Ken Karns who is in charge of the Master Site Plan at [email protected]

Contact Fair Board Directors Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, Stan Tkaczyk by emailing Summer Angus [email protected]

C. H. Johnson Consulting, Inc. from Chicago, IL is the contractor for the Master Site Plan process. A copy of the entire proposal is available on the "OC Fairgrounds Documents" page listed on the right side of this page. We have no idea why the OC Fairgrounds hired a company from Chicago and could not find a planning firm in the Los Angeles-Orange County area or even in California.

This is one in a series of posts looking at individual Master Site Plan tasks to gain a greater understanding of how the OC Fair Board Directors (Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, Stan Tkaczyk) and Executive Management want to push the OC Fairgrounds away from being the fairground we currently enjoy.

Posted at 02:53 PM in CEQA, EIR , Master Site Plan, Neighbor Issues, Traffic, Year Round Events | Permalink | Comments (0)

"Vetting of Business Opportunities" Key Component of Master Site Plan Process

03/09/2018

The Master Site Plan process is a revenue centered process, not a community, education, agriculture, or recreation centered process. This is the section from the winning proposal for the Master Site Plan process which discusses business opportunities. It should be noted that multiple requests have been made for documents regarding this work and no documents have been produced. [A] This section is from pgs. 20-21 of the C. H. Johnson Consulting, Inc. proposal available the OC Fairgrounds Documents page:

TASK 5 - VETTING BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

This task will produce a report containing a summary of independent business cases for future uses/ initiatives of the OCFEC based upon vetted business ideas, opportunities and findings. The Team’s work will stem from a thorough understanding of background data, community input, operational and facilities optimization, market demand, and the District’s guiding principles; thereby translating community-based programming and operational strategies into physical placemaking that serves the District for generations to come.

The planning process will include evaluation of local market demand to formulate and evaluate business opportunities/ ideas, alternative approaches to existing and/ or proposed uses, relationship of uses, phasing, and integration of existing activities.

TASK 5.1 – MARKET AND DEMAND ANALYSIS [A]

The methodology we propose to assess market demand and estimate overall performance for each business sector is outlined below:

Market Demand and Supply Analysis: We will analyze pertinent economic, demographic, and market factors that impact land use, business expansion, and space utilization within the area surrounding the site which could contribute to overall planning opportunities. This analysis will focus on key economic and real estate issues such as market demand and supply conditions and includes a trade area analysis of retail/entertainment (not including fairgrounds), office, residential, and others. The goal is to provide a comprehensive understanding of market conditions for the overall site.

Estimated Market Performance: Based upon our analysis of market demand and our recommendations outlined in the preceding work steps, we will address the market performance of the indicated uses. For each specific use, we will also profile operating expense information based upon information gathered and summarized in preceding tasks, as well as general information provided through industry resources and other credible secondary sources of information.

Cash Flow Analysis: From the results of the estimated market performance of potential additional/alternative business uses,which are the supporting mechanisms for pricing, performance, operating, and cost assumptions, we will prepare comprehensive cash flow analysis.

The demand profile, current cost structures, and data from existing operations as well as comparable facilities will be used to model the operating revenues and expenses of the proposed uses. Johnson Consulting has modeled numerous similar fairground facilities and will draw on its experience with these facilities. Projections will extend over a 10-year period.

Economic and Fiscal Impact Analysis: Each aspect of the business model will be added to the market. The procedures for the Economic and Fiscal analysis are described in the specific task requested in the RFP in Task 9, below.

TASK 5.2 – JUSTIFICATION/ P&L FOR EACH BUSINESS CASE [A]

We will work with the MSP Committee to develop a justification analysis for the District on the advantages and/or disadvantages of the OCFEC relative to certain uses. We will develop a P&L and opportunities-and- constraints diagrams based on information obtained and review of the various business case initiatives proposed.

TASK 5.3 – PREPARE REPORT DELIVERABLE [A]

Based on the Market Demand Analysis, we will research and report on the opportunities/ideas for planning and future business case uses of the OCFEC, as well as constraints. The Business Case Report will include business cases for uses of whatever portion of the venue is not needed for the OC Fair, Centennial Farm, Pacific Amphitheatre, Imaginology, Heroes Hall, and the other anticipated current programmed events and community-based activities, and will include rough schematic drawings of at least three (3) possible alternative facility and/or land use configurations for possible business initiatives, including their relative strengths and weaknesses. It will be both qualitative and quantitative, providing approximate market value estimates for what alternative business use can generate as potential ground rent to the District, for the area considered for new initiatives.

[A] The documents regarding the work performed may have been disposed of or in the custody or control of another unnamed state or local agency or may not be able to be located according to CEO Kathy Kramer.

Contact CEO Kathy Kramer at [email protected]

Contact VP of Operations Ken Karns who is in charge of the Master Site Plan at [email protected]

Contact Fair Board Directors Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, Stan Tkaczyk by emailing Summer Angus [email protected]

C. H. Johnson Consulting, Inc. from Chicago, IL is the contractor for the Master Site Plan process. A copy of the entire proposal is available on the "OC Fairgrounds Documents" page listed on the right side of this page. We have no idea why the OC Fairgrounds hired a company from Chicago and could not find a planning firm in the Los Angeles-Orange County area or even in California.

This is one in a series of posts looking at individual Master Site Plan tasks to gain a greater understanding of how the OC Fair Board Directors (Ashleigh Aitken, Barbara Bagneris, Nick Berardino, Sandra Cervantes, Doug La Belle, Gerardo Mouet, Newton Pham, Robert Ruiz, Stan Tkaczyk) and Executive Management want to push the OC Fairgrounds away from being the fairground we currently enjoy.

Posted at 01:49 PM in CEQA, Costa Mesa, EIR , Fair Board Directors, Master Site Plan, Neighbor Issues, Traffic, Year Round Events | Permalink | Comments (0)

How Will the Extra Traffic from the Fairgrounds be Managed?

02/23/2018

Unknown. Records are unclear if the Fairgrounds participated in the Costa Mesa General Plan Amendment and associated environmental impact report (EIR). A traffic management plan is part of both the General Plan Amendment and EIR, and it looks like the Fairgrounds did not tell the City to expect a lot more traffic from the Fairgrounds. It is not clear how the extra traffic from the Fairgrounds will be dealt with. You could talk to the City Council about how the Fairgrounds can pay their fair share of changes to roads and streets needed to accommodate their traffic.

Posted at 05:35 PM in Master Site Plan, Traffic | Permalink | Comments (0)

Take a Day Off Work to Attend Master Site Plan Reveal on April 26, 2018

02/19/2018

The Master Site Plan selection will be revealed on Thursday, April 26, 2018, Download Master Site Plan Notice _February_Board_Packet during a meeting which starts at 9 AM when most people have work, school, or other commitments. Despite repeated asks for evening meetings, the Fair Board chooses to meet at a time when it is hard for people to attend their meetings. The meeting time is by the choice of the Fair Board and nothing in statute says the Fair Board must meet during the day. Oversight of the planning was done by a member of the building trades whose employer can benefit from the project.

The proposed schedule is:

9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Agenda items 1-9 (including Call to Order through Governance Process, workshop/training to be last governance item)

10:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Short recess for room re-set (if necessary)

10:45 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Workshop/Training to commence

12:30 p.m. – 12:40 p.m. Short recess as boxed lunches are delivered for Board of Directors and members of the public

12:40 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Workshop/Training to continue through working lunch

2:00 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. Wrap up of final Agenda items (Board of Directors Matters of Information and Adjournment)

The Fair Board does not stream or make video recordings of their meetings. This is another choice made by the Fair Board. With over $40 million in cash and cash equivalent reserves Download Financials_February_Board_Packet, there is no shortage of resources.

The Fair Board is expected to present plans to begin the process of creating a convention and expo center with year round, daily, heavy use. As the process is being led by CEO Kathy Kramer who worked on the $600 million remodel of the Phoenix Convention Center with the assistance of VP of Operations Ken Karns who helped to convert Western Fair in London, Ontario, Canada to a year round entertainment and expo center and CEO Kramer celebrated a $1 million sales month in December 2017 Download Million Dollar December_January_Board_Transcript, the project will have major impacts on Costa Mesa. The remodel of the Phoenix Convention Center triggered development of hotels and an entertainment district.

Contact Fair Board Directors Added May 3, 2018

Chair Barbara Bagneris [email protected]
Vice Chair Robert Ruiz [email protected]
Ashleigh Aitken [email protected]
Nick Berardino [email protected]
Sandra Cervantes [email protected]
Doug La Belle [email protected]
Gerardo Mouet [email protected]
Newton Pham [email protected]
Stan Tkaczyk [email protected]

Contact CEO Kathy Kramer

[email protected]

714-708-1510

Contact VP of Operations Ken Karns

[email protected]

714-708-1552

Posted at 09:15 AM in CEQA, College Park, Contact Information, Costa Mesa, Fair Board Directors, Fairgrounds Staff, Master Site Plan, Meeting Agendas, Meeting Presentations, Meetings, Neighbor Issues, Traffic | Permalink | Comments (0)

OC Fairgrounds Celebrates $1 Million in Monthly Revenue in Move Towards Becoming Convention & Expo Center

02/17/2018

OC Fairgrounds CEO Kathy Kramer, formerly of the Phoenix Convention Center, announced that the all-time monthly revenue record for year round events (events held outside of the OC Fair) was broken in December 2017 with over $1 million in monthly revenue. Ms. Kramer called the $1 million a month sales as a “benchmark for next year” which is being celebrated on February 23, 2018, with a lunch for Fairgrounds staff.

Hit the goal, get a reward. The OC Fairgrounds is a sales focussed organization with the Fair Board directing Executive Management to those actions. If the focus was education and agriculture, there would be celebration of increasing the number of Centennial Farm visitors and increases in the amount of space devoted to agricultural and educational use.

Increases in revenue and rewarding staff for the increase gives rise to a number of issue to be examined:

While the Fairgrounds Board and Executive Management claim the property is about agriculture and community service, their actions show the goals of the Board and Executive Management are about increasing revenues. It is not clear why all of this money is needed or how the money is used to benefit the community with increased agricultural and educational programming and community use of the facility. Exactly what does the Public who own the OC Fairgrounds get from this $1 million benchmark month?
Who asked the OC Fairgrounds to do this? Who benefits? We need names.
Does the increase in year round sales mean that there will not be increases in admission prices for the 2019 OC Fair and no increases in parking charges? We need a commitment to no price increases for the 2019 OC Fair.

The Fair Board and Executive Management continue to deny that their goal is to become a year round convention and event center with daily, heavy use. Executive Management hired by the Fair Board are from the convention and expo business and converted a fairground into a 364 day a year, 24 hour a day entertainment and expo center. Executive Management were hired to change the OC Fairgrounds from a fairground to a convention and expo center.

The Fairgrounds is a 150 acre island surrounded by Costa Mesa and nothing gets on or off the island without going through Costa Mesa. Costa Mesa neighbors should not be asked to bend their needs to fit what the Fairgrounds wants but the Fairgrounds must fit into the existing Costa Mesa neighborhoods.

Fairgrounds Executive Management Contact Information to Address Your Questions and Concerns

CEO Kathy Kramer

[email protected]

714-708-1510

Ms. Kramer was the Deputy Director of the Phoenix Convention Center and was part of the team that oversaw a $600 million expansion project tripling the rentable space to nearly one million sq ft and placing the Phoenix Convention Center in the top twenty-five convention centers in North America. The expansion of the Phoenix Convention Center changed the character of the area.

VP of Operations Ken Karns

[email protected]

714-708-1552
Oversees safety, security, facilities, equestrian center, entertainment booking and ticketing, parking, and the Master Site Plan process, among other duties. Mr. Karns worked to convert Western Fair in London, Ontario, Canada to the Western Fair District which has year round 24 hour a day use.

VP of Business Development Michele Richards

[email protected]

714-708-1716
Oversees event bookings and scheduling, sponsorships, community programs, and community exhibits during the OC Fair, among other duties. Year round events are not booked by state employees but by Tandem, a company from San Francisco which is paid on commission.

Posted at 02:34 PM in College Park, Contact Information, Costa Mesa, Fair Board Directors, Fairgrounds Staff, Master Site Plan, Neighbor Issues, Traffic | Permalink | Comments (0)