Many state fairs have no problem with selling beer

Sunday, March 04, 2007
Matt Tullis
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH


Gary Goodman’s first year as general manager of the South Carolina State Fair was not good.

It was 1984 and, by day, the fair was fine. At night, though, families disappeared as the fair was commandeered by people who came just to get drunk.

Nearly every vendor on the midway sold beer. Drunks started fights and trashed the fairgrounds. After the fair, Goodman and other officials made a decision to ban alcohol.

Ohio officials are investigating whether to allow alcohol sales at this year’s state fair, scheduled for Aug. 1-12. They say it could help bring revenue to the fair and promote Ohio wineries and breweries.

South Carolina’s experience is probably the worst case they could come across if a survey of 11 other major fairs is any indication.

Eight sell alcohol in a variety of ways and report very little trouble. Officials for those fairs said that beer is as traditional as corn dogs and the Ferris wheel.

Those that don’t sell alcohol consider that a tradition, too. In North Carolina and Indiana, drinking hasn’t been part of the fair for decades and officials want to keep it that way. They fear that beer would ruin the family-friendly atmosphere they have worked hard to maintain.

Ohio will consider several options during the next few weeks. General Manager Virgil Strickler said he will give three options to the fair commission at its March meeting and let it decide.

"I’m not going to push anything on them," he said.

If alcohol is to be sold at the fair, Strickler said, he would favor beer and wine only in selected areas such as the Celeste Center during adult concerts and the ABN Ohio Food Pavilion. Other options could include selling pouring rights to a major beer distributor.

If beer or wine is poured at the state fair, Strickler wants it to come from Ohio.

Jerry Hammer, executive vice president of the Minnesota State Fair and chairman of the International Association of Fairs and Expos, said beer is available at just about every major fair, including his own, as well as amusement parks.

"Go to Busch Gardens, all the theme parks you have up on the lake, Disney World," he said. "I’m betting beer is available, and they are huge on family atmosphere."

Beer is sold throughout Cedar Point and at Disney World. Busch Gardens in Tampa sells, not surprisingly, Anheuser Busch products at its beer garden.

At the Kentucky and Illinois state fairs, the beer flows at entertainment tents run by corporate sponsors. In Florida, fairgoers drink in one of 15 "beer domes." In Oklahoma, beer can be purchased anywhere at the fair, but wine is limited to one area open only to people 21 or older.

In California, you can sip a margarita while you walk the midway.

Several states use fairs to showcase local microbreweries and wineries, another idea that Ohio is considering.

"The fair is a great showcase for all Ohio products," said Steven Guy, sales and marketing director for the Elevator Brewing Co. "I’m amazed that people haven’t thought of this before."

Actually, they have. Rick Frenette, general manager of the Ohio State Fair from 1993 to 2003, helped make the last serious push for alcohol. Gov. Bob Taft’s office would not back the idea.

Keith Dailey, a spokesman for Gov. Ted Strickland, said the office would review any proposal with an eye toward tradition and protecting the event’s family-friendly atmosphere.

Frenette is now executive director of the Utah State Fair, which, for as long as anyone can remember, has allowed beer and wine sales anywhere on the fairgrounds.

"Utah is a state where drinking alcohol is very controlled and very limited," Frenette said. It’s also profitable.

Frenette said 12 percent of the Utah fair’s food and beverage revenue comes from alcohol sales. Harold Workman, president and CEO of the Kentucky State Fair, said beer sales there bring in between $85,000 and $100,000 a year.

Strickler said beer sales at the two concerts held in Crew Stadium the past two years totaled $22,871 and $25,432, respectively. That was based on only a couple of hours of sales for each concert.

While he doesn’t believe the fair should be a major moneymaker, Strickler said it needs to cultivate new revenue to offset rising costs.

"We have more expenses and this is a competitive field," he said.

Still, some fairs aren’t willing to risk it. Andy Klotz, a spokesman for the Indiana State Fair, said the fair loses potential revenue because it doesn’t sell alcohol.

"But that is how strongly we feel about it," he said. "We want to project a family atmosphere as much as possible, and not having alcohol supports that strategy."


mtullis@dispatch.com