Board of Supervisors Will Not Terminate Contract with Fair Association

Despite recommendations from the Placer County Grand Jury, the Placer County Board of Supervisors does not plan to terminate the county’s contract with the Placer County Fair Association.

At the end of March, the , which found the current contract between Placer County and the Placer County Fair Association in violation of the law. The association oversees the fairgrounds and the All American Speedway racetrack in Roseville.

However, in the Placer County Board of Supervisors’ response, they disagreed with many of the Grand Jury’s findings.

, it found the current contract to be illegal. Board of Supervisors staff wrote in the response letter to the Grand Jury that the contract is not illegal because it allows the fair association to operate on a “year-to-year basis until the contract is renewed or renegotiated.” Because the contract’s annual renewal is less than five years, the contract is legal, they wrote in the letter.

According to the Grand Jury report, because the county was negligent in overseeing the Placer County Fair Association, the association moved forward with structural changes to the All American Speedway without prior county approval. Following those changes, speedway neighbors had numerous surrounding the racetrack. The county disagreed with those findings and wrote that the association had an obligation to acquire the necessary permits prior to making the racetrack modifications.

The county did agree with Grand Jury findings that the Placer County Fair Association has not yet assumed responsibility for the cost of the environmental studies needed. , those studies could cost taxpayers between $80,000 and $100,000.

Moving Forward

The Placer County Board of Supervisors wrote that it would not terminate the current contract and would not seek an alternate nonprofit organization to run the fairgrounds — something the Grand Jury report recommended.

Supervisors will, however, change its agreement with the association to include the “safeguards, controls and oversight necessary by county officials to protect the public,” according to the letter.

An updated contract between the county and Placer County Fair Association will be discussed at the July 10 Board of Supervisors meeting.

At its June 19 meeting, the Placer County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved the letter to be sent to the Grand Jury. Supervisor Jennifer Montgomery was not present for the vote.

Read the full letter and Placer County Board of Supervisor’s action here.