2016 OC Fair expected to show $4-million profit
After a summer of higher-than-expected attendance and sales of concessions and carnival tickets, this year’s Orange County Fair is expected to turn a profit of more than $4 million when its books are closed at the end of the year, according to figures discussed at Thursday’s Fair Board meeting.
Originally, the 126th annual fair had been expected to reap a more modest profit of just under $2.6 million.
Primarily fueling the larger projection are upticks in revenue from admissions, concessions and carnival attractions, according to Adam Carleton, vice president of finance and administration for the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa.
Combined, those brought in about $1.2 million more than anticipated, Carleton told the board Thursday.
This year’s fair, which ran July 15 through Aug. 14, attracted 1,344,976 visitors. That was the fourth-highest attendance ever and a 3.3% increase over 2015.
Also helping the fair’s bottom line is that its expenses are projected to come in about $237,000 lower than expected.
At the end of August, the fair’s net gain stood at almost $9.5 million. But, Carleton said, ongoing costs such as insurance and taxes will eat into that the rest of the year, resulting in a projection of $4.02 million.
“We’ll have probably several millions of dollars more in expenses come in before the end of the year,” he said.
This is the first time the Fair & Event Center, which also hosts other events throughout the year, has compiled a statement outlining revenue and expenses just for the fair, according to spokeswoman Sabrina Sakaguchi.
As a result, it’s difficult to determine how the expected profit for this year’s fair stacks up historically.
Overall, the Fair & Event Center expects to see a year-end profit of about $5.2 million.
That’s almost twice what was originally expected but is down from $7.1 million in 2014 and $5.6 million in 2015.
Officials have said planning is underway for the 2017 OC Fair, which will run July 14 through Aug. 13.
Heroes Hall dedication
Also at Thursday’s meeting, Fair Board members discussed the upcoming dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Fair & Event Center’s new Heroes Hall veterans museum.
The free ceremony will start at 1 p.m. Nov. 11 — Veterans Day — at the fairgrounds, 88 Fair Drive.
Once it opens early next year, Heroes Hall will be a year-round museum offering educational programs, exhibitions and performances meant to celebrate Orange County veterans.
The museum will be in a former World War II-era Army barracks that was built about 1942 and was formerly known as the Memorial Gardens Building.
For more information about the project or to register to attend the ceremony, visit ocfair.com/heroeshall.
Twitter: @LukeMMoney
