TORRINGTON – The snow is melting in Goshen County, and the weather continues to show signs of warmth heading into the month of April. Of course, this could only mean one thing when it comes to all county residents.

The Goshen County Fairgrounds discernibly will have much on the agenda in the coming months.

Although still a bit early in terms of getting animals ready for fair week, fairgrounds general manager, Stephanie Bumguardner, has stayed exceptionally busy throughout the winter months.

According to Bumguardner, cold winter months at the fairgrounds can be just as busy during warmer outdoor weather time.

“We had a very good winter,” Bumguardner began. “We ran some specials and made it a priority to give back to our community members who rent the pavilion by the hour.”

As Bumguardner would put it, winter months quite often are the busiest time of year when it comes to needed use of the livestock pavilion.

“Certain folks have exclusive riding privileges there, so we try to give them a small discount,” Bumguardner continued. “Economic times are difficult for us and everyone else. We are not always able to pass along the discount, but when we can we are going to. Community is definitely first when it comes to the arena.”

As cold weather activities slowly turn into warm-weather ones, Bumguardner is both excited and eager to see the renowned community support this upcoming season.

“This community supports the fairground events all year long,” Bumguardner said. “We sincerely recognize what the community does for the fairgrounds, and I am looking forward hopefully, to some improvement in our economic times. I am looking forward to continuing to share what we do and showcase how awesome our community is. We use the fairgrounds as a tool to generate economic punch to the community, and it goes in a big circle. The community is here in so many ways.”

In terms of said improvements to the county’s fairground facilities, Bumguardner already has a strong vision as well as a strategic list of agenda items community members and patrons can look forward to.

“We have some grant activity in the works for some pretty solid improvements for our rendezvous center,” Bumguardner continued. “The pavilion and ag hall will benefit everyone involved, and from the production end, we are focusing on our sound systems. This will be a vast improvement for the person using the sound, as well as the person hearing the sound. We also have some cosmetic things we are going to time for a refresh. Remember it takes money to do all this, so we are relying heavily on grants.”

As Bumguardner put it plainly, the fairgrounds this year will be ready and raring for gatherings, parties, and annual events. For her and her staff, proper facility functions and cleanliness are always a top priority each year.

“We are ready for weddings, rodeos, and quinceaneras this season,” Bumguardner continued. “Mostly we as a staff will be continuing to work on the presentation of the grounds. We are working always to make sure it’s safe, user-friendly, and eye appealing. We are already gearing up for fair which seems to be the highlight of the summer and community. We have some new and different modifications of old activities which will be on the schedule. Typically, fair is geared down for Friday and Saturday, which normally ends our days of the fair. Unfortunately, our old schedule would imply Friday night is really the only ‘weekend day’ where our community can really come out. So, we are switching our focus so on Family Friday there will be lots of things to do from sunup to dark.”

In continuing forward with the discussion of upcoming fairground events, Bumguardner graciously gave credit to fellow staff and community members for introducing both new and creative ideas to help make this year’s fairground activities a complete success.

“Stacia Smith represents a local home business, and I was introduced to her last year,” Bumguardner continued. “Through some farmer’s market things, she’s been a vendor here at the fair with her home-based business. She approached us about increasing or even adding a vendor-type show and she followed through with this idea. So, she is heading up the vendor show which will be at the rendezvous center the Friday and Saturday of fair week. She will also be adding many activities to the show ring and our large grass areas. There will be a lot of family fun and a lot of free activities for the community.”

As with any ambitiously planned projects or events, problems and hurdles become a hard fact of life for community officials. As Bumguardner honestly explained, finances have to come from somewhere, and must always be done legally and with integrity, even if it means making a sacrifice for the sake of other county officials and entities.

“All these things we would like to improve on take a lot of money. We are not going to walk around and ask [for] anything back from a community which has supported us for so long. We need revenue sources. We are seen as recreation, but there are other departments in our county. With this, we recognize we have to be reserved at times in what we ask for. We have to be reserved at budget time knowing there are other departments in the county which may need more than we do to operate. If we have to do with less so something more precedent can be dealt with, we can certainly do that.”

“Everything is always positive,” Bumguardner swiftly added. “Anytime we can refresh or improve to help meet the needs of our producers and spectators, it’s our responsibility. We always want to represent our facility and our community well. Our facilities aren’t perfect for everyone, but they are great for most.”