Small businesses make up for OC Fair cancellation

In lieu of the annual fair, the Orange County Fair and Event Center board hosted the “Fair Food Drive-Thru” at the Costa Mesa fairgrounds Aug. 28 to Oct. 25.

For the first time since World War II, the Orange County (OC) Fair and Event Center board voted unanimously in favor of cancelling the fair — a jarring halt to the 130-year tradition that annually provides 2,500 employment opportunities and generates over $300 million in revenue. In lieu of the traditional event, board members instead opened the OC “Fair Food Drive-Thru” that took place on the weekends of Aug. 28 through Oct. 25. The drive-by format enacted a partnership with vendors to sell concessions on the fairgrounds.

“That first weekend we heard from people who said they waited in line for four hours for a corn dog, but were happy about it,” said Roxanne Ancona, OC Fair and Event Center communications associate. “Not a whole lot was open yet (on Aug. 28) … There wasn’t a whole lot else to do, so people were willing to sit and wait in their cars for their favorite fair food.”

Ancona told The Panther that while last year saw 1.4 million guests in attendance, this year’s drive-thru event brought in around 1000 cars per day. The event was primarily constructed through reserve funds, and employment costs are being cut by tasking OC civil service staff with temporary event positions.

“There were director-level, supervisor-level, full-time staff out directing traffic and giving out maps,” Ancona said. “Everybody took shifts wherever they could to help out, so that’s kind of a testament to how we put this on with such a low budget.” 

An Oct. 22 board meeting revealed that gross income from the event will still likely hit the million-dollar mark, of which Ancona said the OC Fair and Event Center only receives a small fraction. The rest is a reflection of profit for vendors, many of whom are receiving their first paycheck in months.

“This is the first time I’ve worked in seven months, and this is the first time in my life that I have never not worked,” said Carmel Dyer, owner of Australian Battered Potatoes. “When you’re earning nothing, something is better than nothing.”

Dyer described taking on the employment opportunity as a financial gamble, considering the costs of moving her recently renovated stand out of storage, setting it up and stocking on groceries. Ultimately, while vendors who spoke to The Panther agreed that their profit for the 2020 year was meager in comparison to previous years, they also agreed the experience of the drive-thru event made it worthwhile.

“This is what we know how to do. So, if we don’t do this, then what do we do,” said Charlie Boghosian, owner of Chicken Charlie’s and regular OC Fair vendor since 1996. “I’d have to go get a job at a grocery store … We’re not making profit right now; what we’re doing is surviving.”

Boghosian explained to The Panther that revenue from the OC Fair generally accounts for 25% of his annual profit for the entire year. When he’s not working there, Boghosian runs a brick and mortar location in San Diego — an added source of income that not all vendors have the means to maintain. However, Boghosian was no exception to the financial pitfalls of the COVID-19 pandemic, revealing that he was only able to employ 18 workers at his stand this year as opposed to 200 the year prior.

Cutting back on workers also appears to be an effort on behalf of the event center to further curb the spread of the coronavirus. Extensive precautionary measures were instilled to create a socially distant ordering queue to best ensure food is being handled in a safe manner. Dyer recalls her temperature being taken and sanitization measures being required every time she entered and left the facilities, even in the course of the same day.

“Besides supporting the vendors and trying to give the vendors at least a little bit of patronage, (the OC fair) is about the community,” Ancona said. “It’s literally in our mission statement to pay attention to the people in our community, try to connect with them and give them a safe place to come and spread a little joy.”

Gaining popularity at the turn of the 19th century, American fairs have been used as a common community gathering place, with roots originally tying back to agricultural societies and farm culture. Now, seemingly evolved into a conglomerate of various components like live music, petting zoos and fried food, the practice is different, but the core values remain consistent. 

“Food throughout history brings us together,” Boghosian said. “The dinner table is like the center of our day, or at least it was for centuries … If you ask people what they like about the fair, the number one is the food always, and it’s at the heart of all this.”