Fairgrounds Task Force

Monday, April 17, 2023 - 8:30 am

Roy Holzer - Chairman

Chairman Holzer called this Fairgrounds Task Force to order at 8:30 with the following in attendance: Robin DeLoria, Derek Doty, Roy Holzer, Jim Monty, Matt Stanley, Ike Tyler, Meg Wood, Mark Wright, Jim Dougan, and Mike Mascarenas.

Also Present: Dina Garvey, Holly Aquino, Becky Provost and Laurie Davis.

HOLZER: So, we’ll start with you, Holly.

AQUINO: So, the report’s in front of you there with the updated calendar. I was hoping that Aurora would be from the Historical Museum, because we actually did met and if she was going to be here I would actually start with that.

So, if we go to news and activities. So, we had the fairgrounds operator training course. So, several of us are now certified operators, including Becky and myself. Glenn, as well, a couple of DPW guys. I think there are like seven of us that are now actually certified. The good thing that came out of that though was the permit to operate that the County now longer needs a permit to operate, because we are not by definition an agricultural fairgrounds. So, what that means, it doesn’t change a whole lot. A couple of things, the fair still needs to get their own permit to operate any of their events which pretty much what they did anyway. But, we don’t need our own permit and that means that any event that is not under the umbrella of the Ag Society does not have to do the water sampling before each one and that’s pretty much it. But, we will help, obviously, the fair, you know, we’re the owners the property, we have to do the whole water startup and the sampling for their events. So, that will all be taken care of like normal.

DOUGAN: We plan to do startup on the water later this week with Todd, our licensed PE and Glenn and we will continue to have a chlorine residual analyzer at the front of where the water enters things that Todd will still be looking at online. What this really does is it means that I don’t have to have somebody go over in front of every event, even if it was a horse show that had a total of 15 people show up, I had to have Todd go over, two days before, take a sample and then take another sample and take them all the way the Endine Labs in Plattsburgh. So, I’ve been fighting, I was almost fist to cuff, as you guys can imagine, you know me pretty well, with a guy from DOH on that a few years ago that these events don’t require, the don’t require it for the horse show in the horse show grounds, because it’s not considered an agricultural.

AQUINO: It actually didn’t come down to that being the reason, the actual reason was none of the events at the fairgrounds received a premium reimbursement from the Department of Ags and Markets except the fair. So, they have to be the ones to follow the DOH rules under the fairground health code. All the other events, they don’t get any premium reimbursement and as the owners of the fairgrounds, the county doesn’t receive premium reimbursement. So, by definition it is not an agricultural fairgrounds except for when the Ag Society uses the property for their events.

DOUGAN: So, that was good and at the same time we’ve got a bunch of people that are certified now to be that operator if we need them to be, more than we’ve ever had. The only person for the Ag Society and the County in the past was Scott Moran and he retired a year ago, so that’s good news.

PROVOST: And I’ve been in contacted with David since our training, so we’re all set.

AQUINO: What we do need to do, though, the County does need to apply for a permit for the campground. That just allows us to rent it out to other people, other groups to use the campground. It doesn’t mean that it’s open every day of the week. We don’t need a person on-site, but it does allow us to rent it out. So, we have actually gone through that permitting process. The application is in, we just need to give them the water startup form when that’s done.

DOUGAN: Yes, some of the parties that are renting the fairgrounds, like the horse shows, there are a lot of them on this list, because they’re weekend long horse shows they like to bring a camper or two and so to make sure that we’re all in compliance, we’ll have a permit for that. We’ll make those parties responsible as part of the permit that they signed with us for operating the campground properly. We don’t have to have anybody full time there to do it.

TYLER: How does the sewer play a part in that with these campers dumping into the sewer system up there?

DOUGAN: As of right now, unless we start to charge something and therefore you start to charge something, that’s something we’ll have to look at. I met with Glenn the other day to see if there’s a way we can come up with a lock on that dumping station for example, because people have just come in and out in the past and not even stayed there.

TYLER: I’ve heard other campgrounds say, just go over to the fairgrounds and dump it for free.

MONTY: It’s on a website where it’s one of the available dumping stations for people.

TYLER: Just doesn’t seem right to me.

MASCARENAS: No

HOLZER: I agree

AQUINO: And if anybody knows of a website that it does say that, let me know, because I have not found that anywhere and I have looked, so I’m probably not looking in the right spot, but if you let me know, maybe I can connect the right people to get that off.

DOUGAN: Yeah

HOLZER: So, how would you secure that dumping station?

DOUGAN: I would try and lock it off completely unless there was somebody that scheduled something.

HOLZER: Is it just a pipe out of the ground?

DOUGAN: There’s a pipe that comes up flush with the ground and has just a cap that comes open. It doesn’t even have the ability to put a lock on it. I have to somehow change that cover or make something.

MASCARENAS: Like a box or something.

DOUGAN: Something so I could lock it off.

HOLZER: So, like Ike just said, anyone from that neck of the woods, could just drive in there at any time and just dump?

DOUGAN: Yeah, pretty much.

MONTY: Doesn’t have to be from that neck of the woods. I understand, earlier this spring there was a couple from another country in there, dropping on their way, dumping.

STANLEY: Jim, I think I have seen those flush mount things that have a lock on the backside at some campgrounds.

MONTY: I think DEC has those.

HOLZER: We’ll definitely revisit this.

TYLER: It’s definitely an issue, I have a problem with people dumping for free.

DOUGAN: I agree.

TYLER: We should charge at least what everybody else is charging.

AQUINO: Usually it’s like $25.00 a dump. I used to work at a campground, so that’s what we used to charge.

DOUGAN: Why don’t you, it’s going to your sewer. You should tell us what you’d want to make if we can come up with a way to deal with is.

TYLER: Okay

DOUGAN: And if it’s exorbitant, maybe nobody will dump there anymore.

AQUINO: The digital sign and I think Jim can speak a little more about that. I did call the Daniel Signs just to get an update on if we are to go forward with this, what it would mean in terms of pricing, just in general and long it would take to get components, but Jim has done a schematic which is in the report.

DOUGAN: The next page is kind of a schematic design of what we would do. I know we talked a little bit about the town’s sign ordinance and things like that and so I wanted to at least get some kind of sketch in front of George and see his thought process on that. You know it’s really hard to get a bid or get a price from somebody until we know what might or might not work there.

HOLZER: So, what’s the timeline on that, Jim?

DOUGAN: I can, if this group is comfortable with this, I’ll submit it to George and see what other information he’s going to need and we’ll at least start that kind of a process. If there’s an approval, you know if we get an approval from the town of Westport then I might do it conditionally that whoever we put out to bid for a sign company, they give us a final rendering to make sure that there’s a final signoff, but if we just pick a sign of the digital signboard and the rest of it is this, at least under our control.

HOLZER: Any committee members feel strongly about just moving ahead on this? I would like to see us to move ahead.

STANLEY: I Think it looks good.

HOLZER: So go ahead, let’s get her done.

DOUGAN: Okay, on the next page of the report, there was some discussion about this sign and the existing sign that’s out there and I told you I wanted to at least discuss the concept of changing that entrance that was off of Sisco Street, almost right at the intersection with Route 9 and see if we could make that a little bit straighter in there, I haven’t taken this to DOT, yet. I don’t know what the committee thinks, but to me it seems a little safer than coming off of Sisco Street.

TYLER: Any thought of even moving it up further?

DOUGAN: The hard part if how close the track is and I know before we talked about something that’s more of, not an everyday entrance, but just when there’s a big event, a gate or something farther up the track so you could move people in and out of a spot, but I think we still need an everyday entrance down this way is my thought process.

HOLZER: What kind of issues do you think you’ll run into with DOT?

DOUGAN: It’s so close to Sisco Street, it’s not closer than the one that’s there now, but I’m sure they’re going to send it off to their traffic people in Albany.

MASCARENAS: Storm water and those types of things.

DOUGAN: It will be forcing them to realize that there’s a driveway entrance, pretty much in there right-of-way and in the intersection of Sisco Street and it will be whether this one of better in their eyes or worse, but if you’re comfortable with me at least submitting it to them.

HOLZER: I would like to hear or see what they have to say on it, so move ahead with it.

DOTY: Has George see it?

HOLZER: Not yet, no. I wanted this Committee to let me know what their thoughts were first. As tight as the track is, you can see it on that drawing, it gets really difficult to move anywhere else.

TYLER: I want to add that I had a conversation with Jim about moving it up even further, about to about ½ way up the track, because there’s a business across the street that when they have large events could maybe use that to help them and they would be, I think they would be willing to offset the cost of that, too.

HOLZER: Would there be enough room?

TYLER: I mean up further than that? About where the track as a road that goes up the middle of it. Really the track’s only used, other than people walking on it and stuff.

AQUINO: Harness Racing.

TYLER: One day out of the year. So, it’s not a big issue with that.

PROVOST: It would be a huge issue on race day.

TYLER: Demo day?

PROVOST: No, harness racing day.

TYLER: Right

PROVOST: That would be the only day where I can see where it would be a huge, huge issue.

TYLER: Right, for one day out of the year and it could be used for 364 other days, we could probably work around that somehow.

HOLZER: I would have to look at it, to see what you’re talking about. The only thing is, where we are right now, it just seems more centrally located for the new building, for when people are using those facilities, it give people a little bit of area to be off the main road.

TYLER: It’s still a dangerous spot there, that intersection.

HOLZER: We should, the last couple of years I’ve gone out there, there’s been cars literally in the road with no emergency slowdown, fair in progress or anything like that, so that certainly might be something to visit.

TYLER: I am just adding if the County wants to do something like that, I’m sure the owners of the new enterprise would look kindly…

HOLZER: So, what about a sidewalk in that same area that you’re talking about?

TYLER: There’s no sidewalk over here and they have a thing.

HOLZER: No, but a compromise to get a sidewalk, so they can still use this general parking area, but have actual, it would spruce up that area quite a bit, too.

TYLER: Sidewalk down the side of the road there?

HOLZER: Yeah

DOUGAN: You got a sidewalk on the other side of the street.

HOLZER: But, I’m thinking on the fairgrounds side.

DOUGAN: If you’re willing to take a walk out there, there’s Route 9N actually sits above the track, quite a bit. We’ve looked at and we’ve talked about the same spot that Ike it talking before and it was a pretty good slope going in and out, because there’s not much horizontal space, but quite a bit vertical transition and to keep the track the same elevation which you’re going to need to do and I don’t know with the bit of ditching that’s down there here if we can get a sidewalk in or not, but you know we can look at it.

HOLZER: Maybe I’ll make a trip down there next week.

DOUGAN: And I did some preliminary grading on that, if I can find it, I’ll bring it to the next committee.

MONTY: What about a compromise to the fact if you put, where you’re talking about, putting it down by Sisco street, allow the parking up there, but we build a walkway with a crosswalk across the road there. They still park there, they’re going to have to walk across the road anyway. We put a walkway put to the road and a crosswalk there. That would be serving the County’s purpose with the entrance down by Sisco and allows those people to park in there and walk across the road.

STANLEY: That was going to be the same comment that I was going to have.

MONTY: You’re going to have to walk across the road anyway.

DOUGAN: I think the other thing and I think that’s probably a good compromise and easier engineering think without raising the track to meet this other grade. The other thing I have to talk about it what is overflow parking and when are going to allow it? Is this just open to anybody at all times? Or are we just serving this one business? Not to play attorney, but I think it’s all stuff you’re going to have to bring pass Mr. Manning, as well.

TYLER: Seems to me that there’s been a lot of parking going on there now.

DOUGAN: I don’t disagree, but it all depends on…

TYLER: You get any money from those trucks for parking there? You should they give money to other places.

DOUGAN: You’re talking the tree trucks there?

MASCARENAS: Did they even get permission?

DOUGAN: They did, they came in and took care of one big tree that we had on the grounds.

HOLZER: It was a barter thing?

DOUGAN: I think they’ve been there longer than we ever thought they were going to be.

HOLZER: I don’t have anything further to say, I’ve got to physically go look at it.

TYLER: There’s a planning board meeting this week and one of the problems with the new business going in there is parking for large events and I’ll just let them know that the County’s looking at possibly, maybe making a walkway or something.

MONTY: Maybe they could quantify what a large event is.

PROVOST: Are you talking about the hotel?

TYLER: No, I am talking about the other place. The old mill.

AQUINO: So, the next page is, again this is probably mostly Jim here, talking about wiring the grounds.

HOLZER: No, jump back up, the history event.

AQUINO: Oh, the history event, I’m sorry. I did meet with Aurora from the Historical Society to get her feelings on doing an event. They do have a packed calendar every year, so trying to find a good date. It would definitely have to be next year for sure and it’s kind of a thing where, you know they would definitely attend an event like that, but how involved they would be, they’re not sure in the actual creation of the event itself. It’s just because they’re so packed so right. We did come up with a list of people that we can talk to and we have some ideas. We also have a lot of questions and I think if we do want to move forward with this, we probably need to get a group of people who are willing to sit down and flush out the ideas and how this would go down.

HOLZER: Gotcha, so if the history event isn’t going to be a reality this year, what can you put together as far as an event this year? Either a Halloween event or something?

AQUINO: Well, actually the Ag Society was thinking about doing that themselves, because last year they did a trunk or treat, which went down really well and so they have grander ideas for this year.

HOLZER: Okay, the only thing is, like I’ve said all along is I want to see us come up with an event that we do start to finish. I don’t want to rely on the Ag Society, I don’t want to rely on Historical Society, I want it to be totally in-house. We have some funds, I’m told that we could use as seed money from the occupancy funds; right?

MASCARENAS: Absolutely, at least $135,000.00 that were going to get directly from that, for the County.

HOLZER: So, let’s brainstorm for next meeting. It doesn’t have to be grand, I just want us to do with volunteers and you leading it, some kind of event, start to finish.

AQUINO: For this year?

DOUGAN: Yup

HOLZER: And it can be towards the fall at this point.

AQUINO: Yeah

HOLZER: Because it was impression that the history event was going to happen this year and now that we’re kicking that down the road, I want to see us do something.

AQUINO: We started out with the Native Americans and again, it’s something they said, we would be happy to attend an event, but they’re not going to be helping put the event together. History Museum, you know, again, they’re all for it, but they’re not going to be involved in actually putting it together. So, if we can get together a group of people who, first of all, any event, we need a group of people, you know, to really get behind it and talk about it and how this is going to go down, we have to start now.

MONTY: We have to find a specific event we want to do and gather those people. We can’t just keep to generalities. I bet if you got a hold of Fort Ti, you know they would collaborate with a historical thing, because there’s a lot of history involving Lake Champlain that goes up and down that included Fort Ti. I’m quite sure if we just need to take an event and just start hammering away at it.

DOUGAN: That’s kind of where we were going, even with the historical one, was actually putting the Native Americans and our Historical Society and some of those things together.

HOLZER: It’s a great idea.

DOUGAN: We thought they would fit and so, yeah, we are running into some obstacles, but I agree. You made it very clear what you want, this year to have some kind of event.

HOLZER: And I don’t even care if it’s like a flea market in October or November, where you just sell tables and say, you all come, it’s Essex County wide. I just want us to do an event from start to finish. It doesn’t even have to be grand or hug. I think it’s important that we do it for one event ourselves, out there.

MONTY: To go back to historical, I think we have enough partners, you can’t just go to one partner and say, what can you do to help us to do this? We need to say, okay, we’re going to have this meeting, let’s get these partners together and say, this is what we’d like to do. How can we bring it together? They would have the expertise on what they’re bringing. Your expertise is going to how to make it cohesive.

AQUINO: The logistics.

MONTY: Into one event.

AQUINO: That’s how we started with the historical museum and it’s just that their calendar is already set for the year, so to add something this year was a little bit difficult for them.

MONTY: They might not be there themselves, but they may be able to contribute something.

PROVOST: And every town has an historical society.

DOUGAN: So, I think, in all honestly we’re not going to stop the historical society thing, we’re not going to stop that event, but I think right now we’re putting that one as a 2024 event instead of a 2023. We made it clear you want something in 2023, so that’s what we’re going to have to find something else to do.

TYLER: You can also consider a hunting and fishing event, because those are very well attended and I know of some families, like the Salernos would probably be there to help out with that. Hunting and Fishing is very big in the area.

AQUINO: and what kind of activities would go on that kind of event?

TYLER: People would come and teach people the different tracks in the woods that are running.

MONTY: Guide service, fishing techniques.

TYLER: Fishing services, guns, hunting. The Salernos, they have all these deer heads they bring, they go to these sport shows all over the North Country.

MASCARENAS: You get different food vendors that prepare venison a certain way, jerkies, those types of things, typically, similar with fish. The Champlain Valley Exposition does a real good one.

PROVOST: They have guides that come in.

MASCARENAS: They charge like $20.00 or something like that it get through the door and it’s mobbed.

MONTY: Archery tents.

AQUINO: So, maybe like an outdoors expo.

HOLZER: Whatever, I again, what to see something. That is actually a good idea. I was thinking of everything from a music fest to the flea market thing.

AQUINO: A flea market thing would probably be the easiest thing to put together.

HOLZER: It doesn’t have to be over the top.

AQUINO: Well, what does the committee what to do, because again, if we do a hunting/fishing outdoors event, I mean I definitely need a little bit of help, because I’m not the biggest hunter or fisher woman.

TYLER: Contact the people who do it. The expo, I am sure that they have people that do it every year.

MONTY: Northeastern Wildlife exposition.

HOLZER: How active is the Essex County Fish and Game Club? They used to be really active.

PROVOST: No

HOLZER: They’re not anymore?

DOUGAN: They won’t even give us a key.

PROVOST: And I’ve been asking for it, too. Because George Tefoe was the President of the League and he actually contacted me this past week and they, very limited, they wanted the Fair Board Members to help the roof on the lean-to down to the grounds and whatnot, when we raised the money and asked them to take care of that.

HOLZER: So, we were just talking about a portable fish tank?

DOUGAN: Yeah, we can, if you have an outdoor event, we can have the fish hatchery there and we can do some of those things.

TYLER: You can actually have a band come for that, have some music for that and some vendors, food vendors.

AQUINO: So, I do have a lot of questions, if we do go this route. Just questions in terms of logistics and how things are done. Are we going to pay people to attend and how will all that work. Are we charge money for the vendors attend or no or is there going to be admission to the general public?

HOLZER: For the first one, I don’t think we should charge admission and maybe we should get together, draw up a draft plan and then we’ll see how much money we’re going to ask the Board to front for us.

DOUGAN: If we’re going to have entertainment my suggest is you pay something towards entertainment and then you let everybody else be around, vendors and people who might be trying to sell stuff or anything like that. But if they’re just educational, not trying to sell something or make money then we won’t.

HOLZER: It’s more the activity.

MONTY: If you go to Yankee Sportsman Classic that will give you vendor information and the groups that have spoke there.

AQUINO: Are these like nearby people?

MONTY: They’re from all over.

MASCARENAS: But, the Salerno’s from Moriah frequently attend.

AQUINO: So, if I can have a little bit of input.

DOUGAN: Let’s start with the local, who have attended events from other areas and see if they want one in their own hometown.

TYLER: I know the Salerno’s have approached me about the fairgrounds for a number of years.

MASCARENAS: They would probably do a lot of legwork for you.

HOLZER: So, Becky, I have seeing in the last week there was emails going back and forth.

PROVOST: We’ve agreed that we should probably do a walkthrough to find out what repairs are actually needed. Some of the things that are on the original list were wants, right? But, there are somethings that actually need to be addressed to be repaired. On that note of the end of the barn, if we can tear that building down that’s falling in at the end of that barn. Do you know what I’m talking about.

DOUGAN: That’s part of the Ag and Youth Center plan is to tear those two appendages off of that barn, are already part of that.

PROVOST: We like the part that’s wrapped around that tree, because that’s where we exhibit things. 4-H will put in their vegetables and things, so that we like. It’s that end building that’s falling in, caving in, that’s a hazard that we would like removed if possible. Our other biggest thing that we wanted in the Wi-Fi and I don’t know where we got with that.

HOLZER: The meeting I attended of the Ag Society, two months ago, I was told that the non-for-profit, the individual that you have assigned there was going to get me the paperwork. Where do we stand with New York State Ags and Markets with your non-for-profit status and I haven’t heard anything. I wrote an email, I never got a response.

PROVOST: Oh god, are you talking about the 501 and the grant?

HOLZER: You know were basically talking about over $200,000.00.

PROVOST: Oh yeah, this is, so this is where we’re at with that. So, we lost our EIN. So, we are trying to get that back, so Jen and I don’t remember her last name, she is the accountant that has been working on this and has gotten nowhere. I mean she’s called the IRS, she’s called the State. The State actually said they would hold our $10,000.00 apparently, until we get that back, but they’re not going to wait forever.

HOLZER: So, you’re talking about the COVID relief funds?

PROVOST: Right

HOLZER: I’m talking about the $200,000.00

PROVOST: We can’t do anything with that without our EIN and our 501 status. We can’t do anything and that’s what we’re working on.

HOLZER: So are you starting over?

PROVOST: They suggest that we do not start over and they’re actually going to wash away that 2015, 2016, 2017 nonsense. They’re just going to kind of, don’t worry about that and focus on the closer stuff, which apparently is all in now, but that’s as far, that’s all that we have found out since our last meeting.

MASCARENAS: So, it’s Feds?

PROVOST: Yeah

HOLZER: But, see the State Ags and Markets won’t deal with the County. I want to make it clear that it’s not on us.

PROVOST: So, we have to have our status back before we can go any further and that’s even with the Covid Relief Funds. We can’t do anything without those numbers or our status. So, Jen has been working very diligently, even though tax season trying to get this all figured out. She’s been on the phone numerous of times with the IRS, with the State, everybody, it’s not that simple and they did tell her, do not start over.

TYLER: Can you contact Jen and tell her to send the information to me in an email, and I’ll contact Elise and see if she can do something on a federal level, because you’re not going to do anything.

MASCARENAS: That is what I was going to suggest.

HOLZER: Well there needs to be follow through, because you were at that same meeting, two months ago and I left with the impression that the next day, your person was going to get a hold of me with an email and just give us the status. I understand everything you guys are going against, but there’s no way that people like Ike and I or Jim can help…

PROVOST: Can help if you don’t have the information.

HOLZER: Exactly.

PROVOST: And I’m not sure, was our treasurer supposed to get a hold of you or Denny?

HOLZER: I wrote her name down and…

TYLER: I think it was Jen.

HOLZER: I believe so, it wasn’t Denny, it was Jen.

PROVOST: Okay, so Jen is the one that’s working on it and I want to say that she’s out of Vermont. But, I’ll get you all the information and I’ll have Jen email you everything she’s got and cc Roy.

HOLZER: So, we have a paper trail and we can try and have some kind of history of what’s going on.

TYLER: And we can find out exactly she has done and what she hasn’t done.

PROVOST: I don’t even know, I have never actually spoken in Jen. I’ve emailed her all of the financials from 2022, so that she could do all of our paperwork.

HOLZER: So, here’s the thing, you guys are a contract agency with the County and so for us to even get this involved, really for any other organization we wouldn’t do, but I just want it clear that it’s nothing on the County level that we dropped the ball on.

PROVOST: I agree

HOLZER: Just because I know how these things.

PROVOST: And there’s grant money out there sitting for us to be using for the grounds and what have you and it’s just sitting there because we lost all of statuses and that is.

HOLZER: I certainly don’t mind making calls and if you don’t mind, it would be a one-two punch.

TYLER: Sure

HOLZER: There was one other item, you said you resolved the list of things to do. So, I guess we can go back to the internet then.

PROVOST: The internet was our other biggest thing. The one that we have there now, doesn’t work, at all. I mean it will work for like 5 minutes, but then as soon as bunch of people start jumping on it, it’s done and it’s not like I can keep resetting it. And the more people you give the password and then the other problem is it won’t work up where our new office is. So, that would be an issue as well.

HOLZER: So, how do we resolve that. Because it actually makes sense that we would want to have better internet.

MASCARENAS: Hugh is amazing and thanks for putting this is the report, Jim, I appreciate it, whoever put it in. Huge went out and the map you see is where he would be able to give you coverage. It’s not Jim’s Hugh, it’s IT Hugh. There’s two Hughs and they’re both excellent. So, the map is a little easier to look at in terms of where that coverage would be based on the pricing that he put together on the page before. That’s just for equipment that doesn’t include what we’re going to pay to be active and how long we’re going to be active and all of that. So, from the County’s standpoint, I can absolutely see where the Ag Society would want this. It’s a $10,000.00 investment in equipment for the County.

PROVOST: Is this up in the, what used to be Scott’s building, is that there this is?

MASCARENAS: This is Nutrition.

So, he has some anchor locations, you can see in order to get the Wi-Fi in these different locations.

HOLZER: So, if it costs $10,000.00 to upgrade that area, what are looking at in monthly fees?

MASCARENAS: That I don’t know.

HOLZER: You should probably have that as part of the whole conversation.

MASCARENAS: That’s an important thing and even that, are people not using the fairgrounds because, I understand that it’s important to the Ag Society.

PROVOST: And it’s not even just us.

AQUINO: Adirondack Harvest also has a big problem, because their vendors can’t do venmo or credit card transactions, so it is a deterrent, because everybody starts using, you’re going to have to have an event that says it’s cash only here at this location.

MASCARENAS: My concerns is at any of these events is we don’t get anything. So, for us to keep putting money and put money in and we don’t charge anybody to use the facility, we don’t do any of that, so everything us is a cost at this point.

HOLZER: For this proposal though, could like we, instead of spending $10,000.00 at first could be do it in steps, do the area that we feel is the most important for the Wi-Fi hotspots and then go as we can afford it and see more events going on out there?

MONTY: So, do we need to have 24/7/365 or just on event dates? Because realistically if you have Wi-Fi that good, I can picture 15-20 locations that aren’t involved with the fairgrounds that are going to gather the password.

MASCARENAS: I think we’ve got to control that, if we’re going to run it. We can’t have people on our networks, open, constantly.

HOLZER: Who’s the carrier out there, Mike?

MASCARENAS: I don’t know, I think there’s quite a few that run through there.

MONTY: I would imagine it’s Chazy-Westport.

MASCARENAS: Yeah, it’s probably Westlecom.

MONTY: Nope, Chazy-Westport.

MASCARENAS: Yes, they changed.

HOLZER: Because during the University Games, Verizon has these portable trailers that had mini towers and I’m not saying that this is a possibility, but we should at least see, okay for the bigger events, how much would it cost to rent these portable boosters for a week event or something just to seem, before we spend a ton on money. I’m not so sure that the events out there, yet, justify, I would have to see what the monthly fee would be out there.

PROVOST: And if we were able to help with the monthly fee, because we’re already paying it now.

HOLZER: How much are you paying right now?

PROVOST: That I can’t tell you, because it’s wrapped into our phone bill, too. It’s all in one. So, we already pay for the Wi-Fi with our phone bill.

MASCARENAS: So, you’re paying for a hardline.

AQUINO: You’re paying for one router.

PROVOST: Right, which is in Floral Hall.

MONTY: Less than a $100.00 a month. Probably the same as what I have, which is $79.00 a month.

MASCARENAS: Some of it is that reach. So, we’re not giving you a better fiber, we’re just giving you pretty transmission to get to those locations. So, we’re using the same internet that you already got coming in, likely. That service is what it is, your router stinks, number one.

PROVOST: I know, we changed it out twice already.

AQUINO: You know doing the Adirondack Harvest Festival, it was working and we got on it and sugarhouse could get in it, but that was it. So, Floral Hall and Sugarhouse.

MASCARENAS: They’re very limited in the reach, that’s what this improves is the access.

PROVOST: So, I know Dennie got a fiber optic quote of some sort, I’m going to have him email it to you guys.

MASCARENAS: We have hard lines on each end and maybe somewhere in the middle.

DOUGAN: There might be a bit of a hard line, but it’s not fiber, that goes to Floral Hall.

DAVIS: Fiber as far as the old CCE Building.

MASCARENAS: Yes

DOUGAN: But, I don’t think it comes into Floral Hall.

AQUINO: And one thing to keep in mind, a new digital sign is going to require Wi-Fi to change the messaging in it. It’s either cellular or Wi-Fi, but cellular is very weak there. So, it does need Wi-Fi.

PROVOST: If they were able to do fiber optic through the grounds, wouldn’t that cover your sign, as well.

HOLZER: Depending on what the cost is.

STANLEY: So, you’re not going to do fiber through the grounds, you’re doing to do fiber either to nutrition building or the CCE building and then everything else can be wireless. This whole place is wireless.

MASCARENAS: Yes

STANLEY: Then it depends on the bandwidth that coming to those locations.

MASCARENAS: Correct

STANLEY: So, if you get one, and the more that you pay for the plan, the more bandwidth you’re going to get. You can buy businesses plans that go from like 5G all the way to several hundred.

MASCARENAS: To go hardwire, this cost probably triples.

STANLEY: Oh, yes and the cost you’re asking, can you start somewhere and more forward is the $3,000.00 cost that is in this is actually the thing to spread it different locations. So, there’s 16 of those access points, at $200.00 a piece, you can start by making it go from the nutrition building to Floral Hall and to the CCE building and not have as many other things. That’s where the cost can be cut.

MASCARENAS: But, you could control the access.

PROVOST: Isn’t there a way to change the password for each event?

STANLEY: Yeah, you should change the password for every event.

PROVOST: That will detour other people from just using it freely.

MASCARENAS: Let me get you a cost on the monthly fee. I am guessing the monthly fee isn’t going to change unless like Mr. Stanley said, unless you upgrade your service plan into what you’ve got coming in.

HOLZER: So, what is, not to put you on the spot, what is your thoughts on what Matt just said about starting with the access point? Would that make that system they have out there better?

MASCARENAS: I would like it should, if you concentrated it into one area. Where do you normally have all of your vendors?

HOLZER: And this is where is starts to get muddy, too. Is should we be using the Ag Society’s internet for something that’s going to the whole grounds for other events?

MASCARENAS: Probably not, I wouldn’t want just anyone riding on our systems.

PROVOST: Well, we were aware of that when we signed up to begin with. We know the Harvest Festival and other things were going to be using it. It’s so minimal.

MASCARENAS: If you were to look at this map, where do vendors?

PROVOST: It would all be Floral Hall…

AQUINO: All the way up to the grandstand.

PROVOST: Yeah, because our business office is by the old firehouse.

MASCARENAS: So, if I were to draw a line, right there, basically where that track intersects, I could probably get rid of all those access points above it?

PROVOST: Yup, from here up?

MASCARENAS: Which would probably, maybe not cut your cost in half, but might get you down to $6,000.00 or so for install, which is a little easier.

DOUGAN: Let’s investigate the wire that at least goes to Floral Hall, right now. The reason I believe that your internet is off of Floral Hall is because when that was renovated around 2000, they put a fire alarm system in it, which needed a hard phone line and I think you’re running off just that same old, single pair, hard phone line DSL is all you got that. So, I don’t, unless you can grab fiber that’s over at the existing CCE building or nutrition, I don’t think it’s going to get better in the Floral Hall area. We’ll pose those questions to IT Hugh and get you some numbers on it, but we’re a lot closer to understanding than we were a month ago.

PROVOST: I have one more thing before we go further about electrical stuff. So, we had to do a repair program project for Sire Stakes that we get reimbursed for. We have decided that we are going to upgrade the whole sound system. Like the announcers up at the main stage and down in our office where we make announcements, because people can’t hear from one end to the other. So, we got our quotes and all that other nice stuff to submit to the State for Sire Stakes Repair Program.

HOLZER: Now is that going to be hard wired or some sort of wireless?

PROVOST: Nope, hard wired. It’s basically, it’s already, everything’s already there. They just have to rerun new wire. We’re going to use the existing speakers that are already there and reposition them after they’re rewired with the new wiring or whatever to upgrade it.

AQUINO: Currently, I think the PA system is only used for the fair. We never tell other groups that there’s a PA system, because it’s, the equipment is in your office and everything like that.

PROVOST: But, if per se you wanted to, I don’t see where it would be a big deal. I mean it’s not like I can’t, right now it’s set up in the little shed, as you guys call it.

AQUINO: You don’t want strangers going in there.

PROVOST: Why, there’s nothing in there. Other than that, really we don’t, we have our new business office, now. So, really if somebody wanted to use the PA system for another event we could probably open the door for them and let them use it.

HOLZER: Well, that would be an arrangement you guys would make.

PROVOST: Exactly

STANLEY: Is that PA system all overhead wire?

PROVOST: I believe so, yes.

STANLEY: So, if you’re doing this upgrade of the Wi-Fi for the whole fairgrounds, to me it almost seems smarter to go wireless so that it all works together and you don’t have the wire.

PROVOST: Even with the sound system, you mean?

HOLZER: The thing, logistically I’m not sure the wireless capability for everything we’re looking at would be done in a timely manner for what they need to spend that money.

MASCARENAS: Well, that wireless is more of a Bluetooth technology, not necessarily an internet driven technology. So, it’s more likely your speaker, if you think of that, that you hook up at your home.

STANLEY: But, I think they have they that they can connect to Wi-Fi.

MASCARENAS: They do, but that would almost be independent in terms of how that works.

STANLEY: But, they can connect to a network that is already at the fairgrounds I think it would be killing two birds with one stone.

DAVIS: I think you might have been talking about the same building that Jessica sent me a text, as I was driving over, and said, I was hoping to talk to Jim and Holly about the section of the dairy barn that I was hoping would get fixed before the fair, because I’ll have kids in there. Is that the part that you’re talking about?

PROVOST: Yup, so 4-H now is going to move, instead of being in Floral Hall, they’re going to be in that cattle barn. All their exhibits, everything will be in the cattle barn. So, it will used, basically the same way CCE was used for their displays, they’re going to use the cattle barn for that. That’s why Jess was hoping that that hole will get fixed at the hope.

DOUGAN: Let’s see if we can do a walk through in the very near future.

DAVIS: She was actually going to meet you there. She thought you were going to meet there today and was going to meet you down there. She would like to talk about that and then the part you were talking about with the tree growing in it. I think that’s coming down? Yeah, I mean the rest of the barn can’t because it’s protected?

DOUGAN: We believe the rest of it is historical. And I am concerned about the building that you say your PA system is in, because I think that’s coming down in the plan as well.

PROVOST: Our building is? Oh

DOUGAN: I think so.

PROVOST: I didn’t know that.

MASCARENAS: Oh, your PA system’s not in your new office, it’s in the old one?

PROVOST: It’s in the old one up by CCE.

MASCARENAS: Oh, yeah, that’s coming down.

AQUINO: Does it have to be up there, can it be moved to the new office?

PROVOST: Didn’t know that, so I guess I should probably tell our board that, uh?

STANLEY: Well, the wire has two ends. You just move the PA system to the other end.

PROVOST: But, that’s going to change things as far…

MASCARENAS: It’s going to change your cost.

PROVOST: Yeah, so Dennie will have to get with the guy who’s doing the PA systems and revamp that before we submit it to Shire Stakes. That makes a big difference, I’m glad you guys told me that, because that will make a difference.

HOLZER: So, does anyone have anything else before we wrap up?

AQUINO: You wanted to talk about rental fees for your events.

PROVOST: Oh, yes, remember that was on my list, because we had brought it up at this meeting before, about, because we are promoting the grounds, are we still obligated to pay the rental fee for every event?

HOLZER: What is your rental fee? For every event or just the fair?

AQUINO: Well, they don’t pay anything for the fair.

PROVOST: No, it’s like our craft fair, car show, swap meet that we’re going to have and in October we do that Halloween thing.

HOLZER: So, I did see that. I think the first thing you’re going to have to do is run that by Dan Manning to see if it’s even an option, because normally there has to be either a written agreement signed by both parties.

AQUINO: There is, that’s the permit application and then how much the fee is, if it’s zero or if it’s something. We had said for the craft show, because they’re using the whole grounds, last year they paid $100.00 for Floral Hall, this year, because they’re using a lot more space, we said $200.00, but she would like to talk about not paying anything.

PROVOST: Well, we had talked about that before, but you were on vacation, I believe, the meeting we talked about it and then we didn’t go anywhere else with it.

AQUINO: Well, that’s up to the committee to make that decision.

MASCARENAS: I do think there was a Board resolution a few years back that talked about no charges for events that weren’t earning income and/or were providing a service for the youth. I think there was something around that.

AQUINO: I believe so, yes.

GARVEY: There was, it was for youth.

MASCARENAS: Thanks, Dina

GARVEY: You’re welcome, it was specifically for youth.

HOLZER: Let me ponder it a little bit more. I don’t think it’s a big deal, I mean $200.00

PROVOST: No

HOLZER: I feel better if you had all this grant money coming back.

PROVOST: I am going to go do that as soon as I get out of here. I am going to get you guys the information from Jen, ASAP, that’s the biggest thing.

HOLZER: We’re adjourned

AS THERE WAS NO FURTHER DISCUSSION, THIS FAIRGROUNDS TASK FORCE WAS ADJOURNED AT 9:24 AM.

Respectively Submitted,

Dina Garvey, Deputy Clerk

Board of Supervisors