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The annual Kittitas County Fair is a community celebration in which many parties <br />(BOCC, KVEC, superintendents, 4-H, FFA and other volunteers) must work in tandem to <br />produce. For the annual event to be successful, each of the parties must be integrally <br />involved. One party, without the others, could not produce the successful event which it <br />has grown to become over the last 125 years. <br />Although there is a tangible loss of rental capacity from free and reduced -cost uses of the <br />facility, the revenue generation from fair, direct and indirect spending in the community <br />from events hosted at the Event Center, in-kind support from volunteers, in-kind <br />products and services provided, and focus on the interest of the public good, are all <br />important considerations against the financial impact borne by the county. <br />Overall, the Board of County Commissioners should take into consideration that the <br />Event Center is an important community resource that not only provides economic <br />generation for the surrounding community, but also provides a sense of place to a <br />significant number of community members engaged in local traditions like rodeo, 4-H, <br />community Christmas basket, fair, and others. <br />The Board of County Commissioners has agreed to provide approximately 30% of the <br />Event Center to free and reduced -cost uses on an annual basis. That means that of the <br />3,60o events we hosted in 2017, we were only able to charge full price for -1,610 of them. <br />From those 1,610 events the Event Center generated $380,00o in rental revenue. With <br />3,60o events last year - which does not include the month of Fair/Rodeo - the event <br />center had, on average, ii uses per day, every day of the year. <br />That means the Event Center is running at capacity. <br />More events are not necessarily going to get us to revenue neutral or revenue positive. <br />Instead, the Event Center should focus on maximizing revenues during those times when <br />we can welcome full -paying uses, and consolidating free and reduced -rate uses into less - <br />frequently rented spaces, using the strategies outlined above. <br />341Page <br />