ARDEN HILLS, MN (Wisconsin Radio Network) — The Minnesota State Fair, a popular destination for thousands of people from western Wisconsin, has been cancelled for this year. General Manager Jerry Hammer: “We all love the fair… and that’s exactly why we can’t have a fair.”
“This is about playing the long game,” Hammer said. “This isn’t about doing something now. This isn’t about risking everything on a bad bet. This is about doing the right thing for the future of the fair.”
The fair board voted unanimously to cancel amid the COVID-19 pandemic, saying that the fair isn’t economically viable if there are smaller crowds because of social distancing.
Since 1859 the fair has only been canceled due to the Civil War, World War 2 and the 1946 Polio epidemic.
Officials with the Wisconsin State Fair expect to make a decision by the end of May.
