GOSHEN COUNTY – A group representing what Goshen County Fairgrounds General Manager Stephanie Lofink described as “80 percent” of the annual revenue from hourly rental usage of the Fairgrounds Pavilion approached the Fair Board on Tuesday, upset over what they called crippling increases in the cost of using the facility.

On July 17, new rental rates went into effect for use of the Pavilion, in some cases doubling or more what it costs Goshen County residents and others to use the 25-year-old facility. Representatives of the Goshen County Roping Club, the Kaylie Haun Foundation and other groups which host and sponsor events at the Pavilion – or just enjoy riding at the facility – said, with the rate increases, they would no longer be able to afford to host their events in Goshen County.

“We’ve been doing events in the Pavilion for probably 10 years,” said Deb Beede with the Haun Foundation, named for Kaylie Haun, the Torrington woman killed in a 2014 car wreck. The Foundation sponsors an annual Labor Day barrel race which raises money for local scholarships.

“I’m curious if the Commissioners and the Fair Board have considered the impact this is going to have on your Torrington community?” Beede said. “Rates are less expensive at other barns, I do know that. It’s obviously not affordable” with the new, increased rates at the Pavilion.

Significant rent increase

At issue are rate increases Fair Board members said were the result of pressure from Goshen County Commissioners to increase revenue coming in to the facility or face probable closure. For example, simply using the facility to ride horses went from $45 per hour to $100 per hour over night, according to information provided by Lofink.

Fees to use the Pavilion for rough stock and roping, and similar events and monthly livestock penning all saw similar increases, doubling or more the costs of using the facilities.

In May, when the issue first came up, Lofink said the Fair Board had set a proposed fee increase from $45 to $55 per hour when it presented its annual budget request to the county’s governing body. That budget also included a request for a “slight” increase in the annual fairground budget, Lofink said. Not only was the requested increase rejected, the Fair Board – and all county departments – were told they would have to cut their budgets 5 percent from the previous fiscal year’s numbers.

RELATED: Fair faces possible cuts

“In May, we increased our budget slightly to see if we could get by for one more year without passing the costs on to our customers,” she said. “We were told … we have to decrease more drastically, we need you to reduce 5 percent off what we gave you last year.

“The trickle-down is, we got cut,” Lofink said. “What happens next year if the barn is not rented?”

Board member Mike McNamee zeroed in on the heart of the issue: “When we were approached by the Commissioners saying figure out ways to make this more financially stable or the doors will close, we did what we thought best. We’re at a starting point, but we had to do something.”

‘Money pit . . .’

For the period from July 2017 through June of this year, total expenses at the Pavilion alone were $32,434, which includes almost $7,800 for utilities from the city of Torrington alone, according to a fairgrounds financial report presented during the meeting. For the same period, the Pavilion brought in slightly more than $99,000 in revenue, for a net income of $66,635.

Hand-written calculations included with the financial report make the “break-even” point for use of the facility through rental rates at just more than $100 per hour. 

Total revenue for all the fairground facilities for the year was $383,509, against total expenses of $456,416, for an overall loss of almost $73,000. The Pavilion represents 65 percent of both the cost and the revenue of the fairground, according to the report.

“I understand pressure from the Commissioners to increase revenue from the fairgrounds,” said Danielle Hanzlik, who said her family and friends use the barn frequently as a place to ride in inclement weather. With the fee increases, their cost during winter months would jump from $500 to more than $1,200.

“Increasing the rent is not the way to do it,” Hanzlik said. “It would be more cost-effective for us to haul (horses) somewhere else rather than to contribute to the revenue of the county.”

The question was posed as to why the fairgrounds – and particularly the Pavilion – was paying essentially full price for the city-owned utilities it uses. 

“Torrington (city) profits from this barn,” said Heather Milligan. “What can we do about them? When we pay our utilities, do we get any help on this?”

Lofink told the audience the city has been approached numerous times for a reduction in utility costs, based on the benefits the facility provides.

“When we go to the Mayor (Mike Varney), he says, ‘Why should we,’” she said.

‘Long time coming . . .’

A traditional economic development computation says every dollar spent in a community such as the money spent by people using a facility circulates seven times within the community at local restaurants, fuel stations and more. Using that computation, the economic impact of the Pavilion on the Torrington and Goshen County communities exceeds $1.5 million annually, according to the financial report.

Fair Board Chairman Randy Steben, in part, agreed with the crowd the sudden rental-rate increase was, if nothing else, a shock. The financial woes which have plagued the county overall and the Fair Board in particular have been a long time coming, he said.

“This whole thing’s been cumulative over the years and it’s finally come to a head now,” he said. The rate increases “should have probably been done slowly over four to five years, with the rates going up a little bit at a time.

“If you come up with any funding ideas, come to us,” Steben told the audience. “Get to the Commissioners, get to the City Council. Tell them your concerns. Something may happen. At least they’ll be aware there’s a problem.”