A new opening-night record gate on Tuesday at the Chelsea Community Fair cast brightness amid the gloom of state budget cuts that impact local fairs throughout Washtenaw County.

The Chelsea fair’s inaugural minivan demolition derby helped to boost revenue by $6,500 over the previous opening-day record of $40,500. The increase will help offset the loss of premium money that had always come from Lansing for as long as fair organizers can remember.

“It affected us to the tune of $11,000 here in Chelsea,” said Tom Edman, fair board president.

The Chelsea fair continues through Saturday. Daily admission is $7, with children under 10 admitted free. Edman expects at least 60,000 visitors in total and is hoping the all-time record gate, estimated at $150,000, will be surpassed. While no new attraction is offered, minor adjustments have been made in the presentation of exhibits.

“I hate to say that we’re status quo, but when something works, you just tweak it,” Edman said. 

For example, the popular “Nature’s Creation” exhibit—where a veterinary surgical unit from Michigan State University performs live spay-and-neuter operations—moves from a tent to a much more accommodating barn. The exhibit is designed in the style of Discovery Channel documentaries.

The cut in funding, which had originated in the State Services Fee Fund of the Michigan Gaming Control Board, comes on top of the loss two years ago of state matching funds for capital improvements on such things as bleachers and tents. Statewide, the cuts for premium payouts totaled $1.4 million and were announced last May in an executive order by Gov. Jennifer Granholm. Some 86 local and community fairs are affected.

Officials say the community fair boards in Chelsea and Saline have decided to pay the premiums themselves. The premiums supply prize money for everything from draft horses to the competition for best tomato. While long-term prospects for both fairs appear strong, the boards are searching for new sources.

Edman said the Chelsea fair board must consider “whether to look for additional support or decide to downscale capital improvements.” The board has a list of projects it would like to undertake.

When the 74th annual Saline Community Fair begins Sept. 8, visitors will see new features. Video game opportunities sponsored by Best Buy are expected to draw newcomers, some of whom might be seeing livestock for the very first time, said spokesman Fred Schaible.

“We’re trying to be creative,” Schaible said. “Time will tell if that draws in a lot of people.”

And unlike past years, carnival rides will now be offered on the fair’s opening day.

The Saline Community Fair lost $21,000 in state money for premiums, an amount it had always matched from its own coffers. If this year’s gate is strong enough, officials plan to pay premiums equal to those of past years.

To hike attendance and revenue, the Saline fair board last year implemented a one-price admission of $7, with children under nine years old admitted free. Schaible said it’s more affordable and creates an “a la carte approach” for fairgoers who may or may not want to go on the rides.

Schaible points out that local fairs were historically one of the first priorities for state support. Agricultural exhibition was “a long-standing funding priority,” and he discounts the notion a shift to a more technologically oriented economy would justify the elimination of that support.

The agricultural sector—particularly the dairy industry—produced “some of the earliest pioneers in employing technology. Farmers were right there at the forefront.”

The Saline fair will give evidence of “where ag’s roots lie and where the future is headed,” Schaible said.

File photos at the Saline fair (top) and Chelsea fair (bottom).

Ronald Ahrens is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com. Reach our news desk at news@annarbor.com or 734-623-2530.