Group tries to establish a new county fair

April 17, 2009

A group of Valencia County citizens, with the support of 4H and Future Farmers of America (FFA), is working to establish a new county fair they’re calling the Valencia County Community Expo.

The expo will be held in August on Desert Willow Road in Los Lunas, the site of the old grasslands north of the Wal-Mart Distribution Center. It will run from Saturday, August 15, through Sunday, August 23, exactly one week before the Valencia County Fair in Belen.

Focusing on agriculture, business, commerce, history and tourism, the expo will have indoor exhibits, commercial exhibits, live music, dances, a carnival and even a parade, with a proposed route along Main Street in Los Lunas. Other events, like livestock shows and a dog show, are being planned.

“The VCCExpo has become a sanctioned show for the 4H kids,” said Jerry Cosper, a representative of the group. He added that the expo has not been officially sanctioned by FFA.

Cosper spoke before the county commission on Wednesday asking for the county to support the event with equipment to clean up the proposed site and money to fund activities.

The group formed last fall after repeated attempts to work with the Valencia Fair Board, which manages the Valencia County Fairgrounds near Belen. Out of frustration, the group decided to pursue their own event similar to the annual county fair.

Cosper said the expo “is not associated with” the Valencia Fair Board, but said “the kids are allowed to show at both” the expo and fair.

County fair officials have expressed concern over the expo, questioning the impact it will have on the fair and wondering how best to decide which kids qualify for state fair competition.

The expo group, which sees their event as a long-term project, is working with a lawyer to apply for nonprofit status with the Internal Revenue Service, but in the meantime, it’s using 4H’s nonprofit status for its activities.

“We would like for this project to grow over the years,” Cosper said.

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