Approved Minutes                (Newest on Top)

Approved August 2023 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

August 24, 2023 – 6:30 P.M.
Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building

(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:36 P.M.
Present: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Jeanne Alling, Gail Peterson, Becky Larson, Rod Rivard, Janis Larson, Chad Lutsey, Pat Kytola, Don Dipprey, Michelle Peterson, Brandon DeRosier, and Hans Johnson.
Absent: Mary Berklund, Lindsey Sprinkler and Lori Maypark
Guests in Attendance: Amy Strobach, Sara Rank (Limitless Treats Vendor), Steve Warndahl, Kim Palmsteen, Amy Johnson and Mike Larson.
Approval of Agenda dated August 24, 2023. Donation was added to old business and winter storage dates updated. A motion was made to approve the Agenda by Chad Lutsey. Seconded by Jeanne Alling. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated July 15,
2023. A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated July 15, 2023, as printed by Hans Johnson. Seconded by Chad Lutsey. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Treasurer’s Reports dated July 2023. A motion was made to
approve the Treasurer’s Report as reported/printed by Gail Peterson. Seconded by Hans Johnson. Motion carried unanimously.
Guest Presentations
1. Sara Rank from Limitless Treats: Runs a freeze-dried candy, bottled water, and fruit business. Submitted application in April of 2023. Told it should be a
specialty item which freeze-dried candy is. Set up in back row as new vendor. Saw that there was another freeze-dried candy booth on Friday (Artic Candy). Notified commercial exhibits supervisors of duplication. Told we were welcome to leave and would get a refund. Told that candy was not a specialty item. Eventually were threatened to be kicked out. Lost a significant amount of money with expenses to prepare for the Fair. Vendor that also sold candy had registered to sell dresses by commercial exhibitor supervisors. Fair map and Fair guide as well as Facebook page indicate that they were selling freeze-dried candy with no dresses. They indicated they lost thousands of dollars related to lost income. Rule stating only one specialty food vendor cannot be found. Would like to be the only freeze-dried candy vendor next year and in a different space. Would like to have the rules in writing and have them followed. Would like all her fees reimbursed.
Amy Johnson and Kim Palmsteen response—Artic Candy was doing a candy (new part of her business) and clothing boutique. No fruit. Vendors are told that they try to prevent double of products. Artic Candy paid on May 26. Limitless Treats paid on June 5. Limitless Treats was not happy with space and used profanity. Amy met with Sara and was met with angry complaints about multiple issues. On Friday morning, they offered reimbursement for the fees and can leave if that unhappy. Sara’s son declined offer and told them that they would stay. Names of all food vendors are submitted to the Health Department to determine if all are licensed and are subject to a random site visit.
Sara—Asked about license for facts. Used text messages for record in writing.
Very difficult to get her food trailer to get into the spot. There was no way to get it into the space. Moved to a different spot that was offered.
Janis advised that this issue will be brought to the Executive committee who will make a decision regarding a refund and any policy changes. Sara left her copies of communications for the board to reference.
Old Business Updates
1. Polk County Board Meeting—CUP/MOU Update. Met on August 14 th —did a presentation about what Polk County Fair is and does for the County. It is on
Facebook for viewing. No questions from the County Board. All information
about budget was sent to Don Worthman to give to the board. Steve Warndahl indicated that some of the board members did not understand much of the presentation but did not speak up at the meeting. Called him instead. Janis shared that this was our attempt to grab their attention rather than just talk numbers.
Steve shared the MOU that was sent to our attorney by Corporation Counsel.
Item 4.7—Better definition of what is considered ordinary and routine repairs.
Need to involve the County when it involves a code. The County wants to discuss both the MOU and grandstand building at the same meeting. We are hoping for a meeting in September or October the Executive Committee. The Fair Board will discuss this in a closed session.
2. Donating to Burnett County Fair as thanks for helping us with our Demo Derby. The guys who helped do not want money but would rather have it go to the Burnett Fair. Motion by Judy Bainbridge to donate $1500 to Burnett Fair Society. Second by Brandon DeRosier. Motion carried unanimously.
New Business
1. Fair Recap: See committee notes.
2. Nominating Committee-Judy Karrie Melin-Swenson, Becky Larson, Don
Dipprey, Michelle Peterson, and Rod Rivard are the nominating committee.
Janis Larson, Lori Maypark, Brandon DeRosier, Judy Bainbridge and Jessie
Baillargeon are up for re-election.
3. Jeanne Alling shared that some of her Cloverbuds gave out special ribbons to their favorite exhibits and this will go up on the Fair Facebook page.
Closed Session (PLACEHOLDER)
1. Motion by Chad Lutsey and Seconded by Rod Rivard to move into Closed
Session. Motion carried unanimously.
A motion was made by Karrie Meline-Swenson that a Special Meeting of the full membership of the Polk County Fair Society be held on Tuesday, September 12, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. at the Polk County Fairgrounds – 4-H Building. There will be only one Agenda item and it will be the discussion of the acceptance or refusal of the proposed MOU offer from Polk County dated 8/22/23. Second by Hans Johnson. Motion carried unanimously.
A motion was made by Jeanne Alling to move back into open session. Seconded by Brandon DeRosier to move back to open session. Motion carried unanimously.
Upcoming Events/Dates
1. Storage In – Saturday, October 14 th and October 21 st (8:00 A.M. – Noon). Sign-up Sheets will be available at the September Meeting
2023 Inmate Dates
September 7th and 14 th —mornings. Let Janis know of any work/projects that
need to be completed.

Action Items
1.
Handouts Emailed
1. Meeting Minutes dated July 15, 2023
2. Agenda dated August 24, 2023
3. Treasurer’s Reports dated July 2023
Handouts Given at Meeting
Proposed MOU.
MOU from the County per Steve Warndahl (received by board on 8/22/23)
MOU proposed by Polk County Fair Society (sent 4/2/23)
Additional Items
Next Meeting. Polk County Fairgrounds – 4H Building – Thursday, September 28, 2023, 6:30 P.M.
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Brandon DeRosier. Seconded by Hans Johnson. Motion carried unanimously.

Approved JULY 2023 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
July 15 th – Following the Fairest of Fair Event
Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building

(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 2:35 P.M.
Present were: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne
Alling, Gail Peterson, Becky Larson, Rod Rivard, Janis Larson, Chad Lutsey, Lori
Maypark, Pat Kytola, and Hans Johnson.
Absent were: Don Dipprey, Michelle Peterson, Brandon DeRoiser, and Steve
Warndahl.
Guests in Attendance were: Lindsay Spindler, Mike Larson, Dave Berklund, Amy Strobach, Andy Chartrand, and Sarah Chartrand.
Approval of Agenda dated July 15, 2023. A motion was made to approve the
Agenda dated July 15, 2023, as printed by Jeanne. Seconded by Chad. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated June 22,
2023. A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated June 22, 2023, as printed by Gail. Seconded by Jeanne. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Treasurer’s Reports dated June 2023. A motion was made to
approve the Treasurer’s Report as reported/printed by Chad. Seconded by Gail. Motion carried unanimously.
We have figured out the Xcel Energy bills, and which meters go to which building(s). There are a total of seven meters on the grounds. So, we can now better monitor the usage.
Guest Presentation
1. Fairest of Fair Presentation – Amy had really nothing else to add. She wanted to once again thank everyone for coming out today for her event. We only had two candidates, but they have done a lot for the Fair. I have a Jr. Fairest of Fair running for candidacy. Amy spoke to Pat about her budget. We are getting ready for the Fair our schedule is about the same. The State Fairest is coming Friday night. I hope to send her to the Grandstand for announcements. If anyone needs any help, please let me know. I am sure the girls would be happy to assist.

Old Business Updates
1. CUP/MOU Update. No updates.
2. Discounted Admission Tickets – Endeavors. Janis indicated she has not spoken to them.
3. Collins Electric Update – Chad indicated that we are holding off for now until we hear on the wireless. Brandon looked at the quote and it appears to be in alignment.
4. Appreciation Dinner Quotes for Catering – 80-100 people. Becky spoke to Village Pizzeria, but she was not sure how many people we needed to feed. Karrie spoke to our previous caterer, and she can add salads for more money.
Karrie was asking if we wanted to do a Fairest basket and have some
entertainment of some sort. A motion was made by Hans to increase the budget to $8.00 per plate in order to upgrade our food for the Appreciation Dinner for 80-100 people. Seconded by Rod. Motion carried unanimously.
New Business
1. Volunteer Food Passes – Mary to provide to the Committee Chairs to hand out.
2. Karrie – County Board Invitation and Reception. Last Fall we received some
feedback from the County Board Members in that they would like to meet the
entire Board versus a select few. Therefore, I am planning on an event on Friday night in the Dance Pavilion from 5:30-6:30 Friday. We could have water,
meat/cheese/cracker tray during that time. I would like everyone to make a point to stop by. I will be sending out invites to the County Board and the City of St. Croix Falls. Amy will be in charge of the decorations, and she will ensure the Fairest of Fair and the State Fairest of Fair stops by.
On Friday, July 29 th at 10:00 a.m. we will be hosting a dedication event in
memory of Guy Foltz for his family. We will be dedicating a bench in his
memory. Don Dipprey and Dave King will bring the benches to the Fairgrounds.
3. Any checks that need to be cut for Vendors prior to the Fair please contact Pat. In addition, please let Pat know how many tickets you need for volunteers. Pat will cut the checks when the Superintendent turns in their timesheet. Pat got her computer back. They installed an anti-virus and backup capability on her computer for $30.00 a month. If we are interested in doing this for the remaining computers, we can either go month to month or pay on an annual basis. They would also trouble shoot if you are having issues. They would log in remoting and fix any issues you may be having. Let me know and I can coordinate it for you. A motion was made by Gail to move ahead with the anti-virus and back-up services for the remaining Fair computers. Seconded by Hans. Motion carried unanimously.
Additional Items:
1. At are next meeting in September, we will discuss collecting and recycling plastic bags for a bench. This will be like what the local Lions Groups are doing.
2. The inmates will be at the Fairgrounds Wednesday-Friday from approximately 8:45 a.m.-1:30 p.m. I also have them here on Monday, July 24 th for some smaller stuff.

Closed Session (PLACEHOLDER)
1. N/A

Upcoming Events/Dates

2023 Inmate Dates (8:00 – Noon times are approximate)
Wednesday – Friday July 19 th – 21 st
Monday – July 24 th
Tuesday – Friday August 1 st – 4 th

Action Items
1.

Handouts Emailed
1. Meeting Minutes dated June 22, 2023
2. Agenda dated July 15, 2023
3. Treasurer’s Reports dated June 2023

Additional Items
4H Fair Clean-up Days – Lindsay – same as last year Saturday before Fair 8-12 and Monday 5:30 – 9:00. We need a list of what needs to be done and we need to prepare a list.
Next Meeting. Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building – Thursday, August 24, 2023, 6:30 P.M.
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Chad. Seconded by Hans. Motion carried unanimously.

Approved June 2023 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

June 22, 2023, 6:30 PM
Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building

(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:35 P.M.
Present were: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne
Alling, Gail Peterson, Becky Larson, Rod Rivard, Janis Larson, Chad Lutsey, Michelle Peterson, Lori Maypark, Pat Kytola, Don Dipprey, Hans Johnson, and Brandon DeRosier.
Absent were: Not applicable.
Guests in Attendance were: Lindsay Spindler, Steve Warndahl, Alec Mortel from Lakeland Communications, Tyler Kuhl – Quality Meats and Craig Scholz – Quality Meats.
Approval of Agenda dated June 22, 2023. A motion was made to approve the
Agenda with the addition of Alec Mortel from Lakeland Communications by Chad. Seconded by Jeanne. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated May 25,
2023. A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated May 25, 2023, as printed by Karrie. Seconded by Gail. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Treasurer’s Reports dated May 2023. A motion was made to
approve the Treasurer’s Report as reported/printed by Hans. Seconded by Lori. Motion carried unanimously.
Pat – submitted the budget on time to the County. The strategic plan needs to be submitted before the Fair. Just a reminder to everyone that anybody that buys anything please ensure that the tax-exempt certificate is presented at the time of purchase.
Guest Presentation
1. Alec with Lakeland Communications – They will be bringing in the fiber in the corner of the Admin Building from the road. We have straight pricing and there is no data caps in addition WiFi is included. The price quoted will be a month-to-month service charge. Lakeland can monitor the bandwidth. We are thinking about going with 2.5 gig. Chad suggested that Alec send a quote. We should consider going with 2.5 gig to balance everything out now and Chad will contact Bob at Lakeland. Lakeland to turn the phone service on to us. We will use the phone service 1-2 months out of the year. Chad will schedule another walkthrough to ensure we don’t have issues with the corner of the Admin. Building where Lakeland is bringing the fiber in.
Old Business Updates
1. CUP/MOU Update. No updates.
2. Collins Electric Update. The original quote for just the show barn was approximately $24,088. To bring it to the hog and sheep barn it will be approximately an additional $15,783. The open barn would run approximately $3,500 and $1,600 for Rabbit and Poultry. In total everything would be approximately $56,299. We only have $11,200 allocated currently.
We can redistribute some of the speakers into the other buildings. Some of the horns we could use outside. We will use everything we can otherwise everything else will be new. If he starts right away, we could do the hog/sheep barn and the show barn. We already have two quotes one from this year and one from last year. Last year’s quote was about $23,000 but it did not include wiring. It was dated June 9, 2022. Gail indicated we need to do something. We should use the grant/donated money. That money totals approximately $11,000. Karrie indicated that we need to download the QR Quote for the barns. We could reach out to the other folks from last year and have them update their numbers.
Lindsay introduced an app for making announcements in the barns that can be utilized off a cell phone. Perhaps we can utilize this for this year.
There may be other options – We could on Monday/Tuesday send out an email to vote on how to proceed forward. Can we decide once we get more facts. Steve asked if we can we rent a system? The problems is if we have it in the show barn; you couldn’t hear it in the hog and sheep barn. Collins did review of all the wiring, and they have determined that all wires need to
be replaced. We need to buy a system that lasts 20+ years. The quote for $56,000 covers a lot of money and we don’t need to pull a trigger tonight.
We can make it happen in the show barn. Lindsey can help with the app on the phone to make it work. We need to fix the roof over the new office in the show barn before we install a speaker system. Let’s put the quote on hold until we do more research on this. Labor is not broken out specifically on the quote from Collins. We need to start it now so we can look at this pricing and get people to donate their time and perhaps additional money.
IMP quoted approximately $28,500 to cover all portions of the Fairgrounds. The wireless signal will be taken off the Lakeland fiber. That is everything which includes equipment and 3 guys over a 4-day period. The Wireless Agreement for e-ticking will be for the scanners Michelle and I use for
scanning for entries. It is not obligated for e-ticking and for credit card purchases at the gates. We would own all the equipment and it will be controlled by us. It does not lock us in for e-ticking. The equipment alone is $12,000. The cost is approximately $1,500 for us to use the handheld scanners (admin/west gate/4H/crops. A motion was made by Hans to move forward with the wireless system from IMP at the Fairgrounds. Seconded by Gail. Motion carried unanimously. We will not have coverage on every inch of the Fairgrounds. Chad will check with Lakeland Bob to find out what the security is on the system. Will we have the ability to use a Credit Card machine without the network? I don’t think vendors need a password for this wireless. Dirk should be involved in the decision. It should go to the Executive Board and the people who must deal with it. A motion was made by Brandon to allow the Executive Team to meet with our parkers and spend up to $1,600 to get the ticketing people up and running for this year’s Fair. Seconded by Don. Motion unanimously carried.

New Business
1. New Scanners – see update below.

Additional Items:
1. Negotiations with the County
2.

Closed Session (PLACEHOLDER)
1.

Upcoming Events/Dates
1. Fairest of Fair Event and Lunch Saturday, July 15 th . Mary to verify with Amy the
exact time of the event. Our Fair Board Meeting will follow immediately
thereafter.

2023 Inmate Dates (8:00 – Noon)
Wednesday – Friday July 19 th – 21 st
Monday – July 24 th
Tuesday – Friday August 1 st – 4 th

Action Items
1.

Handouts Emailed
1. Meeting Minutes dated May 25, 2023
2. Agenda dated June 22, 2023
3. Treasurer’s Reports dated May 2023

Additional Items
4H Fair Clean-up Days – Lindsay – same as last year Saturday before Fair 8-12 and Monday 5:30 – 9:00. We need a list of what needs to be done and we need to prepare a list.
Next Meeting. Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building – Saturday, July 15, 2023 following the Fairest of Fair Event starting at 11:30.
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Rod. Seconded by Hans. Motion carried unanimously.

Approved May 2023 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

May 25, 2023, 6:30 PM
Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building

(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:40 P.M.
Present were Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne Alling, Gail Peterson, Becky Larson, Rod Rivard, Janis Larson, Chad Lutsey, Michelle Peterson, Lori Maypark, Pat Kytola, and Brandon DeRosier.
Absent were: Don Dipprey and Hans Johnson.
Guests in Attendance were: Lindsay Spindler, Savanna Trittelwitz 4H Intern,
Mikayla Peper, Fairest of Fair, Mike Larson, Dave Berklund, Steve Warndahl, and Wanda Brown/Dave Brown.
Approval of Agenda dated May 25, 2023. A motion was made to approve the
Agenda by Michelle. Seconded by Lori. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the April Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated April
27, 2023. A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated April 27, 2023, as printed by Karrie. Seconded by Gail. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Treasurer’s Reports dated May 25, 2023. A motion was made
to approve the Treasurer’s Report as reported/printed by Michelle. Seconded by Brandon. Motion carried unanimously.
Pat – Just a reminder anybody that buys anything please ensure that is a tax-exempt purchase.
Guest Presentation
None
Old Business Updates
1. CUP/MOU Update.
2.

New Business
1. New Scanners – see update below.
2. Russ Hanson – Pat provided an update on the grant we were awarded in the
amount of $1,00.0 to put up a habitat on the grounds. Russ is thinking of
watering and contacted 4 H groups to help. Lindsay will communicate with Russ on the birdhouses. He wants the houses to be creative and the drinking cups.
3. Dog Trailer not here yet. The spot is ready to go. I think it will show up next
week.
4. Collins Electric – Chad we have not heard anything. He would like to visit with a select group. We need to use that money before the Fair.
5. Janis – Hog and Sheep Barns – shut offs need to be put in. The need to be done before the Fair. Next week the cement in the Rabbit barn will be laid.
6. Pat –obtained a Post Office Box which is:
Polk County Fair
PO Box 414
St. Croix Falls, WI 54024
Additional Items:
1. Negotiations with the County
2. Rod wanted to thank the group for the nice gift for present for his father.

Closed Session (PLACEHOLDER)
1.

Upcoming Events/Dates
1.

2023 Inmate Dates (8:00 – Noon)
Wednesday – June 7 th
Thursday – June 8 th
Friday – June 16 th

Wednesday – Friday July 19 th – 21 st
Monday – July 24 th
Tuesday – Friday August 1 st – 4 th
Action Items
1.

Handouts Emailed
1. Meeting Minutes dated April 27, 2023
2. Agenda dated May 25, 2023
3. Treasurer’s Reports dated May 25, 2023

Additional Items
4H Fair Clean-up Days – Lindsay – same as last year Saturday before Fair 8-12 and Monday 5:30 – 9:00. We need a list of what needs to be done and we need to prepare a list.
Next Meeting. Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building – Thursday, June 22, 2023 – 6:30 PM

Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Gail. Seconded by Michelle. Motion carried unanimously.
We need to schedule a meeting to prepare the response to the letter from the County.

Approved April 2023 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

April 27, 2023, 6:30 PM

St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Meeting Room
(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:35 P.M.
Present were: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne Alling, Gail Peterson, Becky Larson, Don Dipprey, Janis Larson, Chad Lutsey, Michelle Peterson, Hans Johnson, Pat Kytola, and Brandon DeRosier.
Absent were: Rod Rivard, Lori Maypark, and Steve Warndahl.
Guests in Attendance were: Lindsay Spindler, Laurie Simon, Dirk Prindle, Bob
Kames, Brian Kames, Alec Mortel- Lakeland Communications, Robert Zazau Lakeland Communications and Dave Berklund.
Approval of Agenda dated April 27, 2023. A motion was made to approve the
Agenda by Gail. Seconded by Chad. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the March Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated
March 30, 2023. A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated May 30, 2023, as printed by Gail. Seconded by Don. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Treasurer’s Report dated April 27, 2023. A motion was made to approve the Treasurer’s Report as reported by Karrie. Seconded by Hans. Motion carried unanimously.
We receive $250 from our first sponsor. We received $8,925.00 for our state aid for premiums and a $500.00 donation from Quality Meats for flowers and plants.
Guest Presentation
1. Lakeland Communications – The Fair would like to bring in fiber in and we
understand it runs on the street alongside of our location. Lakeland indicated that they have been working with some of the board members to get it into the Admin Building and/or the 4H Building. Chad what can we do to make it more economical? We want to make this seamless and easy as possible. We looked to put our own Wi-Fi up during the Fair. We want to be able to partner together, we need to look at all options. There are some places yet to be worked out. For the build out, we can work on it and if you come into the
Admin Building that make sense. We should have a lock/hard point at the Admin Building. We need the power and be able to display that we can coach and talk to customers about it. We could advertise free Wi-Fi at our booth.
To cover the entire Fair would be a bigger project. The 4H building is more centrally located, and we would need it in the Admin Building. As far as E-ticketing, for the following groups such as the Midway, beer garden and gate entrances would potentially need access too. Chad believes there are a few areas where we would be using a bar code scanners. We can always explore more options. The Lakeland Representatives asked if there is something the Board wants to see from us – options or proposals? For now, the Board would like to see your ideas. Bob will bring point to point equipment so if you can work with them that would be great. We all have an interest in exploring a partnership.
2. E-Ticketing – we have a turnkey solution. Online ticketing and reload QR code without going to a ticket booth. The system can also assist in lead generation and surveys. This is a better tracking mechanism because they are inputting in data. This will enable you to build a data base. When it is built, with your data base you can send out message ahead of time and they can pay ahead of time. You could sell ticket packages ahead a time. The information generated is full name and address like the white pages. A cash
buyer would not be part of it. Polk County Fair does not currently take credit cards. The online side you can purchase a ticket for a senior, adult or child. The online purchase does not cost us anything as the fee gets passed along to the customer. You can also pass along the sales tax to the customer when a ticket is purchased online. What happens if there is fraud dispute? We are setup to get swipe payments. Last year, we had three fraud issues. It is your account it is not ours. All we do is facilitate the process. If the ticket is $10 you get $10, we do have clients that offer dual pricing or cash discounts – cash is cash. You can charge a convenience fee. Since you are a first-time customer, we assign one person to the Fair. If you want more, it is $200 per person plus hotel. We would jointly come up with an agree upon amount if we hit the goal then we would share in a percentage of the money. We would negotiate a minimum goal. Brian, Fred or I would be here during the Fair. That part of the initial setup cost. The equipment is that a purchase how much does it cost? The equipment is included all the way for both of the two gates. It is $20.00 per month which includes a credit card device for the handheld. If you need five handhelds, we will provide seven which includes 2 for backups. It is per device at the end of the term they would come back to us. If you will have to
insure them. Rides tickets would be programmed for a three-hour time frame. The clock starts at the time it is printed out

Old Business Updates
1. CUP/MOU Update. No updates since the last communication with Rory, which was the redline, he presented to the County. County met in a closed session a week ago and we are all scheduled to meet again on May 11 th . As soon as we know something you will all know.
2. District Meeting Recap from 4/4 – It was a good meeting. There was a
recommendation to get direct deposit setup so that we can get our checks about 2-3 weeks earlier.
-Legislation – Mary sent out an email for us to call our legislator. Jayme wants us to send a quick email. The premium money we would more than likely get the full amount. -It was a very informative meeting and well worth the time and effort to attend. This year it will be held in Barron County. All the feedback that we heard was positive. We will be a host in 2 years if this rotation works well. -I thought it was interesting was the fact that the Jr show if we have the money, we can increase the premiums above and beyond, but we cannot charge the overage to the state. -They talked about poultry possessing.
-It was interesting to hear that other Fairs have the same concerns as we do.-One of the County’s put on a local farmer’s market.

3. Easter Egg Hunt Recap from 4/8 – great turnout. We had about 250-300 kids. St C Fair – Polk County Rec Group came out. We have 10,000 eggs for the hunt. We were out of there by 11:00 a.m.
4.Storage Out Recap from 4/15 – Everything was picked up. Maybe next year we should think about charging more money if they don’t pick up their item on the scheduled pickup date.
5. Janis thanked everyone who participated in the CPR training.
6. Jeanne brought to the meeting the volunteer tracking hour forms which should be filling them out on a monthly basis.
New Business
1. New Scanners –

Additional Items:
1.

Closed Session (PLACEHOLDER)

Upcoming Events/Dates
1.

2023 Inmate Dates (8:00 – Noon)
Monday – April 24 th

Monday – May 1 st
Wednesday – May 10 th
Thursday – May 11 th
Wednesday – May 17 th
Thursday – May 18 th
Wednesday – June 7 th
Thursday – June 8 th
Friday – June 16 th
Wednesday – Friday July 19 th – 21 st
Monday – July 24 th
Tuesday – Friday August 1 st – 4 th
Action Items
1.

Handouts Emailed
1. Meeting Minutes dated March 30, 2023
2. Agenda dated April 27, 2023
3. April Treasurer’s Reports
Additional Items

Next Meeting. Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building – Thursday, May 25, 2023 -6:30 PM
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Hans. Seconded by Brandon. Motion carried unanimously.

Approved March 2023 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

March 30, 2023, 6:30 PM

St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Meeting Room
(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:35 P.M.
Present were: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne Alling, Gail Peterson, Becky Larson, Don Dipprey, Rod Rivard, Janis Larson, Michelle Peterson, Hans Johnson, Pat Kytola, Brandon DeRosier, and Lori Maypark.
Absent were: Chad Lutsey.
Guests in Attendance were: Scott Doornink and Jeremy Scheider from Burnett
County Ag Fair, Steve Warndahl, Lindsay Spindler, Tom Bainbridge, Dave Berklund, and Dave Ewing.
Approval of Agenda dated March 30, 2023. A motion was made to approve the
Agenda with the addition of the Dave Ewing from Collins Electrical + Technology and Scott and Jeremy from the Burnett County Ag Fair demo officials by Brandon. Seconded by Jeanne. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the February Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated
February 23, 2023. A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated
February 23, 2023, as printed by Gail. Seconded by Lori. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Treasurer’s Report dated March 30, 2023. A motion was made
to approve the Treasurer’s Report as reported by Don. Seconded by Hans. Motion carried unanimously.
Guest Presentation
1. Dave Ewing from Collings Electrical + Technology recapped our needs which are:
– We need emergency announcements for all the buildings and the Fairgrounds.
– The barns would have announcements only and no music.
– Barn #25 needs have their announcements go into several places as certain times.
– The rabbit and poultry barn has its own system for announcements.

-The hog/sheep and poultry/rabbit announcements come all into one system.
-We should be capable of individual announcements per barn.
–The recommendation would be to keep the sound systems in the barns on their own system and have an overall system for announcements in case of an emergency.
-Lindsey indicated that the sound system in the barns cuts out.
-The poultry barn would benefit from using headsets.
-The show barn has equipment for a wireless system.
– For announcements generated from the Administration Building – we would
need to ensure there is wiring to all the other buildings. The map covers how
many acres we need to cover. Rod indicated that there is sixteen acres on the
upper end of the Fairgrounds.
– We also need to include the Grandstand when we spec on that structure.
Wireless is not an option we would need approximately one-half mile coverage to cover the grounds if we went to wireless.
– Once Winter Storage goes out in April, we can meet ahead of the meeting on April 27 th or some other evening and walk the grounds. I just need to meet with someone that knows the Fairgrounds.
2. Career Fair – Cassie Shay from Berghammer Builders indicated that they enjoy participating in this event. There were 1,000 students last year and we already have 900 for this year. We like being hands on with the employers. We have volunteers that come in and help us. One of our thoughts were an in-kind improvements projects that we could participate in cement, painting, etc. We can reach back out to you once the snow melts and/or come up with some projects. The event is scheduled for May 3 rd . Are all students and employers are located within Polk County. Do you need anyone from the Fair Board to volunteer? Yes, we could use the help if there is a need. Please contact me or Lori.
3. Scott Doornink and Jeremy Scheider from Burnette County Ag Fair has offered to put on the Demo Derby for us. They are part of the Ag Fair in Burnett County not the County Fair. They took it over when they both got on the Burnett County Fair Board. We are sitting good with the derby. They indicated the derby is their money maker such as the lemon race. They asked what we would need. Janis indicated that we do not have anybody. Our crew is strictly volunteers. I suspect you run your derby under a tighter ship. They typically get 100 cars registered with one driver per car and they charge $60.00. Burnett County took in $13,000 for the pit and we supplied the food and beer. We profited approximately $30,000. Inspectors and flaggers is what we will need help with. For inspections, we divide it up and there would be two guys inspecting. Typically, we run with a total of 6-8 guys for inspecting.
Event coverage – we sign the same waivers as the drivers. We need to find out the amount of insurance coverage. Is this something you would be willing to help us with? We will continue this topic. We do have fire extinguishers around the pit and a firetruck on site. We need people to inspect and flag. We do have headsets for use. We do have open for classes. Janis and Brandon will setup a meeting with the Burnett County Ag Fair Folks to run the derby. For payouts, we have a guaranteed 1 st for six car classifications, and we can talk about this. Our payouts are not as much as your payouts in Burnett County. Bruce would be willing to help with the payouts and running orders if we need
additional help.

Old Business Updates
1. CUP/MOU Update. We will meet with the County Executive Committee again on March 9 th . Met working on drafts need draft in April. Steve indicated that we only have 4 days before the meeting which occurs with the County on April 6th. May 4 th both groups will be meeting.
2. Approval for Replacement of Treasurer’s Computer Equipment. Pat to move
forward with EZ IT guys and spend up to a limit of $2,000 on a computer. Pat will purchase the computer and work with Tech Soup on the necessary Software programs which shall not exceed $2,000. Seconded by Karrie. Motion carried unanimously.
3. Brandon indicated that Scott Tinney has not received his check yet. Pat indicated that the check was mailed out on March 18 th .
New Business
1. 2023 Mascot Discussion – Judy idea was a cowboy boot which would be in
alignment with our theme. Lindsey to bring a boot to decorate. Lindsey also
mentioned that some Fairs have a teen scavenger hunt, and she can get access to that information and provide it to us.
Additional Items:
1. District Meeting – Will be held on April 4th in Barron County. The cost is $20.00 per person and Judy needs to know by March 20 th if anyone plans on attending. Janis will send out the agenda for that Meeting. The meeting starts at 9:00 a.m.

Upcoming Events/Dates
1. District Meeting – April 4th
2. Easter Egg Hunt – Saturday, April 8 th
3. Storage-Out – changed to – Saturday, April 15 th (8-noon) due to the fact the
original date is Easter weekend.
2023 Inmate Dates (8:00 – Noon)
Monday – April 24 th
Monday – May 1 st
Wednesday – May 10 th
Thursday – May 11 th
Wednesday – May 17 th
Thursday – May 18 th
Wednesday – June 7 th
Thursday – June 8 th
Friday – June 16 th
Wednesday – Friday July 19 th – 21 st
Monday – July 24 th

Tuesday – Friday August 1 st – 4 th
Action Items
1. Karrie to get a quote for Fair book printing.
2. Judy to prepare a schedule of the entertainment/times/locations.

Handouts Emailed
1. Meeting Minutes dated February 23, 2023
2. Agenda dated March 30, 2023
3. March Treasurer’s Reports
Additional Items

Next Meeting. St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Meeting
Room – Thursday, April 27, 2023 – 6:30 PM
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Michelle. Seconded by
Brandon. Motion carried unanimously.

Approved February 2023 Minutes

February 23, 2023, 6:30 PM ZOOM MEETING

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:30 P.M.
Present were: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne Alling, Gail Peterson, Chad Lutsey, Becky Larson, Don Dipprey, Rod Rivard, Janis Larson, Michelle Peterson, Hans Johnson, Pat Kytola, Brandon DeRosier, and Lori Maypark.
Absent were: None
Guests in Attendance were: Steve Warndahl, Lindsay Spindler, Amy Strobach, and Trish Carlson.
Approval of Agenda dated February 23, 2023. A motion was made to approve
the Agenda with the addition of the District Meeting Registration which is due March 20 th by Gail. Seconded by Chad. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the January Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated
January 26, 2023. A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated
January 26, 2023, with the correction under Commercial Exhibits that Amy and Kim sent out the new Commercial Exhibit Application for 2023 not Karrie by Gail. Seconded by Lori. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the Treasurer’s Report dated February 23, 2023. A motion was
made to approve the Treasurer’s Report as prepared by Rod. Seconded by Gail. Motion carried unanimously.
Pat further indicated that she sent out the Balance Sheet and Profit/Loss Statement with account numbers listed. We should now be using these account numbers when you are asking for reimbursement. This is a different format then what we are used to seeing. The changes I made are in alignment of how the State lays it out. Pat may need to remind us as this is a new process for everyone. Pat indicated that if anyone had any questions, please feel free to email her.

Guest Presentation
1. Horse Committee Representative – Trish – I don’t have any updates. I reached out to Chad, someone from the Horse Committee and the Fair Board about some changes for Saturday event. They are proposing an open show on Saturday and would like to continue to have it year after year. Our County is open for an open game show to pay for Thursday and Fridays shows.
I have an open game show scheduled for 8:00 a.m. or 8:30 a.m. on Saturday. We will need to reach out to other clubs about our show. This will be something we need to vote on it.
2. Amy Strobach – Fairest of Fair – Update provided under the Fairest of Fair
Committee.
3. Career Day – Monarch Paving Representative. Karrie indicated she did email her the ZOOM call in information, but she did not get Karrie’s email. She and I will continue to touch base. She will be here at our March meeting.

Old Business Updates
1. CUP/MOU Update. We will meet with the Executive Committee again on March 9 th .
2. Update on Speaker System.

New Business
1. 2023 Mascot Discussion – We will discuss in March.
2. March Meeting. Janis had a question about moving the March Board Meeting from March 23rd to March 30th. A motion was made to move the March Meeting from March 23rd to March 30th by Hans. Seconded by Chad. Motion carried unanimously.
3. Jessie Baillargeon’s Resignation Letter. Jessie has a lot going on. I would like to recommend that we put Jessie on a leave of absence versus accepting her resignation letter. Rod will talk to her about it. We will put her on a leave of absence until November 2023 and revisit it at that point. Mary will continue to send her the information. A motion was made by Karrie to put Jessie on a leave of absence until November of 2023. Seconded by Rod. Motion carried unanimously.
4. Re-Key Fairgrounds – Chad indicated that we talked about it in the past. It has been 11 years since we rekeyed the entire Fairgrounds which would include rekeying locks and changing some of them over. I talk to key to GK Services, they get us a final number. There are new locks which have been all rekeyed. I don’t think we need to change those out but some of them may be temporary. A motion was made to spend up to $4,000 to re-key the Fairgrounds by Brandon. Seconded by Hans. Motion carried unanimously.
5. Internet Contract – Chad received a price quote from Kirk Anderson for hosting the website and for the internet updates for malware protection. Our contract with Kirk is good until June 23 rd . I personally don’t feel comfortable taking over these duties as he has knowledge in these areas. My suggestion would be to continue to work with Kirk and I can maintain the site locally. Karrie made a motion that we should continue with Kirk Anderson for his Internet support. Seconded by Judy. Motion carried unanimously.
6. Pat indicated that she spoke to Century-Tel and they will put us on a vacation status. They will also reimburse us for the last 3 months for non-use.
7. Brandon requested that a computer be made available during the Fair for the grandstand area in the announcement booth. Chad will investigate this as we will have some computers being turned in because they are being replaced. A motion was made by Hans to provide a computer for the grandstand area during the Fair. Seconded by Gail. Motion carried unanimously.
8. While at the convention, we looked at a dollar bill counter. The cost is $2,100. We will need a vote to move forward with this purchase. We will need to store this at someone’s house during the Winter months. Judy made a motion to spend $2,100 to purchase the dollar bill counter. Seconded by Chad. Motion carried unanimously. Chad will fill out the requisition form and Chad and Pat will decide who will place the order.

Additional Items:
1. District Meeting – Will be held on April 3 rd in Barron County. The cost is $20.00 per person and Judy needs to know by March 20 th if anyone plans on attending. Janis will send out the agenda for that Meeting. The meeting starts at 9:00 a.m.

Upcoming Events/Dates
1. District Meeting – April 4th
2. Easter Egg Hunt – Saturday, April 8 th
3. Storage-Out – changed to – Saturday, April 15 th (8-noon) due to the fact the
original date is Easter weekend.

2023 Inmate Dates (8:00 – Noon)
Monday – April 24 th
Monday – May 1 st
Wednesday – May 10 th
Thursday – May 11 th
Wednesday – May 17 th
Thursday – May 18 th
Wednesday – June 7 th
Thursday – June 8 th
Friday – June 16 th
Wednesday – Friday July 19 th – 21 st
Monday – July 24 th
Tuesday – Friday August 1 st – 4 th

Action Items
1. Karrie to get a quote for Fair book printing.
2. Rod to get a second quote for the speaker system.
3. Judy to prepare a schedule of the entertainment/times/locations.

Handouts Emailed
1. Meeting Minutes dated January 26, 2023
2. Agenda dated February 23, 2023
3. February Treasurer’s Reports
Additional Items
1. Steve Warndahl met with Moe, and they reviewed all the emails between the Fair and him pertaining to the sound system, Moe would like to see what we would like to implement as far as a system. If I remember right, you had Twin City Sound come out and give us a bid in 2022 for approximately $21,000. Rod does have an additional bid coming in. Karrie spoke about the other money that has been donated towards this effort. We need a system that will override any communications in the event of an emergency. There maybe a couple of areas where we could use a hot spot. It wouldn’t hurt for you Karrie to share the information from Twin City Sound. If I get it the information, I can tell Moe as we need to ensure it gets done.
When you submitted your CIP to the County it was a walk-in cooler. That is what we talked about. Chad indicated that is not we talked about. We talked about a refrigerator/cooler versus a walk-in cooler. Perhaps we could use some of that allocated money towards a speaker system. We need to discuss this further. Those are conversations that are better face to face.
In the event of a catastrophic event with individual’s personal property in one of those building, who is liable? The contract states that the owner responsible for stored items. Moe has received copies of all the contracts.
With respect to the sounds system, Rod asked if all we are concerned about is for emergency services only? In the event of an emergency, it should bypass all of that. Karrie indicated that we do need a system in place from one location that would be a good question. Chad indicated that we have money dedicated to specific places and locations. I asked Moe for his opinion on the County’s opinion on what the communication system should look like. Karrie indicated that she sent the Twin City Sound bid to Steve Warndahl.

2. Habitat Grant – Russ Hanson wanted to submit a Bird Habitat Improvement
Grant on behalf of the Fairgrounds for m1K work with him we write the grant for migratory birds which would include shrubs, brushes, and bird baths. We will provide him with the necessary support that is needed to fill out this application.
Next Meeting. St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Meeting Room, Thursday, March 30, 2023 – 6:30 PM
Adjournment. A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Hans. Seconded by Judy.

Motion carried unanimously.

Approved January 2023 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

January 26, 2023, 6:30 PM

St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Meeting Room

 (Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

 MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order.  Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:40 P.M. 

Present were: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne Alling, Gail Peterson, Chad Lutsey, Becky Larson, Don Dipprey, Rod Rivard, Janis Larson, Michelle Peterson, Jessica Baillargeon, Pat Kytola and Lori Maypark.

 Absent were:  Hans Johnson and Steve Warndahl.

 Guests in Attendance were:  Lindsay Spindler, Terry Hawkins and Sara Rank from the 4H Horse Committee (plus some of their members – see attached sign-in), Colleen Forster (plus some of their members – see attached sign-in), Brandon DeRosier and Janelle Larsen.

Approval of Agenda dated January 26, 2023.  A motion was made to approve the Agenda with the addition of Colleen Forster under guest presentation by Jeanne.  Seconded by Chad.   Motion carried unanimously.

Approval of the December Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated December 15, 2022.   A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes dated December 15, 2022, with the correction of the spelling of Maila’s name by Chad.  Seconded by Jeanne.  Motion carried unanimously. 

Approval of the Treasurer’s Report dated January 26, 2023. A motion was made to approve the Treasurer’s Report as verbally presented by Pat as of January 26, 2023, by Chad.  Seconded by Don.  Motion carried unanimously.    

Pat noted the following balances:

Premium Account $2,268.50
General Checking Account $231,454.06
2020 No Fair Money CD $201,154.27
CD Grandstand $202,336.75

Pat indicated that if anyone had any questions, please feel free to email her.

Guest Presentation 

1. Horse Committee Members (see attached list). Terry and Sara presented the material on their handout.  The 4H Horse Project Committee is thinking about hosting an open show during the Fair. The proposal is for limitless riders open game show during the Polk County Fair. Terry indicated that she is looking for a way to keep the continuity.  We want to bring the kids back to the Fair and we would also have some therapeutic classes.  We would bring our own therapy horses down for that event. Sara Rank indicated she was approached by the Horse Project.  She has rented the Fairgrounds before.  Her group does fun shows such as non horse contests so other kids can participate in events even if they do not ride.  Our shows are inexpensive typically $ 5 – $6 a class.   If there is a financial issue for the kids to participate, we do not charge them.    How many do you know that will show up that is outside of the 4H group.  Sara indicated that she does not know.  The gate receipts will not be making money that day.  The people that are coming in would pay to watch the event.  Open show we are paying to come in – one rider per horse.    We should change it to everyone pays at the gate.  We would not like to see the arena empty for two days.  We thought we would propose this if we can work together somehow.  If we start to do fundraisers like this, we will have other groups wanting to do that too.  Janis thanked the group for coming in and presenting their information to us.  Janis indicated that they should bring this to the Horse Committee.  This is the type of things that need to be brought to this Committee.  Please work through Rod and Jessie and they can present it to the Board.
2. Colleen Forster and her group presented they desired to prepare the little garden next to the flower building. The Master Gardener program has been dissolved for Polk County and they were to be the ones to take care of that space. Last year the garden was untouched and looked awful.  The flower ladies indicated that they would be happy to take over that space as it needs to be maintained.  A motion was made by Gail to have the flower ladies take care of the flower bed.  Seconded by Chad.  Motion passed unanimously.  Colleen to bring us back ideas and present it to the Board. 

Old Business Updates

1. Committee Sign-Up Sheets. Passed around for additional sign-ups.

2. CUP/MOU Update. We will meet with the Executive Committee again on March 8^th. 

3. Convention Recap –

1. Judy spoke about other Fairs having a planter contest/scarecrow contest. Becky is running the Scarecrow competition.  The themes are:  Super Heros and Holidays. Don attended the Crises Management session.  We may want to meet with the Superintendents and have them trained at the same time we get trained.  The Masons donated two defibrillator machines and we received one from 4H.   We could bring everyone together including the Leaders Federation for a training session prior to one of our regularly scheduled meetings.   We could have training on the defibrillator, general safety training and familiarization of the County Safety Plan.  We should also post more signed regarding “Emergency Assistance dial 911”. 

 Other ideas presented at the convention in which other Fairs are doing included: veggie races; dress cats or rabbits; farmer’s Olympics; sawdust pile with coins; plywood cows cut out of plywood for the 4H groups to decorate;

1. Jeanne – see handout listing out items from the convention. In addition, Jeanne will put together some ideas for the next meeting regarding (past/present/future Clover Buds come in and look at the event in a different way).  We could also have events for special needs kids and adults (like little britches) walk animal around the ring.  They would need to answer 3 simple questions about their animals.  We could do that event Sunday afternoon and use goats and sheep.  I am thinking Saturday that if we want to implement something like this, we wouldn’t take away from kids.  We would need to ensure the Fair book has a page for these types of events.  Jeanne indicated that she could find someone to purchase the ribbons.  Pat – indicated a total of $84,000 from 30 Counties supported the Fairest Program.
2. Chad – also attended the Crises Management Program breakout session.

   -Our centerpiece took 3^rd place.  It will be brought to the Fair for display.  The details on the centerpiece were awesome.  Stacey and Chad put it together. 

-The Silent Auction went well.  Rachel had stained the bench from Don.  We were informed that it will travel with the carnival.   

4. Update on Speaker System. Chad appointed the following individuals to serve on the Speaker Committee.  They are Rod, Janis, Karrie, Chad and whomever wants to provide an opinion.  This Subcommittee needs to develop a plan to attack and figure out what needs to be done.  Karrie can speak to the money we received from the County on this endeavor.  Rod will get another bid and the group will review all the bids to decide on whose proposal works best for us.

   Chad had an update to the line item noted from the County budget that we would be eligible to get a freezer/cooler which is not tied to the walk-in freezer/cooler which was not requested.  We need can get one big upright cooler to replace what we have in the 4H Building.

New Business

1. 2023 Fair Theme – out of three top choices the winner is: Back to our Roots in Cowboy Boots.  We still need to identify a mascot.

   2.  Replacement of Arik’s term on the Board for a position “At Large”.   We can elect someone who has shown interest.  Brandon DeRosier presented an introduction of himself at the meeting.  He was on the Board previously.   A motion was made by Gail to nominate Brandon in the position At Large to fulfill Arik’s term remaining which is one-year.  Seconded by Rod.   

3. Bundt Cake Challenge – We will give a $50 gift certificate to the winner. Mary will be the point of contact for this event.

4. Software Upgrades – We need to purchase a new computer for Pat. Pat indicated that she needs a bigger screen and a 10-key pad. Software updates need to be installed on Micelle’s computer and Pat’s as well.

   Does anyone have a copy of the Century Link Contract? We are paying $200 a month even though we don’t use the service.  The contract is for a period of 12 months.  Chad indicated he is looking at Mobile Beacon which costs $120 a year for hot spot and unlimited internet service. 

We are also looking at E-tickets – Pre-Fair sales of the tickets.  We cannot integrate with Mr. Eds.  We ran across a company out of Milwaukee at the convention.  They will take care of everything.  They will take four percent off the top; we don’t see it nor pay for it.  There is a QR code on the tickets or you can download it on your phone.  Ticketing attendants will have scanners.  The company is a smaller startup company.  They are interested in coming in and giving us a presentation.  We need to get some information from Mr. Ed.  We will have more on this topic in the upcoming months.  While at convention we also looked at a dollar bill counter.  The cost is $2,100.  Payback on the purchase will be about 4 ½ years.

Additional Items:

Closed Session (PLACEHOLDER)

No Updates

Upcoming Events/Dates  

1. DATE MOVED TO: Easter Egg Hunt – Saturday, April 8
2. DATE MOVED TO: Storage-Out – changed to – Saturday, April 15^th (8-noon) due to the fact the original date is Easter weekend.                                      Action Items 

1. Karrie to get a quote for Fair book printing.
2. Rod to get a second quote for the speaker system.
3. Judy to prepare a schedule of the entertainment/times/locations.

Handouts Emailed 

1. Meeting Minutes dated December 15, 2022
2. January Agenda dated January 26, 2023
3. 2023 List of Fair Theme Ideas
4. Jeanne Alling Convention Notes

Next Meeting.  St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Meeting Room, Thursday, February 23, 2023 – 6:30 PM 

Adjournment.  A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Chad.   Seconded by Rod.  Motion carried unanimously. 

Approved December 2022 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

December 15, 2022  6:30 PM ZOOM MEETING

 (Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

 MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order.  Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:40 P.M. 

Present were: Karrie Melin Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Mary Berklund, Jeanne Alling, Hans Johnson, Chad Lutsey, Becky Larson, Don Dipprey, Rod Rivard, Gail Peterson, Janis Larson, Michelle Peterson, Pat Kytola and Lori Maypark.

Absent were:  Jessica Baillargeon.

Guests in Attendance were:  Lindsay Spindler and Amy Strobach.

Approval of Agenda dated December 15, 2022.  A motion was made to approve the Agenda as printed by Judy.  Seconded by Gail.  Motion carried unanimously.

Approval of Reorganizational Meetings Minutes of the Board of Directors dated November 14, 2022.    This was not covered during the meeting.

Approval of the Unofficial Treasurer’s Report Presented December 15, 2022. Judy reported that $237,939.95 in the checking account.  Disbursements of $1,710 for the Wisconsin State Fair Convention Registration.  There was a deposit of $3,000 in grant money and $100 in memorial money.  There was also a $60.00 deposit.  A motion was made to approve the Unofficial Treasurer’s Report as presented by Judy the Financial Secretary by Karrie.  Seconded by Rod.  Motion carried unanimously. 

Guest Presentation

1. Lindsay indicated that Colleen Forster reached out to her and Mary. Her group of people could not make it tonight and she will try for January or February.
2. Amy Strobach – Janis asked if she wanted to go now, and Amy indicated that she would wait as she had other items to cover.

 Old Business Updates

2. Committee Sign-Up Sheets. Janis indicated to send Mary an email if you are interested in participating on a committee.  Mary indicated she would bring the sheets to the January meeting for further sign-up.  Karrie to type up information she received and will present at the January meeting. 
3. CUP/MOU Update. Karrie provided an update that the group met with our attorney Rory and the Executive Committee of the County last Thursday and walked through the MOU line by line in order to come to an agreement on differing things.  Milia is reviewing and updating the draft and she will send to Rory for our review.  We will meet with the Executive Committee again in February to go over the next draft. Hans asked if there were any major changes that the County pushed for?  Karrie indicated Rory provided us a draft to review but we did not have much time to review it prior to the meeting.  I believe by the end of the meeting with the County we were all amicable.  We reiterated that Milia will prepare the next draft and provide it to us. Chad informed the group that a link to the County’s Executive Meeting was posted two hours ago and he will send the link out to everyone.    Otherwise, it is listed under the Executive Committee – Polk County Wisconsin.

Judy indicated that to date we have spent $9,962.18 of the budgeted money for our attorney.  We need to make a motion to increase the budget.  Chad made a motion to add an additional $5,000 to the budget for our attorney fees.  Seconded by Hans as long as we feel we are making progress.  Motion passed unanimously. 

3. Convention Update – Judy indicated rooms and registrations are booked and done. Don asked about a list of all who are going.  Janis asked Judy if we can still sign people up.  Janis wanted to ask the people who are going to the convention to stay on after the meeting.  She asked if we wanted to bid on a neighboring County’s Fair Basket this year.

   We usually put in $500.00 which helps in driving the bid up.  Don made a motion to use the $500.00 at the auction or use the $500.00 towards the Fairest of Fair basket.  Seconded by Chad.  Motion passed unanimously.   

New Business

1. Introduction of New Treasurer – Patricia Kytola.

   Karrie introduced Pat Kytola as our new Treasurer for the Fair Society. We need a motion to appoint Pat to the Treasurer position.   Pat provided a brief introduction of herself and her experience as it relates to this position as she has 20 some years in nonprofit experience. 

   Gail made a motion to approve Pat’s appointment to the Treasurer position.  Seconded by Jeanne.  Motion passes unanimously.  Pat accepted the position of Treasurer. 

   Karrie also wanted to introduce a new Board Member Lori Maypark to the Fair Society Board.

   2.  Fairgrounds Camp Host – Brown Family – covered above under Committee Reports.

2. Replacement of Arik’s term on the Board. Arik was a Director at Large. Judy spoke to Grant Burdick, and he doesn’t want to do it.  We can think about it and discuss in January.
3. Software Upgrades – It is in process. Looking to make some upgrades. Nothing concrete yet.
4. Chad suggested we donate $50.00 for the barn quilt for the Fair’s basket. Mary indicated she and Dave would donate the $50.00 for the barn quilt.
5. Amy is bringing donated cases of water to the convention.
6. Chad is working on our display for the theme of “Keeping it Rural”.

Upcoming Events/Dates    

1. WI Fair Association Convention – January 9 – January 12
2. Storage-Out – Saturday, April 9^th (8-noon)

 Action Items

1. Volunteer Hours for 2022 are due to Jeanne this month. A suggestion was to make it coincide with our fiscal year of November 1^st through October 31^st.   
2. Lori Maypark and Pat Kytola to sign the Code of Conduct.

Handouts Emailed 

1. Reorganizational Meeting Minutes of the Board of Directors dated November 14, 2022
2. December Agenda dated December 15, 2022.
3. Contact list for Executive Board and Fair Board

 Next Meeting.  St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Meeting Room, Thursday, January 19, 2022 – 6:30 PM 

 Adjournment.  A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Hans.   Seconded by Gail.  Motion carried unanimously. 

Approved October 2022 Minutes

POLK COUNTY FAIR SOCIETY

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Thursday, October 27, 2022, 6:30 pm

St Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Room
(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

 MEETING MINUTES

 Call to Order.  Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:35 P.M.

 Present were:  Janis Larson, Tracy LaBlanc, Karrie Melin-Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Chad Lutsey, Don Dipprey, Jeanne Alling, Rodney Rivard, Becky Larson, Arik, Mahler, and Hans Johnson.

 Absent were: Gail Peterson, Michelle Peterson, and Jessie Baillargeon.

Guests in Attendance were:  Steve Warndahl, Lindsey Spindler (UWEX) and Dave Berklund.

 Approval of Agenda dated October 27, 2022.  A motion was made to approve the Agenda as printed by Arik.  Seconded by Hans.   Motion carried unanimously. 

 Approval of the September PCF B0ard Meeting Minutes dated September 29, 2022.  A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes as printed by Rod. Seconded by Don.  Motion carried unanimously.  

Chad asked for a key inventory clarification.  We were supposed to review the list before it was provided to the County.  Not all the keys belong to the County.  There has been one request by the President and one request by me.  Rod indicated perhaps it was an oversight.  Chad indicated that he did not think it was an oversight.  

 Approval of Treasurer’s Report dated October 27, 2022.  The Treasurer’s Report updates were as follows:    Tracy provided a checking account recap.  The donated money for the small animal barn was deposited. The interest was added to the County Allocated GS Funds.  The CDs are renewed and will again come up for renewal in 2023. We originally allocated $10,000 for our attorney fees and we provided no additional funds since then.  We will need more money allocated for our attorney fees. The Fair has been reimbursed for everything from the County so far and it does include the premium money. A motion was made by Rod to approve the Treasury’s Report dated October 27, 2022, with the deletion of the side notes on the Budget pages.  Seconded by Hans.  Motion passed unanimously. 

Old Business Updates

 1. CUP Update/MOU Update: Chad has been in contact with Rory.   

2. Winter Storage Recap. Thanks to everyone that helped.  Everything went smoothly.  We had a lot of new people storing this year.  To date, there were 114 contracts that went out and I believe we will have two more.  Total revenue to date is $31,133.00.

3. District meeting Update:

   Becky – Debbie Gegare provided a good update.

   Janis – ATCP 160 is in effect.  We will need to review online to see how it effects the Premium Book next year. 

   Jeannie – More Counties attended this year’s meeting.  There was a lot of new information presented. 

   Don – We are in alignment with other the Counties.  Bunt cakes will be the bakery item judged next year. We should do a scarecrow contest next year versus decorating hay bales. 

Judy – We did find out that any non-cashed premium checks do not count against us.  

Chad – The other Fairs are asking what our centerpiece will be for 2023.  We set the bar high last year. 

 New Business 

1. Janice attended Guy Foltz’s Celebration of Life Memorial Service. She provided they the Certificate which indicates that the Fair will be donating a bench in his memory.  We will place it by the Administration Building outside where he used to sit.

2. Nomination Committee Update – there will be a ZOOM meeting the week of 10/31.
3. State Convention – January 2023 – Chad is working on display ideas.
4. State Convention – Photo Contest Voting – we will review the photos after the meeting.
5. By-Laws Review – discussed under Committees update.
6. Polk County Plat Book Donation draw amongst Board Members. Rod won the drawing.
7. Steve Warndahl provided an update that he is up for a new position of Wisconsin County Highway Road Commissioner. With this appointment, he will be travelling throughout the state of Wisconsin.  Therefore, he has asked to be removed from the Board.  Polk County will appoint another individual to fill his spot.  Steve will verify with the Board on a new appointment.  The County-Chair indicated that someone would be appointed if there was more than one person volunteering. The County has approved a budget for the Fairgrounds of $68,000 to be used for roofs, walk-in cooler and PA system.  Moe also indicated $28,000 needs to be used to straighten out the bathroom fans situation.  The walk-in cooler was based on a request by Debbie Peterson a long time ago.  The cooler has been in the budget for years.  We asked Moe a long time ago where this walk-in cooler came from.  Why did it not get taken out? Tracy indicated to Moe and Rod that the cooler/frig was for the 4H Building, P.A. system and roofs should be in the CIP document.  A cooler is about $8,000.  If we fix the problem, we could replace one that already exists.    According to Steve, we need to figure the CIP for the next year and start over and see what we are looking at now.  The Fair was budgeted $68,000 for next year.  The normal budget was a total of $58,000.  You now have a total of $126,000 to work with.   Steve indicated there was a lot of positive comments at the County Board Meeting about the Fairgrounds.  I am not sure where you are with the lawyers.  You need to get something done.  Get it done and move along.  Steve asked if there was a meeting scheduled between the two groups as no one has gotten together yet

 Upcoming Events/Dates       

1. Annual Meeting – Monday, November 14th (7:00 P.M.), Polk County Justice Center, Balsam Lake followed by the Reorganization Meeting after the Annual Meeting.

Handouts Emailed 

1. Agenda dated October 27, 2022
2. Meeting Minutes dated September 29, 2022
3. Treasurer’s Report with Budget dated October 27, 2022

 Next Meeting.  

Board Meeting – St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Community Room, December 15, 2022 (6:30 P.M.)

Adjournment.  A motion was made by Hans to adjourn the meeting.  Seconded by Rod.  Motion carried unanimously. 

Approved September 2022 Minutes

MEETING OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Thursday, September 29, 2022, 6:40 pm
Polk County Fair Grounds – 4H Building

(Directors, please contact Mary Berklund, Secretary if you are unable to attend.)

MEETING MINUTES

Call to Order. Janis Larson, President called the meeting to order at 6:40 P.M.
Present were: Janis Larson, Tracy LaBlanc, Karrie Melin-Swenson, Judy Bainbridge, Chad Lutsey, Don Dipprey, Jeanne Alling, Rodney Rivard, Becky Larson, Michelle Peterson, Jessie Baillargeon, and Gail Peterson.
Absent were: Hans Johnson and Arik Mahler
Guests in Attendance were: Randy LaBlanc, Kaylee LaBlanc, Lindsey Spindler
(UWEX) and Dennis Schill
Approval of Agenda dated September 29, 2022. A motion was made to approve the Agenda as printed by Gail with the addition of the verbal resignation of Rodney Smith, Electrician under New Business. Karrie and Chad will reach out to him again for a resignation letter. Seconded by Rod. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of the August PCF B0ard Meeting Minutes dated August 25, 2022.
A motion was made to approve the Meeting Minutes as presented by Michelle with the addition of the Verbal Resignation of Rodney Smith, Electrician under the category of Personnel Issues. Seconded by Jeanne. Motion carried unanimously.
Approval of Treasurer’s Report dated September 29, 2022. The Treasurer’s
Report updates were as follows:
– We sold four bags of ice to a wedding party at $4.00 per bag.
– We had a check that was double cashed by a judge. Tracy reached out to the bank who reach out to the Federal Reserve to correct this error. The dollar amount was $29.00 X 2. I am unsure how to stop people from doing this in the future.
– Both CD’s will be renewed by next month 10/19. The ARPA one is due today.
A motion was made by Gail to approve the Treasury’s Report dated September 29, 2022, as printed. Seconded by Michelle. Motion passed unanimously.

Old Business Updates
CUP Update/MOU Update: Chad has been in contact with Rory. Back in May, a group from the Fair Board got to Rory Sullivan and met with the Executive Board from the County. At the time, there was information requested and a discussion. We asked them to review the MOU we submitted to them. We have not heard anything from them. As of Monday, we still had not heard anything. Rory had a meeting with the County and suggested that we get together and put together a Xmas list of what we would like to see from the County. He will meet with the County on 10/13 or 11/10. He will present the
information to the Executive Committee on one of those two dates. The team discussed and we would like to return under the original MOU which was updated in 2003. We should look at the original MOU and see what is working and what is not working and jot down some thoughts. The difference in Jan/Feb of 2020 Malia wrote it. We were barred from going to the meeting. We had no part in it. We prepared a rough draft in August 2020. The last we
heard was the County was requesting more money from us and we went back to try to make it less burdensome on us. We never heard any response back.
Rory wants us to work off the old agreement. Rory will have to draft a new one for discussion. It doesn’t totally have to relate to the MOU. We can express our concerns or compliance issues or things we want to make better. This needs to be done by next Wednesday or Thursday. Chad will reach out to Ted and Justin so they will also attend our meeting on October 6 th at 6:30 P.M. and provide us their feedback.
Committee Reports (See back pages)
New Business
1. Sign-In Storage In – October (2 weekends) – Sheets sent around for signup.
2. Nomination Committee – Election of Directors – The Nominating Committee will meet: Judy/Becky/Michelle/Janis/Gail. The Committee is comprised of the
Board Members with the greatest number of years who are not up for re-election. This group will meet and reach out to the individuals who are up for re-election.
3. Appointments for Interim Position (Matt) – A motion was made by Janis to
appoint Chad to the position of Interim VP of Building and Grounds given Matt’s resignation. Jeanne approved the motion to appoint Chad as Interim VP of Building and Grounds. Seconded by Gail. Motion passed unanimously.        4. District 2 Meeting will be held on October 12 th . It will be at the Laurel Restaurant in New Richmond. Don/Jeanne/Judy/Rod/Chad/Janis expressed an interest in attending. Janis will send in the registration next week.
5. State Convention – January 2023 – Registration opens 10/1 – The theme is:
Wisconsin Fairs Keeping It Rural. Judy will submit the “Deceased Member
Form.” A question was asked on who we submit. Is it just Board Members or
worker’s also like Superintendents? So far that is all we have ever done. We
prepare this form every year. We need to check with other Fairs on what they do. We do now that it is limited to the current year (i.e., 2022). For 2022, Gordon Hibbs and Guy Foltz the Superintendent-Woodworking passed away. Judy will submit their names.
6. Photos for State Convention – The photos are due November 1 st . Chad is working on them. If you have suggestions to take to convention, please bring them to the October meeting. We need to pull the link from the information Mary sent out today regarding the criteria.
7. Budget – We will be meeting at the Clayton Town Hall on Tuesday at 6:00 pm.
8. Dog Project Trailer – The 4H Leaders Federation authorized the purchase of a 40 ft cargo trailer. Chad sent the invoice to their Treasurer for payment. Chad negotiated the purchase price with the cargo company. We wouldn’t be taking delivery until Spring. We need to find a storage location here on the Fairgrounds for the trailer. I would like to ask that we put down 4-6 inches of gravel to have it sit on versus directly on the ground. Karrie will arrange to have it done next Spring. When it arrives, we can certainly have it painted a different color.
9. Board Meeting Locations October 2022 – March 2023.
10. Chad and Karrie had discussions with some individuals. The paper Chad handed out is a summary of some of those discussions. We made every attempt to reach out to individuals and there was some that did not respond. If there are additional comments you would like to provide, please reach out to us. Some of the comments carried a common thread. The front page is generalities. Second page is an action plan. We need to have a handbook like we used to have. We need more and better communication. Some committees are very active and some perhaps only once per year.
Buildings and Grounds should meet more often.

Upcoming Events/Dates
1. Storage In – Saturday, October 8 th .
2. Storage In – Saturday, October 15 th .
3. Annual Meeting – Monday, November 14th, Polk County Justice Center, Balsam Lake.
Action Items 1. Handouts Emailed

1. Agenda dated September 29, 2022
2. Meeting Minutes dated August 26, 2022
3. Treasurer’s Report dated September 29, 2022
4. Feedback Summary

Next Meeting, Board Meeting – St. Croix Falls Public Library – Curtis Swanson Meeting Room, October 27, 2022 (6:30 P.M.)
Adjournment. A motion was made by Gail to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Don. Motion carried unanimously.