On Wednesday, July 8, 2020, the Whiteside County Fair Board unanimously reached “a pretty tough decision” after factoring “lots of things,” reported member Brian Oostenryk, Sr. “There was a lot of discussion and mixed feelings. But in the end, we felt we made the right one.”
The Board voted to cancel the 150th Annual Whiteside County Fair, due to Illinois requirements pertaining to COVID-19 and Governor J. B. Pritzker’s decision to suspend Illinois fairs.
Illinois’s 5-Phase Restore Illinois Plan specifically addresses fairs and festivals. In order to be able to have a fair, our region must be in Phase 5; currently we are in Phase 4. Criteria for entering Phase 5 include having “a vaccine, effectively and widely-available treatment, or the elimination of new cases over a sustained period of time through herd immunity or other factors.”
Board member Todd Mickley wrote, “The Board held out as long as we could to make this decision. We had genuine hopes of an improvement in the situation, that would allow us to hold the 2020 fair in August. Simply put, our ability to have the Fair this year is not possible. We exhausted every avenue we could, to try to make it happen this year, but the circumstances do not allow for it.
“We know many of you will be relieved to hear this, and we know many of you will be upset…. We are very disappointed to have to cancel this year, but the health and safety of the fair goers, exhibitors, vendors, entertainers, and volunteers have been our highest priority during this evaluation process.”
Oostenryk said rebooking those participants “is in the works. They all like coming to Whiteside. The bull riding and tractor pull guys plan to return. We are confident other entertainers will work with us.”
Earlier this summer, the grandstand was clad in new steel siding. Board members gathered for general grounds clean up, on Sunday, July 12.
Mickley concluded, “We will be back [Tuesday,] August 17, through [Saturday,] August 21, 2021, and more than ready to celebrate the 150th Fair with all of you!”
