The Grays Harbor County commissioners approved fair admission increases and an emergency budget for the county Board of Equalization at their regular meeting Monday.

Also, Clerk to the Board Jenna Amsbury announced that the county is accepting nominations for new ATV roads until Aug. 1. Residents can go to the county website to nominate roads they think would be appropriate for ATV use through Grays Harbor County. When the nominations have been received, the county engineering department and the Sheriff’s Office will evaluate the nominations and make recommendations to the commissioners. Final approval would come in late August or September.

Fair fees

Admission for children and seniors for the Grays Harbor County fair will increase by $1 (from $6 to $7) this year.

The recommendation to increase the price of admission came from the Grays Harbor County fair board and was brought before the commissioners by Mike Bruner, fairgrounds and county tourism department manager. According to the resolution presented to the commissioners, the increases are “necessary due to naturally rising operational costs in several areas including, but not limited to: fair entertainment and related services, utilities, grounds repairs/maintenance and salaries/wages.”

The commissioners had rejected the requested price hike last month, noting the resolution was received late before the June 26 meeting and both commissioners Randy Ross and Vickie Raines said they had questions they wanted answered before approving the increases.

On Monday, the commissioners said they were comfortable with the additional conversations they had had with Bruner.

The increases will net some $5,000 more for the fairgrounds.

“There are some fairs that charge that amount that don’t provide any entertainment. And then there are fairs that charge that amount that provide entertainment at an extra cost. Our entertainment is included in that fee,” Raines said. “I still think it’s a good buy and a bargain for families to be able to take their kids.”

Ross noted that the fair has a strong track record of attracting good attendance.

“The fair board has not sat on the laurels, they’ve actually increased attendance — if you look over a 10-year period, attendance has increased quite a bit,” he said. “They have and are working at making this financially viable.”

The commissioners unanimously approved the resolution to increase the price of admission.

Budget

The commissioners approved an emergency budget of more than $34,000 for the county Board of Equalization. That board, which has its own line item within the county budget, was expected to be out of funding by the end of the month.

The emergency budget was unanimously approved, but the commissioners also admonished the board for its budgeting.

“It’s challenging when you have exhausted your budget halfway through the year,” Raines said. “We need to look and review what duties are required in that office and how we can be able to cross-train and job-share some duties and we’re looking forward to hearing back on those efforts.”