The Fulton County Chamber of Commerce has decided it will no longer sponsor the Fulton County Road Barn Festival.
In a press release Thursday, the chamber cited a negative impact the festival has on downtown merchants and a recent struggle to financially support the festival as key factors in the decision.
In 1978, the Indiana State Festivals Association named the Round Barn Festival one of the 10 best festivals in Indiana.
This year, said Chamber Director Diane Spore, attendance dwindled to a handful of people during daytime hours. Vendors reported low attendance overall.
Downtown businesses report they lose money during the festival because shoppers don’t want to come downtown during the event, she said.
And the chamber would lose money on the festival if it weren’t for business and corporate sponsors, Spore added.
It costs $30,000 to $35,000 to put the festival on, she said. That includes paying for such things as electrical setup and monitoring, permits, insurance, tent rental, entertainment, sound systems, parade announcing and advertising.
The festival takes in about $30,000, she said, from parade entry fees, a cut of the kiddie ride revenues, and other sources.
Organizers were told they’d need an electrical upgrade for a 2015 festival and that the little round barn information booth may not make it through another trip from the city garage, Spore said. Those costs are estimated to be $10,000.
Lastly, she said, the decision was based on the fact the festival does not really align with the chamber’s mission, which is supporting its members, not necessarily tourism.
Not sponsoring the festival, Spore said, has been considered by chamber board members for years.
She and the chamber board met Wednesday to discuss the festival’s future and make the decision.
“We want to be the best possible stewards of our members’ chamber dues. We’ve been struggling to support this event for a few years now and at some point the negatives outweighed the positives. The community, and many of our board members, have great memories of this event,” a press release said. “The decision to end the festival was a very difficult one for the board.”
“With thousands of dollars in electrical upgrades and repairs to the information booth necessary, declining attendance, and the negative financial impact to downtown businesses, the result was a unanimous vote to forego hosting the Round Barn Festival in the future,” the release said. “During six to eight months out of the year, some sort of preparation is made for the weekend event, using a lot of time and resources by the two-person chamber staff and board. The chamber leadership wants to take these resources and put them toward more business- oriented programs and events that are beneficial to the community.”
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