President's Message

Over the past year, economic challenges confronted us all – at the national, regional and local levels.

Not only did Fairplex face these challenges head on, we managed to turn even the toughest of times to advantage. The tightening economy inspired new levels of innovation, pushing us to dip further into our creative well, strengthening our business foundation and our community partnerships.

Nowhere is this resourcefulness more evident than with the Fairplex Conference Center, the new state-of-the-art facility. The conference center – brought into being by Fairplex, the city of Pomona, the county of Los Angeles and federal representatives – will provide business opportunities for Fairplex even as it pumps up the local economy through new jobs and secondary business benefits.

Together, we are assuring that the lasting impact of this economic downturn will be an uplifting of the ties between Fairplex and our local community – a partnership that I believe still has much fruit to bear.
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Ground Broken for New Conference Center

In a setting that epitomized the true community collaboration of the project, representatives of Fairplex, the city of Pomona and Los Angeles County, Congresswoman Grace Napolitano and Congressman David Dreier donned hard hats and shovels for the Feb. 18 groundbreaking of the Fairplex Conference Center, scooping out what is essentially a new breath of economic growth and resurgence for the region.

The 85,000-square-foot Conference Center will offer a vast, functional space for trade shows, corporate meetings or regional associations, as well as provide a much-needed meeting facility for the Los Angeles County Fair Association and surrounding businesses and civic organizations – all with high-tech capabilities. With the flexibility to accommodate large-scale events, the center will serve a variety of configurations from sit-down banquets to large conference rooms to small break-out classrooms. The center will be the featured venue at the L.A. County Fair for high-tech Fair exhibits and attractions – continuing the Fair’s vision of providing world-class experiences. With a March 2011, opening, bookings are already being accepted.

Through the drive, determination, commitment and partnership of many parties and entities, $30 million was raised to complete the project. Working alongside the Los Angeles County Fair Association were the Economic Development Administration, the Small Business Administration, the county of Los Angeles and the city of Pomona.

The project will give a timely boost to the region’s struggling construction industry and provide a slew of permanent jobs from entry level to executive posts as well as providing ancillary economic benefits to the surrounding merchants in the community. Once complete, the center will be a valuable community resource, continuing the mission of Fairplex and the Los Angeles County Fair Association to educate and entertain the diverse community we serve.

"The Conference Center will bring in businesses and associations from across the world, and create much-needed jobs here in Pomona. This is a great opportunity for chambers of commerce, businesses and entrepreneurs to network and bring opportunities to the area,” said Congresswoman Napolitano. “I am proud to have supported this project for over a decade, and look forward to the prosperity that it will bring to Pomona and the surrounding areas for years to come."

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L.A. County Fair's New Layout Improves Guests' Experience

Exciting, crowd-pleasing design changes will greet our Fairguests in 2010! We are transforming our carnival area, shifting some elements out and re-aligning others to create a nostalgic feel around our Yellow Gate entrance.

The host of vendors who once filled the area between the Flower & Garden Pavilion and the Grandstand will move into our spacious, air-conditioned shopping buildings, and beautiful, tree-lined streets providing guests with a centralized location where they can visit the whole spectrum of these Fair-favorite businesses.

A special shuttle will zip shopping-minded Yellow Gate visitors to the shopping areas and back.
Meanwhile, the redesign will enable us to recapture that old-time Fair feel to the Yellow Gate region. Our carnival attractions will shift toward to the center of the fairgrounds – making them more accessible to visitors from all entrances – and will spread out to create a more open feel.

As a bonus, our Yellow Gate entrance will also shift closer to the action, providing more parking on that side of the complex – a benefit to Fairguests and our surrounding community alike.

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Fairplex’s Newest Business Venture: RV & Boat Storage

Maximizing space utilization and revenue-generating opportunities are a must in today’s economy. For many companies, examining their internal structure for new profit growth may be the most productive method for progress. Following this strategy, Fairplex is now operating Fairplex RV & Boat Storage. A section of underutilized land on Sunshine Hill off of McKinley Avenue is the perfect location to offer affordable recreational vehicle and boat storage to residents of our neighboring communities. The secured lot provides 380 spaces in a fenced-in area, surrounded by shrubbery, which ensures minimal visual impact on the neighborhood. With many municipalities restricting the parking and storage of recreational vehicles on city streets and land, Fairplex RV & Boat Storage affords residents with a nearby alternative.

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Profile: Association Board Director Sue Hyland

When it comes to education, Sue Hyland’s energy is endless. And it’s not just because she is a former teacher. The educator-turned-businesswoman hates to see any opportunity to learn missed – for her or others. That is why she joined the Claremont Community Committee and eventually the Los Angeles County Fair Association, and has continued as a board director for the Association and the CDC and a member of several committees. She is now eagerly working on the Big Yellow Bus committee, as part of the Claremont community group, which solicits donations from businesses and organizations to provide transportation to students who participate in the L.A. County Fair’s FairKids Discovery Club field trip program. She said this project is a pretty tall order in and of itself.

“Each year we’ve had to increase the money we’ve raised for buses. But the community committees were happy to take this on. It’s so nice to be able to help supplement transportation for schools to get to the Fair.”
She said if potential donors could see the faces of the students who come to the Fair, they would be eager to give. The learning experienced on a field trip to the Fair cannot be replicated anywhere else, she said. “Kids are giant sponges – they absorb so much,” Hyland said. “The Fair has incredible potential, only limited by visitors’ imaginations.”

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Preparing Students for Full-Time Work

Still in its infancy, the Fairplex Education Foundation’s Career and Technical Education Center is blossoming and already gaining a reputation among local school districts as a great alternative to shrinking vocational education programs. In its classroom without walls, CTEC begins where vocational education left off – building a strong foundation of work skills for students who head directly into jobs upon high school graduation.

“Schools are not moving toward work-force development. CTEC is ahead of the curve by miles, recognizing the need for entry-level jobs,” said George King, a CTEC instructor in the water and green utilities classes. "We are graduating students who will have a leg up on those they are competing against.”

CTEC has seen six students earn job placement in public works and water companies, and six others who’ve taken positions in various other fields, including human resources. “And we are teaching them more than just hard skills. We’re teaching them how to dress and prepare for interviews,” said King.

Justin Castruita can attest to how well CTEC prepared him for the working world. Last summer, the Bonita High School senior was facing a mountain of challenges: rising college tuition; a tough economic market; a general unemployment rate that was the highest in the U.S. in 10 years (even higher for young men ages 16 – 19); and competition in the job market, not just from fellow graduates but from individuals of all ages who had lost their jobs. Justin jumped on a suggestion from King to enroll in a water technology course offered through CTEC.

“At first I hesitated a bit. It was six weeks during the summer, everyday for eight hours,” Justin recalled. “But I thought it could be a good experience.”

Now, one full-time job later, with a lucrative salary and a company car at just 18 years of age, Justin is more than happy to have spent last summer studying. He took and passed the American Water Works Association Water Distribution and the state water board exams, which landed him a position with the East Pasadena Water Company.

“I learned a lot in the water technology class. The class taught us what we can do,” Justin said. “Now I make more money than most of my friends! I’m thinking of buying a house.”
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