North Carolina Governor Josh Stein chose not to have North Carolina participate in the Great American State Fair. He state that the cost of $100,000 was the reason. He chose not to look at the benefit to the state participating in the event might be.<\/p>\n
On Monday, The North State Journal<\/a> reported:<\/p>\n North Carolina will have a 750-square-foot \u201cspotlight\u201d pavilion at the Great American State Fair<\/a> despite reporting<\/a> over the last week saying North Carolina is one of a half-dozen states to have pulled out of the 250th anniversary event.<\/strong><\/p>\n Some of the states implied they dropped out over political reasons, but the Stein administration cited cost.<\/strong><\/p>\n When contacted regarding the decision, Gov. Josh Stein\u2019s office forwarded questions to the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (NCDNCR), which claimed an estimated cost of $100,000 was the reason.<\/strong><\/p>\n NCDNCR Communications Director Schorr Johnson said in an email the cost was outside their \u201cnormal operating budget\u201d and included \u201cproducing materials for a large exhibition space and covering staff travel and accommodation.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u201cOur limited resources are focused on America 250 events across North Carolina, including our signature event at the State Capitol in Raleigh on July 4,\u201d Johnson said.<\/strong><\/p>\n In a subsequent email, North State Journal asked if the Semiquincentennial Committee had been informed and asked about providing funding. Johnson did not directly answer but said the Freedom 250 organizers were informed April 6.<\/strong><\/p>\n Johnson did say other state entities were invited to participate but declined for \u201csimilar budgetary reasons.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n …Sen. Ted Alexander (R-Cleveland), co-chair of the legislature\u2019s Semiquincentennial Committee, told North State Journal he was \u201cvery disappointed to learn that\u201d the state had pulled out.<\/strong><\/p>\n Alexander sent a letter<\/a> to Stein urging him to reconsider, and NCDNCR set up a \u201cvery cordial\u201d meeting with Ann Evangelista, who has been the liaison to his committee for that department.<\/strong><\/p>\n Alexander said he didn\u2019t know of the state pulling out of the event until recently.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t speak for the things that (Evangelista) didn\u2019t say, but yes, I did not know about it until the other day,\u201d he said.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI just thought it was a terrible shame that being one of the original 13 colonies especially, that I think that this has been planned for some time. And I\u2019m just disappointed that they could not, or they apparently couldn\u2019t, find the money.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cI will say that regardless of what the state government is doing, there have been some groups that have stepped up, and I\u2019m very pleased about that.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n Alexander mentioned involvement by Richard Childress Racing, SPEVCO and Great American State Fair North Carolina, a nonprofit set up to fill the void left by the state, adding, \u201cI applaud all three of those groups for doing this.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n The article concludes:<\/p>\n Khatod (Lori Khatod) also said Freedom 250 organizers were using North Carolina as a \u201cspotlight pavilion\u201d for the fair.<\/strong><\/p>\n The Great American State Fair will run from Thursday through July 10 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., stretching from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial. Organizers say there will be exhibits from all 50 states \u2014 even those who have pulled out on the state level \u2014 plus U.S. territories.<\/strong><\/p>\n In addition to traditional state fair activities, there will be daily themed programming such as Military & Veterans Appreciation Day, and \u201cEngines of Enterprise.\u201d Five national pavilions will have overarching American themes: Made in America, American Heartland, America Innovates, The American Canvas, and Faith & Family.<\/strong><\/p>\n Admission is free with hours starting at 10 a.m. each day that run into the evening. The fair will be open until midnight on July 4.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" North Carolina Governor Josh Stein chose not to have North Carolina participate in the Great American State Fair. He state that the cost of $100,000 was the reason. He chose not to look at the benefit to the state participating … Continue reading