Caroline happy as new home of State Fair

Fredericksburg.com - Caroline happy as new home of State Fair.

The State Fair of Virginia attracted an older crowd than usual at its new location this year, according a survey of attendees. Survey results show an increase in fairgoers ages 45 and up, and a decrease in attendees ages 12 to 17. These results came from a two-page questionnaire given at random to some of the 248,000 who attended the 11-day fair, which was held for the first time at The Meadow Event Park in Caroline County this fall. State Fair President Curry Roberts noted a few of the unreleased survey's highlights to Caroline supervisors at their meeting this week. He did not give percentages on the age breakdown. According to the surveys, about 14 percent said they were from the Fredericksburg or Northern Virginia areas. That's up from 6 percent from last year, when the fair was held in Henrico County. About 68 percent of those surveyed came from the Richmond area. Of those surveyed, 15 percent were attending the fair for the first time ever. About 70 percent attended for the first time in five years, and about 11 percent attended for the first time in 10 years. Roberts said the education level and household income of this year's fairgoers were higher than last year. Overall, 88 percent of those surveyed said the fair met or exceeded their expectations, and more believe this year's fair was a good value for the money compared with last year. The major concerns were problems with traffic and parking, which resulted in a 7.9 out of 10 ranking of the fair's entrance. That's down from last year, Roberts said, and will be a priority for improvement next year. For future use of The Meadow Event Park, fairgoers said they would like to see food and music festivals--specifically country and gospel--and shows for crafts, homes, Christmas, dogs and antique cars.