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Limited capacity expected for this summer's Erie County Fair

Thomas O'Neil-White

The smell of fried dough and other assorted fair food will be in the air at the Hamburg Fairgrounds when the Erie County Fair returns from Aug. 11-22 after a one-year hiatus.

However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, things will look a little different, including the number of people allowed inside the park on a daily basis, said Park Manager and CEO Jessica Underberg.

“We will have a limited capacity as per the New York State guidelines,” she said. “We calculated the total square feet on the property. We calculated six foot of social distancing per person. And the result was that 74,000 people could be on the property.”

The 74,000 includes the 14,000 employees, volunteers and vendors on the grounds.

A normal summer sees between 100,000-120,000 fair attendees per day, but Underberg said the plan fair organizers came up with is financially feasible for all.

“So 74,000 is a smaller attended fair, but I don't think it's crazy small. You know, it's still financially doable for us it's still financially doable for our partners and our vendors.”

Underberg said the fair is adhering to CDC guidelines and but will not be enforcing mask wearing for non-vaccinated people, although they are asked to wear face coverings as they walk around and everyone is asked to wear face covering indoors.

More information on the fair can be found here.

Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Thomas moved to Western New York at the age of 14. A graduate of Buffalo State College, he majored in Communications Studies and was part of the sports staff for WBNY. When not following his beloved University of Kentucky Wildcats and Boston Red Sox, Thomas enjoys coaching youth basketball, reading Tolkien novels and seeing live music.
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