Festival Organizers Seeking City Funds

Faced with a steep bill for preparing their new fair site, Simi Valley Days organizers have asked the city for $117,300.

The organization needs the money to help pay to move the annual western festival to a new location for the first time in more than 10 years. The new site, a hilly patch of land north of the Ronald Reagan Freeway, will require extensive work before it can support a fair, scheduled in September.

The request is just one part of the group’s efforts to find the cash they need. Organizers are also looking for a corporate sponsor to foot much of the bill. But after weeks of searching, Simi Valley Days Executive Director Jo Ann Macek said the group hasn’t landed one yet.

“Maybe once it hits the papers, they’ll see that this [festival] is really off and running,” she said. “But right now, we don’t have any goldfish biting our hook.”

Still, the group has found some people willing to help. One organization that trains operators of land-grading equipment has agreed to grade the site--basically, flatten it out so that it can be used--for free, eliminating what could have been a substantial cost.

The city has already helped by providing the new festival site. Under a proposed agreement with the city, the Simi Valley Days organization will lease the property for $1 each year. City leaders hope to eventually build a regional mall on the land, which is owned by Simi’s Community Development Agency.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on both the leasing agreement and the financial contribution today.