GREENVILLE —The Darke County Fair Board approved the resignation of Fair Board Manager Daryl Riffle, effective March 31 during it’s meeting Wednesday night.
Riffle told the board he will continue working diligently until his last day.
“It’s not an ego thing, it’s a personal thing,” Riffle said. “It’s been an ongoing gap between ideals and concepts and that gap continues to widen.”
Board President Brian Rismiller was surprised by the news.
“This comes as a shock,” he said. “You never said anything about this.”
“I’m pursuing other opportunities outside of the fair,” Riffle said.
In other news, Jana Deeter approached the Board about moving the old “Hamburger Shoppe” Building, located at 100 Martin Street, onto the fairgrounds. According to Deeter, You Only Live Once (YOLO), of Darke County, Inc. will give her the building, if she funds the move. Her idea was to move the metal building on the fairgrounds and turn it into a history museum for fair-goers to enjoy. She said it would encourage folks to share their stories of Darke County.
“It’s a golden opportunity to get history that we don’t know exists,” she said. “I just want to get these stories. To me, it’s a win-win.”
“Who will foot the cost to get the building here?” Board Treasurer Jerry Marker asked.
“Me,” Deeter said.
The Board agreed to have Deeter pursue the costs and the logistics of moving the building and to see if it contained any asbestos. The Board will revisit the idea at the next meeting, based on Deeter’s revised information.
Riffle suggested the Board start advertising for folks to work on the Caretaker crew. The Board discussed pay scales and required experience levels for potential employees. Based on research and recommendations, the Board will make a motion next month to place the advertisements.
The board approved the following: Increasing the premiums for the 2017 Sunday Horse Show, by $1,000; Grandstand price changes for the 2017 Fair National Tractor Pullers Association (NTPA) Tractor Pulls; and Allocating $2,500 to advertise the 2017 Fair NTPA Tractor Pulls.
