FAIR PLANNERS HOPE LATINOS, ARMENIANS ATTEND.Byline: Rachel Uranga Staff Writer The San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. Fair will add more exhibits and animal shows and reach out to the Armenian and Latino communities to boost attendance at this summer's event, organizers say. Last year's attendance of 28,750 was up from 23,000 in 2003, but it fell far short of the 50,000 peak reached in the 1990s. ``We have to reinvent re·in·vent tr.v. re·in·vent·ed, re·in·vent·ing, re·in·vents 1. To make over completely: "She reinvented Indian cooking to fit a Western kitchen and a Western larder" ourselves,'' said David Honda, president of the San Fernando San Fernando, city, Argentina San Fernando (săn fərnăn`dō), city (1991 pop. 144,761), Buenos Aires prov., E Argentina. It is a district administrative center in the Greater Buenos Aires area. Fair Board, an appointed state board that runs the annual event. ``We have a huge market for the fair in the San Fernando Valley but we have not been able to draw from it.'' The 59th annual fair is slated to run June 9-12 at the Hansen Dam Hansen Dam in Los Angeles County, California was built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District in 1939 and 1940. The project is located near the northern edge of the San Fernando Valley on Tujunga Wash, about one mile below the confluence of the Big Tujunga Wash Sports Center. Honda said there has been no major overhaul in operations. But organizers are working to expand the number of exhibits and increase attendance by at least 15 percent. In 2003, the fair was held at Castaic Lake Castaic Lake is a lake on Castaic Creek formed by Castaic Dam, in northwestern Los Angeles County, California, near the town of Castaic. The 323,700 acre foot lake (399,000,000 m³) is the terminus of the West Branch of the California Aqueduct, though some comes from the 154 mi² and attendance slipped. The board brought it back to Hansen Dam last year and hired a full-time executive director. In January, it secured a $10,000 lease from the city to run the four-day fair at Hansen Dam through 2007. But still, there is no permanent home, one reason fair board members said it's difficult to draw sponsorship and develop a following. ``We are really making a concentrated effort to bring in the whole community,'' said Catherine Garcia, the fair's executive director. This year, officials plan to advertise in Armenian newspapers and add more Spanish-language radio stations spots to their marketing campaign. Officials contacted dozens of schools and boys and girls boys and girls mercurialisannua. clubs left out in previous years. Even local equestrian groups opposed to the fair board's proposal to permanently locate the fair at the Equestrian Center on the east side of Hansen Dam are joining the fair for the first time with a vaquero show. ``We wanted to bring horses and that part of our rural heritage to the fair,'' said Debra Baumann, executive director of the Tujunga Watershed Council and Stakeholder stakeholder n. a person having in his/her possession (holding) money or property in which he/she has no interest, right or title, awaiting the outcome of a dispute between two or more claimants to the money or property. who is organizing the vaquero show. The board has also added more animal-themed exhibits such as a sea lion sea lion, fin-footed marine mammal of the eared seal family (Otariidae). Like the other member of this family, the fur seal, the sea lion is distinguished from the true seal by its external ears, long, flexible neck, supple forelimbs, and hind flippers that can be splash show and ``Tigers of India.'' Rachel Uranga, (818) 713-3741 rachel.uranga(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): map Map: Site of San Fernando Valley Fair Daily News |
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