The Farm-City Days Committee will meet at 7 p.m. Monday to discuss plans and ideas for the 2010 celebration in October.
The meeting is the first of year, Chairman Mike Jewell told the Register, and he hopes to hear from the public about what they enjoyed most about last year’s celebration, as well as what they’d like to see improved.
The 2009 Farm-City Days celebration returned to the courthouse square after relocating for one year to Riverside Park.
Jewell said preliminary plans are for much of the same types of activities, although the carnival may shift to the west.
The 2009 carnival was held along Jackson Avenue, from Washington to Sycamore streets, one block longer to the east than in previous years.
Organizers met resistance from one of the business owners along the easternmost regions of the midway area, so they decided to instead go one block farther to the west in 2010.
“The more carnival rides we get, the better off we are,” Jewell said. “We depend on the carnival for a lot of the revenue for our celebration. With less revenue, we have to limit our activities.”
The committee hopes to continue working with such groups as Allen County Farm Bureau and Allen County Community College, which sponsored dinners and farm tours, respectively.
“When I grew up, going to Farm-City Days meant introducing city people to farmlife and farm people to the city,” Jewell said. “I want to see more activities like that.”
THE COMMITTEE also is in search of a regular meeting spot.
In previous years, the group met once a month at City Hall, but can no longer do so because the doors lock at 5 p.m. on weekdays because City Hall no longer houses 911 dispatchers.
The group will meet Monday in the basement of the Iola Area Chamber of Commerce.
For more information on Farm-City Days, or to suggest meeting sites, call Jewell at 365-6166.
