Fair, carnival negotiations off track?

Frontiersman editorial board

There's a rumble coming from the midway at the Alaska State Fair this year, but it's not from wheels of a new roller coaster. Instead, the rumbling is coming from the owners of Golden Wheel Amusements, who claim that negotiations for a new contract with the fair have run off the track. Joe Lawton, the fair's general manager, thought the world was still spinning in greased grooves, however.

Before the 2003 fair began, Golden Wheel and the fair were in negotiations to extend a contract that has run about 30 years.

During that stretch, the carnival company has been the sole provider of fair rides, games and other midway attractions. In a new contract, the fair wants Golden Wheel to pay 30 percent of its take instead of 27 percent, and also is asking the carnival company to pay for needed upgrades in the midway area. Golden Wheel has apparently balked at the idea of doing both, and has declared the negotiations over.

The problem here is the way Golden Wheel has chosen to escalate the negotiation process. It appears the first person to hear about the impasse was a Frontiersman reporter just before the fair opened this year. When Frontiersman contacted Lawton, he was stunned to hear the news that negotiations with the fair's longtime carnival provider had ended. It was news to him.

Shortly after the fair began, a report about the negotiations was made on a local television news broadcast. Still, no one from Golden Wheel had contacted Lawton. The fair has sought bids from several carnival operators in the Lower 48, but Lawton has said that is more of a contingency plan than anything else. He says Golden Wheel is the fair's first choice.

One has to question Golden Wheel's motivation for seeking out the press when they did. Clearly, the attention places a great deal of pressure on the fair at the most critical time of the year. Less than two weeks from the announcement that negotiations were over, one of Golden Wheel's co-owners admitted that there were still concessions the fair could make to salvage the relationship. It sounds like negotiations are still open. It sounds as though negotiations have reached the hardball stage, and one of the parties is attempting to use the media as a bat.

It seems the relationship between Golden Wheel and the Alaska State Fair should be a marriage made in heaven. Golden Wheel is the only major carnival provider in Alaska, and the Alaska State Fair is the biggest game in town.

With that said, it's reasonable to point out that the fair holds the best hand at the moment. An Outside operator could mean better and more rides and attractions. It seems Golden Wheel would do well to buckle up. It may be a bumpy ride.