SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) - Preparations for the 2026 calendar of events at the Santa Maria Fairpark are underway at the same time the facility's Board of Directors continues to search for a new permanent chief operating officer (CEO).
The Fairpark, which is operated by a state entity officially known as the 37th District Agriculture Association (DAA), has been without a CEO since the departure of Caitlin Miller last March.
"We are still advertising actively for a CEO," said Kevin Merrill, Santa Maria Fairpark Board President. "We need one desperately. Any company needs a leader and we certainly need one here. We're lucky that we have some folks helping us from the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) who have stepped up, and we have a CEO from another fairpark helping us right now get through this time that we're in the in the waiting period."
Merrill indicated there has been a number of factors that have prevented the Board from filling the CEO position.
"The CEO project, it's kind of a bureaucratic process working through the state," said Merrill. "We have to hit certain criteria. And, you know, in Santa Maria is not a cheap place to live and so when people are looking at relocating or coming along to the Central Coast, which is a beautiful place to live, one of the hangs up is, of course, the cost of living here. People really look at that, and so we're working through those things to see what we can do to entice that position and make it a little more friendly, both economically for them and work with CDFA to fulfill their requirements."
As the ongoing search stretches on into a new calendar year, planning for the year, especially for the two marquee annual events, the Santa Barbara County Fair and Santa Maria Valley Strawberry Festival, are having to carry on.
"We're moving forward even without the CEO position," said Merrill. "We had a we have a part time, help from another fair park and they're helping guide our staff, which are really doing a great job. We'll get these things done, but of course, it's always better to have a CEO here."
2026 plans at Santa Maria Fairpark ‘moving forward’ as search for new leader continues News Channel 3-12.
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