Some key points were omitted from the article published in the most recent edition The Leader. 

A major one was the amount of appreciation expressed at the March 9 meeting for the 70-year legacy of the fair association and for the thousands of volunteer hours put in by current and past board members and superintendents. “Don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater,” was the way one attendee summed it up. 

Another was the fact that the current board had rewritten its bylaws and was prepared to adopt them, but because of fears of disruption (note that Port Townsend police and county sheriff deputies were both present due to concerns raised by members of the public), the board agreed to allow County Commissioner Kate Dean to step in. 

The proposed bylaws would have achieved much of the restructuring called for. And the fact that I requested assurances that the board would be able to proceed in planning the fair without undue scrutiny does not represent a failure to be “on board” with the restructuring I myself will be key to. 

It’s unfortunate that some members of the 4x4s volunteered to be on the “investigation committee,” as it represents a clear conflict of interest and led to a predictable muddying of the waters (pardon the pun). Some neighbors and environmentalists are calling for the mud drags to halt, although they have been a longstanding attraction at the fair. Spreading unfounded rumors about the fair board shooting itself in the foot by calling the “EPA” on the mud drags was careless and has only made it more difficult to entertain compromises. 

The meeting ended on a cautiously optimistic note that people can work together. Can everyone bury the hatchet for real? Thanks.

Linda Noble
PORT TOWNSEND