New York Governor Says “The Fair Must Go On”

The fair must go on. Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the New York State Fair will be held this year during a live press conference at the state fairgrounds.

The third largest fair in the country, that had to be canceled in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, will be held August 20 - September 6, 2021 in Syracuse.

The 2021 New York State Fair will be back but it'll look a little different. Governor Cuomo said it'll be set up in four different areas to keep crowd sizes at about 50% - food & beverage, amusement rides, concerts, and agriculture exhibits. "That will give us the ability to control the number of people coming and going."

Capacity limits and guidelines may be changed before the fair opens in August if positive COVID rates continue to decline and vaccination numbers continue to increase. But Governor Cuomo said you will not be required to have a vaccine to enter the 2021 New York State Fair.

Fair officials are gearing up, looking for new, and different items, foods and services that can be offered to Fairgoers.

The process is very competitive. Each year we receive hundreds of applications for a very limited number of licensing opportunities. The New York State Fair does not maintain a waiting list. As licensing opportunities become available, appropriate license registrations will be selected from the pool of registrations submitted.

Venders must complete and submit an online concessionaire/exhibitor space application and include photos of the products or descriptions of the services they'll be offering as well as a layout and photos of what the vendor space or concession trailer will look like. The application process takes 10-15 minutes to complete and requires a $25 non-refundable processing fee.

Governor Cuomo didn't make any mention on whether or not local fairs or festivals will be allowed this summer. But officials at the Boonville-Oneida County Fair are moving ahead anyway. They recently announced this year's fair will be held July 27 through August 1, 2021 at the Boonville fairgrounds. Tickets are expected to go on sale soon.