JONESBORO -- Despite filing for bankruptcy after owing more than $9 million, Craighead County Fair Association members assured the public that the Northeast Arkansas District Fair will go on as scheduled this September.
The association filed for Chapter 11 protection in October, citing financial overruns and debts to several contractors, including $6.2 million to Focus Bank.
A U.S. bankruptcy judge in the Eastern District of Arkansas approved the selection of a person July 9 to oversee the liquidation of the fair's assets and properties to help cover some of those debts.
Association President Michael Cureton said, however, "I am confident we will have the fair this year."
The fair is scheduled for Sept. 21-26 at the fairgrounds on U.S. 49 just north of Jonesboro.
The Northeast Arkansas District Fair has been held in Jonesboro for at least 60 years. Between 60,000 and 70,000 people attend it each year. The association also leases its facilities for other purposes, such as car shows and craft events.
Cureton said there is a possibility that the association could lease the site from the new owners and continue holding the fair there in the future.
"It takes time," Cureton said. "There are always obstacles, but I think it will work out."
The association sold its former fairgrounds, on Highland Drive and Fair Park Boulevard in the center of Jonesboro, for $3.99 million but has yet to receive full payment.
Cureton blamed "poor accountability" and the delays in receiving money from that land sale for the association's financial troubles.
The current fairgrounds sit on an 80-acre tract of land and include several buildings for displays and entertainment.
Judy Simmons Henry, a Little Rock attorney who represents Focus Bank, said that once the association's assets are liquidated, officials can then determine the fairgrounds' future.
Henry called the bankruptcy plan "unique" because it involves a nonprofit group and the appointment of someone to help with the reorganization plan.
"It's a start," she said of the liquidation process. "They [the fair association] had shortfalls in their transactions, and they made a choice to get into bankruptcy. Focus Bank is using the best business judgment in moving forward.
"The goal is to hold the fair this fall and then move into the process of liquidating its assets."
State Desk on 07/20/2015