Deschutes County Fairgrounds in Redmond wraps up FairWell Festival, prepares for 104th county Fair & Rodeo

  REDMOND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The Deschutes County Fairgrounds just wrapped up the FairWell Festival and is busily preparing for another big event -- the 104th annual Deschutes County Fair and Rodeo. 

"An economic impact report showed that this weekend alone has about $119 million economic impact on the community," Deschutes County Fair and Expo Director Geoff Hinds said Monday.

 Hinds estimates 40,000 people attended the second year of the FairWell Festival, featuring 35 artists.

 After major issues the first year, which drew about 60,000 people, changes were made to traffic and exiting plans.

"Part of that was adding on-site camping, some shuttle services and a number of other things that just improved the exiting for both the arrival and the exiting," Hinds said.

On Monday, tractors were going back and forth in the parking lot, clearing items left behind from the three-day festival. 

Hinds said, "We've been getting ready for the rodeo for a couple of weeks now, because we have to move inside the arena and set up the rodeo arena itself. We'll come in and put the finishing touches on the correct signage, chutes."

The county fair and rodeo is in its 104th year and is one of the largest events of the year at the fairgrounds, with 40 carnival rides, plus food and and games.

Hinds added, "Overall, it takes us about 18 months to put together each fair, so we're already starting to think about the 2025 fair, and we haven't even gone through the '24 fair. So we're thinking about what things work, what are being successful, and how things can lay in for next years fair."

 The Deschutes County Fair and Rodeo will take July 31-August 4. The goal is to bring new entertainment each year, to keep you coming back.