The cancellation of the Illinois State Fair means nonprofits, who count on annual parking revenue during the ten day event, are missing out.
The Springfield Animal Protective League, adjacent to the fairgrounds, estimates a loss of as much as $30-thousand.
“For us, it’s one of our largest fundraisers of the year because we do both camping and parking on our grounds,” said APL Executive Director Deana Corbin. “So it’s a big loss for us. It was definitely not something we anticipated.”
The fair was called off this summer due to the pandemic. Last year, the fair drew more than 500-thousand people.
“The summer tends to be a slower time for donations because people have a lot going on. So it fills a gap for us at a time when we’re having a really high animal intake,” Corbin said. The APL runs primarily on donations.
But Corbin said she’s hoping to fill some of the void.
“We wanted to do something to make up a little of the income we’re losing. So people can go online to our website or Facebook page and donate five dollars they would have paid to park our place – or more,” she said.
Meanwhile, Corbin mentioned if you are interested in adopting an animal, there are no walk-throughs at this time because of COVID-19 precautions. But you can make an appointment at apl-shelter.org.
