Boggs asks that show cancel

Portland Mayor John Boggs and the Jay County Health Department have requested the cancellation of the 55th annual Antique Engine and Tractor Show because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Boggs on behalf of the city and the local health department requested the cancellation Thursday in a letter to Chris Englehardt, president of the Tri-State Gas Engine and Tractor Association. He cited concerns about the event’s average annual draw of around 70,000, a number which is disputed by Englehardt, and how the feasibility of visitors wearing masks and social distancing is “physically impossible.”

“I am aware of the tremendous economic impact our community realizes from your show. But that does not matter if we jeopardize the life of a single Citizen of Portland,” the mayor wrote.

The letter comes weeks before the show is scheduled to start on Aug. 26 and nine days before camping is scheduled to first be allowed.

Englehardt said he has no idea where the mayor got that high of a number of attendees and said the show sells around 20,000 tickets every year. He anticipates that number to be lower this year since some vendors and exhibitors have already opted out of coming to the show.

If the attendance was as high as Boggs said, he would probably cancel the show himself, Englehardt said.

Boggs said his number is based on a low-end estimate of the cumulative total number of people that attended the show.

“If they want to publish their actual attendance, they’re more than welcome to do that,” Boggs said.

Englehardt added that the show has done everything to abide by state mandates and believes it can safely run without spreading the virus.

“We appreciate (Boggs’) concern. We’re concerned. … I think we’ve went above and beyond what he’s asked and we’re willing to do more,” Englehardt said.

Englehardt said 11,000 masks and 180 gallons of hand sanitizer have been ordered for the show and that someone will be walking around the grounds enforcing the mask mandate in buildings.

He added that it “seems funny” that Jay County without public protest from Boggs has allowed the Jay County Fair and grandstand events such as demolition derbies in the midst of the pandemic.

Boggs said the difference between the fair and the show is that the latter garners a much higher amount of visitors from outside of the local area, potentially welcoming attendees from virus hotspots such as Florida or California.

The tractor and engine show has the advantage of being spread out over about 100 acres in addition to attendees, vendors and exhibitors attending the show on different days, Englehardt said.

The association’s board of directors voted to move forward with the 55th running of the show on June in a 10-8 vote. In a Facebook post following its vote, the group said it would only cancel the show if required by state or local government.

Since then, the rate of newly confirmed COVID-19 cases in the vast majority of the country has spiked. Jay County has had nine confirmed new cases in the past nine days, increasing its cumulative total to 84. Ohio’s Mercer County has had 70 new cases over that same span, raising its cumulative total to 573.

Boggs said he believes the state government is refusing to take a stance on the show’s running and would like to see the issue resolved locally. He said he prefers the state to take some official stance on the issue or at least require an operational plan for the show.

The mayor also noted the general anxiety he said the community feels regarding the impending running of the show and that the “enthusiastic reception” the city and its residents tend to have for the show “will be replaced with hostility.”

The association voted to cancel its May swap meet over concerns about the virus. The Vintage Motor Bike Club’s annual meet was also canceled, but hundreds still gathered at the fairgrounds last week when the show was scheduled to run.

It is possible hundreds if not thousands could still gather at the fairgrounds even if the show is canceled, Boggs said, but the goal remains to minimize the potential spread of the virus that has killed over 700,000 internationally.

Boggs also sent a copy of the letter to Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb’s office, the office of the state health commissioner and local officials. He said he has been waiting to request the cancellation because he had hoped the association would take action on its own and was finally encouraged to officially request the show’s cancellation days on Jay County Health Department environmentalist and administrator Heath Butz's recommendation.

The inaugural Tri-State show was in Fort Recovery, but has been held in Jay County ever since. Currently, the organization also has a swap meet scheduled for October.