The 157th Wisconsin State Fair comes to a close this weekend after an 11-day run that has, at least so far, been blessed with perfect weather.

Randy Prasse, Wisconsin State Fair Park Executive Director, took a few moments during the fair to talk with OnMilwaukee.com about this year's fair, the financial health of the park and what he sees for the future.

OnMilwaukee.com: The economy and high gas prices have caused many people to rethink their summer plans. How is this affecting the fair?

Randy Prasse: Maybe they're not able to afford or are just bypassing their annual summer trip. One of the vendors with a 20-plus year history pointed out that when the economy is down; fairs are up and vice versa.

OMC: Because when the economy is doing well, more people are inclined to travel?

RP: Exactly. They're going on vacation. They're renting the jet skis. They're going to weekend cabins. When (the economy) gets a little soft, people are a little more sensitive about money and are more cautious about the money that they spend.

OMC: What's the first thing that comes to mind when you're asked "what's new at the fair this year?"

RP: It's kind of two-fold. First off, a lot of the new vendors come to mind. A lot of vendors have done major renovations to their properties. We have a lot of old vendors that have freshened up their properties and a couple of new vendors, like Major Goolsby's. That was a State Fair-owned building (formerly the Old Style Heartland) that they now own and they've done some major renovations. The second part is some of the side-stage entertainment, like the stage in the expo. This year, we've brought in the Golden Dragons Chinese Acrobat Team.

OMC: Is it important to find the right balance between old standbys and new offerings?

RP: Definitely. It's the same thing we talk about every year; you don't want to change it too much. There is the cream puff, giant slide and the Sky Glider. But once you've gone through your mental checklist, now there's something new to experience.

OMC: It does look like this year's changes have been minimal, compared to some of the things that have happened in years past.

RP: We've done some major changes in previous years, including some changes to traffic patterns. But this year, our approach was more to let some of those changes take hold or settle a bit without doing any more big changes. For our staff, with the limited resources we have, our vendors and other partners who have been with us through the years, we just can't continue to move and move and move. At some point, you have to let things get set and take root. We never make a change for the sake of making a change.

OMC: So that said, what are some of the changes that have been made?

RP: Our plan is to look at traffic flow and we did that with the Big Backyard. The streets there now match our permanent, year-round streets. The traffic flow is good; we've got the new Fiesta Village. It's one of those areas where there aren't many permanent buildings, so you can take some liberties and move things around a little bit.

OMC: The fair, unlike a lot of summertime events, is built more around participation. Be it the pies or cheese or sewing contests ... what have you; how do you get the message out that this is, in fact, "the people's fair," and it's all about participation, especially in the urban community?

RP: It's one step at a time. Every time I do a speaking engagement, I kind of end by saying that, whether you live on a farm or in a Downtown Milwaukee condo, the magic of the fair is that everybody can be a part of it. We've tried to get that message out as much as we can, especially in the city. We want the OnMilwaukee.com readers to enter these contests along with the little old lady and the FFA kids from upstate. There is something for everybody and we're trying to reach out, be it through interviews, advertising and the Web.

OMC: At the very root, it's still the State Fair. The basics won't change.

RP: Whatever we've had to do, has worked. Take away all the adjustments and the fair is still the fair. Programming has changed over the years; we've tweaked different things here and there. But the core elements of the fair: the competitions, the animals, and the food ... that's stayed the same. Have we updated? Do we adjust to the times? Of course, but we know that the core of the fair will remain the same.

OMC: One of the "new things" at the fair this year that's gotten a lot of attention is another "on-a-stick-offering," the mac & cheese on a stick. Level with us, how is it?

RP: I saw it last night. They look like little mac and cheese dumplings, fried and with a stick in them. The people that I've talked to say that they're similar to a cheese curd. I haven't had one yet, but it'll happen soon. This is my fourth fair, and I still walk by a vendor that I haven't eaten at. I'm working on it. I'm a consumer, I pay for my food. When I'm buying my food, I know that I'm going to get to my usual favorites.

OMC: A big focus, no matter what the event or attraction is, is "going green." How is State Fair making the effort?

RP: We were the first festival of any size in Wisconsin to be certified by Travel Green Wisconsin. We're proud of that. When the program was launched, we were already doing half of the things necessary to get certified. We recycle. We pair up our trash cans with bottle recycling bins. We work with vendors to keep cardboard out of the trash. Last year, we had roughly 40 tons of recycled waste. We've outfitted a number of buildings with new, high-efficiency and low output lighting. Buildings are brighter and drawing less power. We've been doing a lot of these things anyway, but when the state program came along, we jumped at the chance.

OMC: Cleanliness is something not always easy to attain at a State Fair, considering the amount of food and drink sold here, and the obvious leftovers from the various animals.

RP: In all of our staff orientations, I remind workers that, at the very heart of things, we're all garbage collectors. If the grounds department or fairgoers see the executive director picking up trash, that's a good example to set.

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