The Minnesota State Fair is Ending Popular Program

The Minnesota State Fair Foundation announced that 2024 will be the final year of a popular program that has gotten too big to continue.

For many years, the fountain has been raising money by selling Recognition Benches and Tables and placing them around the fair grounds during the yearly event, these tables and benches are customized with names or sayings and come with an attached plaque recognizing the reason for the bench.

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The final remaining benches and tables are available on a first-come, first-served basis. The foundation says, "We are almost certain to reach our limit before our typical deadline later this spring, so we encourage you to place your order as soon as possible."

When asked for a reason for sunsetting the popular program, the foundation said that indoor storage space is near capacity and the logistics and resources needed to move the tables and benches each year is becoming too much for the current program to continue.

Over the years that the program has been active, nearly 2,500 tables and benches have been placed around the fair grounds, providing thousands of places to set and rest for fair goers.

If you'd like to take advantage of the program before it's gone, you'll need to make a $2500 contribution for a personalized bench and $5000 for a table. Benches are placed in one of four zones around the fair, and tables are placed in three of the zones.

The fountain says about the future of the program, "Currently, there are no plans to bring this particular program back, as we have fulfilled the State Fair’s need for this type of seating on the fairgrounds. There may be other recognition seating opportunities in the future as improvements to the fairgrounds continue."