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SPENCER — Town officials want to work collaboratively to alleviate parking constraints and better manage traffic flow for this year’s Spencer Fair weekend.
Police Chief Michael Befford and Fire Chief Robert Parsons appeared before the Board of Selectmen on May 4 to start the conversation about how to handle the difficulties that have plagued the town, especially since the event has surged in popularity.
“We know we don’t have the infrastructure down there to take the amount of cars that come through,” said Befford. The task at hand, he said, is to come up with the “best game plan,” not only for fairgoers but also the neighborhood near the fairgrounds.
Parsons noted they tried a different traffic pattern last year but it had to be quickly abandoned, largely because motorists using GPS navigation were sent to Smithfield Crossroad and other routes and then tried to turn around, causing gridlock.
He noted attendance at the Spencer Fair has grown significantly, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic.
With so many attendees, Selectman Ralph Hicks said it is doubtful the traffic problem can be resolved.
“I’m afraid no matter where you try to bring the traffic in, there’s going to be congestion,” Hicks said. “This isn’t like Disney World where it was planned to have all these cars going to one place at the same time.”
Befford said that representatives from Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) would be in Spencer on May 5 to evaluate potential solutions using traffic-modeling software.
Lack of parking at the fairgrounds is another huge issue.
Parsons said without additional parking with three lanes going to it, the situation would persist.
He said finding satellite parking somewhere and bringing fairgoers in by shuttle bus could be a possibility, but then liability and insurance came into play.
“We’ve been looking at this for 25 years and with the attendance going up every year, it gets harder and harder,” Parsons said.
Selectman Gary Woodbury suggested putting sign boards out indicating when lots are full. However, Parsons noted that fairgoers will still try to get in the lots, hoping a car will pull out and open up space.
Selectmen Vice Chair Jonathan Viner said there had be a conversation with the fair owners, even if it meant putting “some manner of restriction,” in place “for this to work.”
“As a town, we have to come to a consensus on what this is and just understand that before we communicate,” Viner said.
Looking for more parking areas to address capacity issues would be a start.
Viner said, “I’m not crazy about the idea of recognizing that we have a problem and then just going through the motions all over again – dealing with the same result.”
Woodbury noted the first parking lot on the right holds a lot of cars “if they are parked right.”
Parsons said in the past, boy scouts directed cars into straight rows and they did it for free.
Spencer Fair last year hired different people to direct cars into parking spaces.
Befford said, after the fact, they learned those people did not arrive until 11 a.m. “When they got there, people were parked sideways, crossways and losing 10% of the parking (capacity)…Something has to give.”
Hicks said the individuals organizing cars in the parking lots should start first thing in the morning, even if it is not busy, to make sure motorists park “in the correct way.”
Parsons said for the Spencer Fair organization, that would be a financial issue.
Hicks replied that they would not need as many people before 11 a.m., but it would start the process more efficiently.
The fire chief said some attendees were turned away during last year’s demolition derby because of capacity constraints, leading to “a lot of very unhappy people.”
“It’s just hard. It’s a very small location and all roads lead to the fair and they are all two-lane roads,” added Parsons.
Hicks suggested shuttle service from David Prouty High School might be a possibility, because there should be about 100 spaces there.
“It is the only place (I can think of) with a decent number of spaces,” Hicks said.
Parsons said getting people to use spaces outside of the fairgrounds may be tricky. Many fairgoers would not want to wait in lines for shuttle buses at the end of their visit, “when kids are tired.”
Town Administrator Jeff Bridges said the next step is to meet with fair representatives and come back in June with a status update.
Added the police chief, “We’ll meet with the fair as well and come in collectively with a game plan.”
The Spencer Fair will run from Sept. 4-7.
