WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — It's the first weekend of the South Florida Fair, an annual event that brings out big crowds and, sometimes, big traffic problems.
The popular event made some big changes this year to accommodate the crowds and improve the fair experience.
“Coming in this year, it was really good, like there was zero traffic,” Asher Lubow, who visited the fair Saturday, said.
Visitors say it was a far cry from last year's parking nightmares.
“Last year, it was pretty long," Lubow said. "You had to wait like an hour in the car."
Fair officials say there shouldn’t be a problem this year thanks to over 1,000 additional parking spaces.
“We were also able to find some off-site lots, and we took a lot of the equipment that was using up parking spaces and we moved it to the off-site lot to make more available parking,” Matt Wallsmith, president and CEO of the South Florida Fair, said.
People will also be able to shuttle to and from the fair for free at Kings Academy on select days, and from Palm Beach Central High School on weekends.
Wallsmith, who came on board as president and CEO in June, said parking is a priority for him.
"We’ve got a lot of people coming so we’re doing our best to try to get in there," Wallsmith said. "We’ve got some traffic engineers looking at it and we’re doing some studies this year.”
Their other focus has been on security. The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office has a command center on-site to ensure the community’s safety.
“Younger kids can get a little rowdy without supervision, so I think that’s probably the best thing to do,” fair visitor Jason Hartel said.
The fair also brought back its minors policy on Fridays and Saturdays. After 7 p.m., anyone under 18 must be with an adult 21 or older.
“I think it’s fair, because a lot of kids can get hurt and fights can break out,” Lubow said.
