BS Summary: This article contains 26 faulty reasoning types, including Optimism Bias, Self-Serving Bias, and Biased Writer Voice, with Negativity Bias as the most egregious example at 10.5% saturation with 133 hits. Analysis detected 1,489 faulty-reasoning hits from 1,268 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 44.6% and a BS Rank of 39% (10,575 of 17,282 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 61.20% of the article peer group.
It’s been a whirlwind of a year so far for the Del Mar Fairgrounds.
A few months ago, the 22nd District Agricultural Association, which is the state-appointed board that runs the Fairgrounds, fired its former CEO Carlene Moore with no explanation.
The announcement came as a surprise, but after doing some digging, I got a clearer picture of some of the circumstances that likely contributed to her termination – including multiple lawsuits that accused Moore of a slew of things, as well as a fraught relationship with the board that seems to have been rocky for a long time.
Cue Rebecca “Becky” Bartling, who retired in December 2024 from the Sonoma County Fairgrounds, where she was CEO for nine years.
Before that, she worked at the Del Mar Fairgrounds from 1994 to 2015.
Board members appointed Bartling to be CEO until at least September 2027, when the board will likely do a nationwide search for a long-term CEO.
She and I had a conversation about her return to the Fairgrounds, her plans for its future and one program she’s already working on bringing back.
I edited our conversation for length and clarity.
On Her Return to Del Mar
Q: You spent about two decades working at the Del Mar Fairgrounds earlier in your career.
What drew you back to the organization to take on the CEO role at this specific time, especially after being retired?
BB: I was happy to come back and help the Fairgrounds when I knew they had let their previous manager go.
I had a phone call requesting that I come down, I spent some time with the board, and here I am.
Anytime you lose a CEO, there is a lot of transition and concern among the staff about where we are going.
I was happy to come down and help them through that transition period.
Q: And how has the transition been for you since you stepped back into this role?
BB: It’s really been seamless, to be quite honest with you.
I was here for 22 years before I left, and many of the same team members are here that I worked with before.
Q: Looking ahead, what is your strategy for fostering morale and a sense of trust among staff who may have felt differently under past leadership?
BB: I’ve always been the type of manager that doesn’t micromanage.
I think you hire people to do their job, and you let them do it.
I’m encouraging folks to excel in their positions, and I’m here to help them in any way I possibly can.
I really want to move forward by providing them with the ability to grow in their positions.
There is a great team here, so my effort will be to grow the team in their ability to excel.
On Stewardship and Community
Q: How do you balance being a collaborative neighbor to the surrounding cities with your responsibility to protect the Fairgrounds’ operations and assets?
BB: It is important to me to be a good neighbor.
We are in the city of Del Mar and we are a very close neighbor to Solana Beach.
At the same time, we are stewards of this property for the state of California, and that is our number one goal.
It can sometimes be a challenging proposition to try to make everybody happy, but my past working with both cities has been collaborative.
I believe I’ve developed a good relationship with both city managers in my short time back, and I look forward to working with them.
Q: For our readers who may be unfamiliar with the dynamic, what is the relationship between the Fairgrounds and the State of California?
BB: We are an Agricultural District, which is a state agency under the auspices of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, or CDFA.
They are the state agency that oversees all Ag Districts.
We work very closely with them on various things; they provide guidance and oversee our operations.
Each year, we are required to submit a “Stop Report” (Statement of Operations), which details our finances.
If a fair identifies certain financial challenges, the CDFA steps in to assist.
On Future Plans and “The First 50”
Q: Looking at your time back, is there anything that has changed since you were here before?
BB: Internally, technology has really changed.
We are using tools that are different from when I was here last.
As far as the Fairgrounds, we are still operating in the same mode, but we are moving forward with a master site plan effort to talk to the community about what they would like to see for the future of the property.
We hope to start moving forward with that in the next year or so.
Q: Can you talk more about this master site plan?
BB: It’s called Fairgrounds 2050, and it’s a plan we launched last year to help us shape the future of the Fairgrounds, the Surf & Turf Recreation Center and the Del Mar Horsepark.
Basically evaluating what kinds of programs, events, projects, facilities and other things we need to be in place for our long-term success.
Q: There was previously a trained volunteer group called the “First 50” that helped take in and shelter horses and other large animals at the Fairgrounds during emergencies in other parts of the county, like wildfires.
It was disbanded a few years ago, do you have plans to bring that back?
BB: Oh, absolutely.
It was important that we had a good crew of folks schooled in equestrian management because you don’t want people who don’t know how to handle a horse during an evacuation.
I can’t speak to why former management decided to disband that, but I am bringing it back.
Wildfires are now part of our life; I did four wildfire evacuations in Sonoma County in five years when I was up there.
We are such an asset for our community in that respect, and it is important that we have that team.
We are actually starting those conversations now.
Q: Do you see your time at the Fairgrounds as a period of stabilization, or are you hoping to implement long-term initiatives?
BB: Both.
It is important for me that I get the team to a very comfortable and secure place.
As we move forward, we want to excel in our programs; our interim events, weddings, bar mitzvahs, and trade shows.
We have a great facility for it.
We’re also looking at some unique things to do next year during the County Fair.
People should look forward to more fun, creative events, and opportunities for participation here at the Fairgrounds.
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