New leadership

This will mark the last county fair under the leadership of Dolly Hughes. She plans to retire next summer after 10 years on the job. Hughes, 67, oversaw the fair and expo center through much of a decade-long expansion project that nearly doubled expo center space. Rich Hartzell, former events coordinator for the expo center, was named this summer as assistant fair and expo director. County Commissioner Mark Richard said commissioners will evaluate Hartzell for the top spot based on his performance in the coming months, but he is not a shoo-in to replace Hughes.