Antelope Valley Fair Attendance Dips in ’90

Attendance at the 52nd annual Antelope Valley Fair in Lancaster declined slightly this year after setting a record in 1989, officials said Tuesday.

The 11-day event, which ended Monday, drew 310,961 visitors, a 1% decrease from the previous year’s attendance of 313,000, officials said. General manager Jim Pacini said he was not surprised by the minor slip and called the fair a success.

The area’s construction slowdown has reduced a transient population of construction workers who were among fair patrons last year, he said.

There were 12 arrests at this year’s fair, all of them for minor crimes such as public drunkenness or disorderly conduct, authorities said. Last year, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies arrested 22 people and broke up several violent incidents involving groups of gang members.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Gordon Carn said stepped-up anti-gang patrols helped keep this year’s event calm. The only serious reported crime occurred at about 10:30 p.m. Monday, when a man told authorities he was robbed by a gunman near the rodeo area. Carn said investigators are trying to find witnesses.