Crow Wing County Fair To Remain A Dry Fair

BRAINERD, Minn. (AP) -- Visitors to this year's Crow Wing County Fair will have to go elsewhere to get a beer.

The Oak Lawn Township Board has voted unanimously to keep the fair dry.

After listening to several residents at a packed town hall meeting Tuesday night, the board denied a request to give the Crow Wing County Fair Board a beer license.

Fair manager Steve Hesse says fair sponsorships have been declining because of the recession, and selling beer at the fair would help bring in money.

The proposed beer garden would serve only beer and would be fully enclosed, with only one entrance and an exit.

But the Brainerd Dispatch reports opponents raised concerns about drunken driving and keeping the fair a family event.

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