WILLIAMSBURG — The Catharine Township board decided Thursday night to “put some thought” into allowing the Williamsburg Farm Show to build a tractor pull over the Horse Show Club horse rink after listening to an hour-long exchange between the two groups.

After board deliberation, the board will “see what we can come up with,” Chairman Kenny Brenneman said.

The decision follows the farm show board’s agreement to disband the horse show club in December, voting to replace the horse rink with a tractor pull.

During a farm show board meeting Jan. 2, where many horse show club supporters raised concerns, the board remained definite in its decision, closing the public portion of the meeting and asking visitors to leave the farm show building.

Horse show club supporters then decided to raise concerns during the Catharine Township meeting, where approving the farm show event track plan was listed on the agenda.

Farm show board President Jeff Walason, secretary Angelique Walason and Bill Stotler Sr. were present at Thursday’s meeting.

Supporter Erin Fagans said the club wants to “put something in place of or in conjunction with” a proposed plan, adding that they are “more than willing to compromise” on plans.

She asked the board to “carefully review” the farm show’s proposed plan for environmental impact, community impact and proper oversight before “irreversible actions are taken.”

“Once this beautiful piece of property would be demolished, all the grass ripped tracks put in, that’s permanent,” she said. If the tractor pull lasts “a year or two and peter(s) out, that’s what’s going to be there.”

As the nearest horse shows will be two hours away from Williamsburg, she said they want to cooperate to “preserve this (the ring) for our children and our children’s children.”

Horse show club committee chair Melissa Coleman said many successful equestrians started at the farm show ring, including a young woman who won her class division at a competition hosted at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Florida.

“That’s why we’re here,” she said. “That’s why we’re trying so hard to preserve that venue because so many people have been shaped and molded out of that venue.”

Attaining the lease from a Right-to-Know request, she asked if the Catharine Township board had “anything in writing” from the farm show about subletting Catharine Township barns.

Brenneman couldn’t recall a written agreement, so Coleman said the farm show is “in violation of that (the lease) because they’re keeping items in those barns for winter storage,” such as campers, and collecting money.

According to horse show club leader Bobbi Gearhart, the farm show is not allowed to sublet leased grounds.

Later in the meeting, solicitor Nathan Karn said the farm show has 30 days to cure the violation of the 1997 lease.

Floor discussion

Jeff Walason said the horse club show was a “committee on the farm show. This was not a separate organization.”

He said the farm show stands by its original statement released at the board meeting on Jan 2., which stated that the farm show owns horse show club equipment and that the club violated the farm show’s request to keep their disbanding quiet.

Two horse show club members were on the farm show board, but Walason said they were removed because “they weren’t showing up for meetings.”

Coleman said she has a statement from Walaso, informing the horse show club that they didn’t have to be present at every meeting, as some horse show club representatives were working during board meetings, while another was injured.

Farm show board members and horse show club supporters then began a tense conversation at Thursday’s meeting concerning logistics before and after the club’s disbanding. Brenneman determined there was a communication issue between both parties, asking them to resolve their issues first before coming to a property decision.

Walason said the farm show board is “beyond that point” of reconciliation.

The discussion continued to escalate and began to grow “ridiculous,” Karn said, as farm show board members and supporters continued to argue. He later asked the Catharine Township board to settle the ongoing debate.

After the meeting, Gearhart said the club hopes the township “doesn’t pull the ring, allow them to bulldoze 30 years’ worth of memories.”

“That ring’s been here for 30 years,” Coleman said. “I don’t care if I’m running it or who runs it. Just don’t bulldoze it out.”

Mirror Staff Writer Colette Costlow is at 814-946-7414.