In the future, people visiting the Whidbey Island Fairgrounds may need to check in before entering.

During their monthly meeting, Port of South Whidbey commissioners discussed potential liability issues that could arise from use of the port-owned fairgrounds while there are no events happening, such as the annual Whidbey Island Fair.

Commissioner Curt Gordon suggested that the port might want to hold a special meeting on the subject.

“Is it a park? I don’t feel like it’s a park,” he said. “I would at least like to have a discussion around some standards of how open this fairgrounds needs to be at a certain time.”

He added that the port commissioners should decide if it’s a wide-open park or a facility that requires reservations in advance.

“I feel like that could get blurred and people can go through there when we don’t know they’re there and there’s potential liability issues,” he said.

Commissioner Jack Ng suggested that people could sign in, either online or through a QR code that could be scanned by their phones.

Gordon asked that the port staff look at ways to reduce potential liability issues that could arise from the general public accessing the property.

In an email to the South Whidbey Record, Port of South Whidbey Executive Director Stan Reeves said the topic will likely be discussed again when staff has recommendations on how to mitigate risks. He is not sure when that will be.