Planning Commission Chair Kari Birdseye is a new member of the Solano County Fair Association’s Board of Directors. (Courtesy photo)

Planning Commission Chair Kari Birdseye was recently appointed to the Solano County Fair Association’s Board of Directors.
The announcement came in a press release which revealed Solano County Supervisor Monica Brown’s appointment of Birdseye to the board.
“Kari will do a great job for District 2 on the Fair Board of Directors just like she has done a great job on the Benicia Planning Commission,” Brown said in a statement.
Birdseye said she is happy and honored to be serving on the Board of Directors and has already gotten to work. Her first responsibility on the job was a vote to approve a contract with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to allow six acres of the Fairgrounds’ land to be used as temporary housing for those affected by the Wine Country fires that burned areas of Napa and Sonoma counties in October. Other responsibilities Birdseye will have during her four-year term includes managing and organizing the Solano County Fair and deciding how the Fairgrounds will be used during the offseason. The new board director says she has a lot to learn about her new responsibilities but looks forward to the opportunity.
“I hope to learn from the other directors as well as to the best of my abilities represent District 2, the communities of Benicia and part of Vallejo, and make the fairgrounds the best they can be, ” Birdseye said “The fair only happens one week a year, so the rest of the year the grounds should be utilized to serve the community.”
Born in Oakland, Birdseye grew up in the Sierra Foothills. She went to college in San Francisco, earning a bachelor’s and master’s degree in the process. Birdseye worked at CNN for 11 years, and said while living in Atlanta was a great experience she considers California her home. She served on Benicia’s Human Services Board from 2013 to 2015 before being appointed to the Planning Commission. She took over the chair position from Donald Dean earlier this year.
“I feel like it’s a great way for me to serve but also learn what’s going on in our community and help spread the good news and talk about the issues that need to be addressed locally,” Birdseye said of the Planning Commission. “Right now, I feel like Benicia has so many good things going on that even if folks are baffled or worried about what’s going on at the federal level, we have so much to be thankful for locally with our city government and what the city does for our residents.”

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