‘We’re History,’ Say Organizers of Agoura Renaissance Fair : Festivals: The debt-ridden Dragonwood corporation cancels the spring event at Paramount Ranch. It cites the weak economy and a low turnout in 1991.

Citing the foundering economy and a $40,000 debt, the March Dragonwood Spring Faire ’92 has been canceled by officials of the sponsoring organization.

The news will probably disappoint the devotees of the Renaissance-themed festival that drew an eclectic, often historically costumed group to its spring and fall festivals held at Paramount Ranch in Agoura for the past two years.

“The Dragonwood corporation has not been able to raise the money to continue operations and meet leftover debt from past events,” said Jon Martin, president of Dragonwood Inc. “We’re history.”

The nonprofit group, which has been in operation for five years, is expected to file a petition to dissolve the corporation in Superior Court in Van Nuys on Monday.

Martin said the board voted to dissolve the corporation when profits plummeted at the last event and no financial savior, such as a corporate sponsor, appeared on the horizon.

“Although we were able to pay our upfront costs by selling space at the November event to vendors, the event drew only 6,500 people--half of what we expected--so we were unable to pay staff and some outside contractors,” Martin said.

He said the board was discouraged by the drop in attendance and revenue because it occurred in spite of a stepped-up advertising and public relations campaign.

The Dragonwood events were held at the Paramount Ranch, which for 25 years was the site of the Renaissance Pleasure Faire until it was forced out to make room for a housing development, which was never built.

Martin added that the fair’s board members decided last week not to proceed with preparations for the March event because “it wouldn’t be honest to take vendor money for space at the upcoming event, when we were uncertain we were even going to be able to present it.”

Dragonwood Inc. began in 1987 as a “group of ordinary people attempting to do the extraordinary,” corporation spokesman Craig Bennett said.

The plan of Dragonwood Inc., Bennett said, was to create fantasy-participation, charity-funding fairs throughout Southern California.

The ultimate plan was to build a permanent year-round fair site in the area that would be home to medievalists and those in the Southern California fantasy culture, he added.

“It’s not going to happen,” Martin said.