The conversation about splitting the Lethbridge and District Exhibition into two components is set to go forward to Lethbridge City Council at the end of the month for discussion.
The idea of separating the LDE into two distinct entities that focus specifically on either agriculture promotion or the operation of the trade centre facility and event production that is currently being provided by the LDE during Thursdays Economic Standing Policy Committee. Members of the consulting firm Deloitte and city administration made the presentation that laid out the governance options that would rework the LDE’s functions and better serve the community.
Lethbridge’s Chief Financial Officer Darrell Matthews says if council chooses to move forward with splitting LDE into the Lethbridge and District Agriculture Society and a the Municipality Controlled Corporation EcentCo, which is a working name of the yet to be named temporary holding company, it will realign with parts of the province’s Agriculture Society Act and also AGLC requirements.
“There’s approximately about $550,000 per year of funding that comes through gaming and the grants from the province. Those fundings would go to the Lethbridge and District Agricultural Society, so they can actually put on the agricultural events and so forth and education through the agriculture community,” Matthews says. “The current structure we have with the city where it’s still a single shareholder doesn’t meet the long-term requirements of AGLC and the Ag Society Act. So really what it means by that is we weren’t getting the funds. We are working with the province to continue to get those funding longer term, they’ve set deadlines for AGLC that as August 31st of 2025 we have it back in compliance with the Act.”
He adds the approximate $550,000 in funding that could come from grants and gaming money would be a base budget for the agriculture society, with additional funding that could come from fundraising or other events.
Matthews says the best way to describe what EventCo is all the buildings and anything that if you turned the facility upside down it will fall out. As well according to the city EventCo will employ all current LDE staff and “allow the organization to operate the trade centre facility in the most sustainable and cost-efficient way possible, without needing to meet the criteria of an Ag Society.”
For an event such as Whoop Up Days Matthews says it would be a joint event between the two organizations with the pieces that have an agricultural component being put on by the Ag Society, and the event being put on and operated by the EventCo organization.
If council approves separating into the two organizations than Matthews says it will also allow for more diverse events to be held at the facility because the focus will not being on hosting or putting on primarily agriculture focused events.
The city’s CFO says if council chooses to move forward with this plan then the long term plan is for both groups to become self sustainable without needing city funding. However, he says that will take a number of years to achieve and this would be one of the first steps to bring that reality to fruition.
“It’s de risking on both sides and focusing both sides on what they both do well and of course, then from there, hopefully that you know that will continue to translate into that the lower cost for the city taxpayers.”
The discussion is set to go to city council on May 27th.
