Public support key to Exhibition trade centre, SACPA told

Could a “no” vote in Calgary bring a “yes” for Lethbridge?

That was one of the possibilities raised Monday during discussion of plans for a modern 250,000-square-foot trade and display centre at Exhibition Park.

Design plans for the longmooted facility are being developed, general manager Rudy Friesen reported, during a special session of the Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs. So now it’s time for members of the public to step up in support of the plan, he said.

For many years, participants pointed out, Lethbridge has been losing out on conferences and trade shows, for lack of suitable space.

The first-phase price tag is $60 million, Friesen said, and the city has promised $20 million if the two higher levels of government grant the same. With Calgary voters walking away from a $700-million Winter Olympics grant pledge from the province, Friesen was asked if $20 million of that could kick off the Exhibition Park update.

“This is an investment in southern Alberta,” he responded, without speculating on the future of the no-longercommitted cash.

“This is not a cost centre,” Friesen said, because Exhibition Park pays its own way, without operating funds from city taxpayers.

Michael Wuchterl, the organization’s marketing and sales supervisor, outlined the many events currently held in the existing buildings — one of them 92 years old.

“Now we’re at a crossroads,” he said, with people wanting more events, more exhibition areas — and much more space for conference break-out sessions or client meeting rooms for exhibitors.

Forward-looking plans also include better access and parking areas, he said, taking pressure off residential parking.

The proposed trade centre, to be built on a former campground site with windows facing Henderson Park, would separate display transport trucks from visitor vehicle and pedestrian access.

Nearby, he pointed out, a large landscaped area would provide a venue for variety of events year-round.

Responding to questions, Friesen pointed to events lost to Lethbridge — including the annual Canadian Chambers of Commerce convention — due to inadequate facilities.

Longtime alderman and MLA Bridget Pastoor recounted a battle she lost, back in 2000, to bring a provincial conference here.

There’s been little progress since then.

“I think it’s time for the city to get with the program,” she said.

The future of Alberta’s horse racing industry remains uncertain, Friesen told another questioner. The Rocky Mountain Turf Club has leased Exhibition Park’s racing facilities since 1997, he said, and hopes to continue.

But the industry seems to be consolidating its operations to the strip between Calgary and Edmonton, he noted.

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