City looking at taking over event planning

By Lethbridge Herald on May 8, 2025.

Al Beeber
Lethbridge Herald

The groundwork is being laid to create a municipally-controlled non-profit corporation to consolidate event management in Lethbridge.

The Economic and Finance Standing Policy Committee of city council today will be given updates on the third phase of the third-party review of the Lethbridge and District Exhibition.

Presentations will be made to the SPC by the City’s Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Darrell Mathews, LDE Acting CEO Kim Gallucci and Darren Liviniuk, a partner in Deloitte LLP.

The third phase of the review will involve legal frameworks, budgeting and strategic planning for the approval of council whose members also act as the Economic and Finance SPC.

The SPC will be asked to recommend council approve the review to create the corporation to manage the risk and operate the Exhibition grounds for the benefit of the LDE as well as the City itself.

It will also be asked to recommend council to approve recommendations to “reorganize and refocus the LDE on its core business and restore  the governance shareholdings, and share structure of the Exhibition ro  such extent as is reasonable and practical in the circumstances  outlined in the Memorandum of Understanding between the City and LDE.”

The SPC will also be asked to direct Administration to provide further updates on the municipally controlled corporation development  including the City controlled temporary holding company which has a  working name of EventCo.

A report to the SPC says development of a business plan implementation  plan and the budget development of a MCC to consolidate event  attraction requires external legal and consultant expertise which will  be funded through the existing operating budget.

Work that needs to be done on the MCC by the City and LDE administration includes:

Develop and create the necessary legal and governance structures for  the creation of the MCC temporary holding company (EventCo).

* Developing the draft Lethbridge & District Agricultural Society  governance structure obligations in relation to the Alberta Gaming,  Liquor, and Cannabis requirements.

* Process and timing of implementing the LDAS governance structure  with the AGLC Charitable Gaming Policies requirements by Aug. 31.

Prior to the City taking control of the LDE in December of 2023, that  organization was governed by a board of directors who were elected by  community-based shareholders, says a report to be presented today by Deloitte.

Deloitte recommend a new model in which the City would consolidate some activities under a new event attraction agency and the LDE would put a greater focus on agricultural events.

The Deloitte report says this would ensure signature Exhibition events would continue and enable it to focus on agriculture and community  engagement while maximizing the lifespan, availability and use of the  Agri-Food Hub and Trade Centre. And the new model would ensure the LDE is sustainable in the long-term.

A report by the City being presented today says the LDE must be structured and delivering programs in compliance with provincial charitable gaming policies by Aug. 31. Core requirements by the AGLC  for an ag society include a minimum of 25 voting shareholders should should live in the community and respective district, a board of directors established from those shareholders and the entity must be  incorporated as a not-for-profit society or under an ag society.

A proposed strategy calls for the LDE to transition to the Lethbridge and District Agricultural Society which was its original name in 1897 “with an emphasis on a restructured shareholder model, exclusive membership program, strategic government framework and operational partnership with the EventCo,” says a report by Gallucci.

Under the proposed shareholder structure, individual shares will be  sold for $50 and no corporate shares will be issued. Shares will be  non-transferable and individuals will not be allowed to hold more than one. They will not be entitled to receive dividends on any share  issued by LDAS.

Shareholders will be required to be at least 18 years of age and their primary residency being Alberta where they must reside for at least six months in the calendar year preceding the year a share is allotted.

Fifty or more shares will be needed to establish a board of directors  which will have no fewer than seven, and no more than nine, members.

No elected officials will be allowed to serve on the board and no LDE board members who served prior to Feb. 7, 2024 will be eligible to  serve for its first five years.

A report by Deloitte presented to council last November pointed out numerous issues with the organization under previous LDE management.

Highlights included:

* Strategic planning activities undertaken were not robust enough to  support the major investment in LDE.

* Capital project delivery and execution did not align with common  practice for a project of this size.

* Effective governance structures were not in place to provide  oversight throughout this development.

* LDE incurred expenses that were not allowable under policies or good value.