Photo courtesy of the North Okanagan Minor Lacrosse Association / Facebook

By Liam Verster

City council

Bid submitted to host lacrosse provincials in Vernon, arena already booked

Nov 5, 2023 | 2:00 PM

A plan to bring a lacrosse championship event to Vernon is facing issues with not having a venue to play in.

A city staff report to Vernon council stated the North Okanagan Minor Lacrosse Association (NOMLA) submitted a bid to host the 2024 U13 provincial lacrosse championships.

The city says the association is now seeking after-the-fact support from the City of Vernon to host the tournament at Kal Tire Place and Kal Tire Place North from July 11 to 14, 2024.

However, Kal Tire Place is currently allocated to private hockey camps during that time, including the anchor tenant, The Training House, and as it’s only eight months until those dates, the organizations have already started to plan and advertise for their 2024 summer programming.

It was noted that changing the ice rink to a rec-turf would require two days for set up and a further five days to acclimate prior to use, making the rinks unusable from July 2 to 16 should the tournament be held in Vernon, which would have some financial impacts.

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“During this time, administration estimates a loss of 120 hours of ice time and revenue loss of $30,000, offset by approximately $6,000 in dry floor revenue from the NOMLA provincials, for a net decrease in revenue of approximately $24,000,” the report stated.

The Priest Valley Arena could be opened as an option for the user groups, though the report said that would require having ice put in two months earlier than usual and would result in an increase expenditure cost to Recreation Services of approximately $20,000. It was stated that while the extra cost could be partially offset with revenue from using the PV Arena after the provincials are over, that figure remained unknown.

The report, by Leah Walker, manager of customer service-recreation, added that user groups wanting to host events are expected to consult the city prior to submitting a bid, allowing the city appropriate time to notify user groups and assist them with finding adequate space so that special events can be held without impacting existing plans.

“The importance of these type events in our community is valued and recognized,” the report stated.

“However, with short notice and lack of consultation with Recreation Services from the beginning of the bid process, other user groups have begun planning their summer 2024 programming and the hosting of this event would cause a large inconvenience and potentially harm their way of doing business.”

Staff is recommending Vernon council not support the bid for the 2024 U13 Lacrosse Provincials, and instead direct staff to work with NOMLA to bid on the 2025 provincial championships.

The matter will be discussed at council’s regular meeting Monday, Nov. 6.