When it comes to the future of the Meadow Lake Stampede, Meadow Lake city council said the door remains open for discussion. During the regular meeting of Meadow Lake city council held Monday (May 27), a letter was received from area resident Carmen Ogilvie in which she expressed her concerns about whether or not certain events will be able to take place at the Co-op Centre – the new arena and recreation centre currently under construction on the city’s east side – once the building is completed.
“I am writing to ask if city council has any information regarding the use of dirt in the new arena,” Ogilvie’s letter reads. “lt has been circulating around town dirt will not be able to be used in the new arena due to air filtration concerns. This concerns me, as, if this is indeed true, two of the longest standing community events will be drastically affected – the rodeo and the District 36 4H Beef Show and Sale.” For the past three years, Ogilvie continued, these two organizations have scrambled from location to location in order to keep their respective events going.
“The loss of the Stampede Grounds has now added yet another ‘nail in the coffin’ effectively ending even hope of having outdoor events and absolutely eliminating the chance of having chuckwagon racing, another longstanding community event,” Ogilvie noted. “Repeated attempts by the Stampede Association to get an actual dollar figure from the city it will commit to a different location for the Stampede Grounds has been met with stonewalling to put it nicely. I am asking the city check with the supplier of the air filtration system and officially confirm the system being installed will be sufficient for dirt to be used in the new arena. This will effectively stop any more misinformation from circulating. If it is not going to be sufficient, I believe city council should look into a system that will be.” Ogilvie’s letter also addressed potential high costs to rent to the arena. “Regarding the matter of rent being too expensive, I understand no rates have been set yet but surely the city will take into consideration the facility is not truly a community facility benefitting the whole community if community organizations can’t afford to use it,” she wrote. “What about the Lions Bingo and Ag Safety Day? These are important community events that took place for years in the old arena and would benefit from being able to again host their events in the new one. The new arena is much needed in the community and comes with a hefty price tag already. I understand that, but to have a facility that excludes two of the longest held community events is just not right. If the city wants the support of the whole community for the arena, the whole community must benefit from it, not just part of it.”
When discussing Ogilvie’s concerns, councillor Marty Bishop said he agrees with the fact a number of organizations have suffered since the old arena burned down. “But, I don’t think we have ever come to a decision we weren’t going to look into keeping both those organizations (Stampede Association and 4H club) and helping them,” he said. “If that means taking a hard look at what it means to have the shows in the arena that use a dirt floor, we should take a good look at what we need to do to make that happen and what kind of price tag goes along with that. I don’t want to give them the feeling we’re not willing to work with them.”
Bishop, however, did find concern in Ogilvie’s use of the word “stonewalling” when it comes to the city’s commitment to a new Stampede Grounds. “I don’t think we ever said we wouldn’t provide financing (for such a project),” Bishop said. “What we found was they never really came with a plan or with a whole contingency that truly represented all the potential user groups. If they’re asking, they should come with a concrete plan… There needs to be greater communication between that entity and us in order to move forward on something like that. But, I’m glad she (Ogilvie) brought it up because it does get some correspondence going between us and the people who will be using the facility.”
Mayor Merlin Seymour reminded his peers the Stampede Association and representatives from the world of chuckwagon racing did approach council in recent years with proposals to build a new grounds at potential locations just outside the city. This was confirmed by city manager Diana Burton. “We did not deny a funding request,” Burton said. “We said to bring us proof of broad community support, bring us proof you have some other financing locked down and we would consider it, but they didn’t do that. The conversation did not say we would not provide funding. There were concerns, as councillor Bishop mentioned, as to whether it was just the Stampede or if it was the Stampede and the chuckwagons… I don’t believe a denial of funding was ever given and I’m not aware of them receiving any funding from other organizations.”
Councillor Mauri Young, meanwhile, reminded council of what the city requested following the May 9, 2022 presentation by the Meadow Lake Stampede Association that proposed three potential locations for a new Stampede Grounds. “One requirement from us was any proposal must be accompanied by letters of support from all relevant participating factors and associations including and at a minimum chuckwagons, barrel racing, bull riding and roping,” Young stated. “None of that was provided and, therefore, we couldn’t support it. They didn’t provide that information, and they were given time and guidance from that letter. We couldn’t do anything and nothing has been asked for since.” Burton also said council has yet to discuss rental fees of any sort when it comes to the new arena. “We haven’t guaranteed anybody a certain hourly rate or anything like that,” she said. “Clarifying that with the letter writer would be good, while also saying the city is still open to considering (a new Stampede Grounds location), but here is what happened from our perspective. We haven’t received any further requests.”
As for Ogilvie’s concerns about the air filtration system in the new area, Bishop said the city must do its due diligence and look into whether or not what is planned will be suitable or what must be done to make it work. “We do have a large demographic when it comes to the folks involved with the Stampede and with 4H,” Bishop said. “It’s something we need to look at more closely to see what we need to do to make it happen.”
Councillor Clay DeBray also said its important to do something considering the city took the Stampede Grounds away. “I know we are waiting for them to give us their request, but we need to provide some sort of compensation,” DeBray. “When we took away the Stampede Grounds and chuckwagon track, it took something out of Meadow Lake and, right now, they are holding their events at Bear Creek. It’s still local, but, when we take something away, we should be willing to compensate so they can get it back. Even if we step up and ask them what their request is, we can actually get down to the nitty gritty on all of this.” Bishop echoed this. “Once you pull something out of the community that is very important to a large demographic, you need to work hard to compensate for that and bring that back,” he said