Prince George Mayor Lyn Hall and his council received a concerned letter from the Nechako Valley Exhibition Fall Fair Committee late last month.
The committee is troubled by a change in dates for the BC Northern Exhibition (BCNE). The BCNE usually takes place on the second weekend in August but in 2016 it will take place on the third weekend. This puts it in conflict with the Nechako Valley Fall Fair.
BCNE President Alex Huber says he and his board had no choice but to change the dates.
“What changed this year for our fair was the midway operator that we hoped to have passed away last fall. The circuit that we had disappeared so the only choice we had was to grab the third weekend of August.”
Huber says the midway represents half of the exhibition’s revenue and running the event without it wasn’t an option. The new dates will remain through 2017 at least, according to Huber. He says the conflict with the Nechako Valley Fall Fair has been resolved as best it can be.
“We did a little bit of give and take. They were especially concerned about the heavy horse pull so we’re only going to have the heavy horse pull until Saturday morning. That will allow the teams to travel to Vanderhoof set up for Saturday night and then have a full day heavy horse pull.”
Vanderhoof Mayor Gerry Theissen says clear communication would have helped to minimize the conflict.
“Our appeal to the people of Prince George is to work with us as surrounding communities. We’ve worked very hard to not interfere in that area but we need that as well for our community.”
According to a letter addressed to Huber and the board or the BCNE, the Nechako Valley Fair committee found out about the new dates “entirely by accident.”
“To us, as a community, when these conflicts come up, it would be great if it was communicated – if the people who were organizing our fair didn’t hear it from other sources but heard it directly,” says Thiessen.
But Huber says the conflict was inevitable as August is a very busy month for fairs and exhibitions.
“It doesn’t really matter where we move it to – we’re going to make somebody unhappy. No matter which weekend I do it, I’m against somebody.”
Both the BC Northern Exhibition and the Nechako Valley Fall Fair will take place August 18 through 21 this year.