The Prince George Horse Society will have to wait to find out whether they will continue to be saddled with utility fees.
During Monday night's meeting, society president Melony Forster made the request to city council for three years of relief from the monthly bills to help the group stay afloat.
"We're currently solvent, but we're facing some challenges," said Forster. Those challenges include a 400 per cent increase to the wood shavings used for bedding - over the past five years it has gone from $120 to $650 per load - and yearly increases to city utility fees. The non-profit society consists of 11 member organizations who collectively operate the Agriplex at Exhibition Park though five-year lease agreements.
That lease, paid to the city, is $1,000 per year.
The utility bills make up about 25 per cent of the society's budget, said Forster - about $3,800 per month.
City council voted Monday night to forward the society's request to staff to examine whether accommodating them was feasible.
Since 1996, the group says it has added $300,000 in value to the facility through capital projects such as outdoor arena revitalization, repainting and updating the indoor arena and creating an awards garden.
Forster said they have already increased user fees by 15 per cent and has pursued grants, though they were found to be ineligible for a provincial gaming grant.
According to the society, granting the respite from utility fees would allow them to prep the facility for the city's 2020 B.C. Summer Games bid as well as allow them to address long-term maintenance requirements.
Volunteers recently put in about 600 hours worth of work to repaint the indoor arena.
"We're the caretakers of this facility," said Forster.
