Lethbridge & District Exhibition short millions of dollars, unclaimed management expenses: report [Video]

Unclaimed management expenses, unsupported strategic plan targets and inconsistent project budgets are believed to be leading factors behind the Lethbridge & District Exhibition’s (LDE) financial troubles, according to a newly released report.

The third-party review, conducted by Deloitte Canada, was shared during Tuesday’s economic and finance standing policy committee meeting.

“We are alarmed and incredibly concerned with Deloitte’s findings and what appears to be significant level of mismanagement,” said Mayor Blaine Hyggen, following the meeting.

The review revealed significant issues across five key areas: strategy and planning, project execution, governance, use of funds and council communication by LDE throughout this project process.

Through the findings, the report suggests that strategic plan targets used to support the funding of the Agri-food Hub and Trade Centre were not aligned with historical results of LDE, comparable organizations or other reasonable support.

The strategic plan targets contemplated by LDE were not supported by actionable …