Featured Article (February 2004)

Virginia Horse Center Full Speed Ahead in 2004 in Spite of Budget Difficulties

With over seventy-five events already scheduled and more to be added, 2004 will be a busy year at the Virginia Horse Center in Lexington. In spite of looming budget difficulties, the Horse Center is moving full speed ahead with event bookings and is poised to have its biggest and best year ever.

"From an operations stand point, 2003 was the best year the Virginia Horse Center ever had. Beginning with the Lexington Spring Premiere in April, the Horse Center was the scene of back to back record-breaking shows, including the 2003 East Coast Championship Show, which was the largest horse show ever held at the Horse Center," said Virginia Horse Center Executive Director John F.R. Scott. "This year, with the return of last year’s premier shows and the addition of many large new events, I fully expect 2004 operations to top those of 2003."

"In fact, with many shows booked through 2007, the Virginia Horse Center’s positive outlook reaches far beyond 2004," continued Scott, who noted that even during the past two years in the midst of a statewide economic downturn, the Horse Center’s operating revenues grew by 20 percent.

"The Virginia Horse Center’s success is the result of one of the oldest and most successful public-private partnerships in the Commonwealth of Virginia, one that links the public sector, the private sector, and state and local governments," said Scott, who explained that since the partnership was established twenty years ago, the state appropriated funds to cover the Virginia Horse Center’s capital debt, while the Horse Center secured funds to covers its operating expenses. "In return, the Horse Center annually generates over $30 million in direct tourist spending and at least $3.4 million in state and local tax revenue, a return of three dollars for every one dollar invested by the Commonwealth."

Though the Virginia Horse Center has been a powerful economic engine for the Commonwealth in terms of tax revenues, job growth and direct spending, there have been some years governors have not included money for the Horse Center’s debt in their initial budget proposals.

"Each year, except during the 2001 budget impasse, the General Assembly has funded the Virginia Horse Center’s debt service via the appropriations process according to the original public-private partnership business model," Scott said. "However, last year the legislative money committees only came up with two-thirds of the funding needed to cover the debt and indicated that the state’s financial assistance would be phased out over the next few years."

Governor Mark Warner’s proposed 2004/2005 budget includes the request for $637,000 to cover the Virginia Horse Center’s debt service for the first year of the biennium, an amount that is just over half of what the Horse Center’s debt will be next year. While this is in line with the phase out plan, Scott expressed optimism that the present public-private partnership can be maintained.

"We’re pleased that the governor included partial funding in his proposed budget and we remain hopeful that the state will rethink the phase out plan," he said. "For the past several months, we have been spreading the word about the importance of the Virginia Horse Center to the local, regional and state economies. We distributed a business plan to many legislators that outlines the need for continued state support as well as increased private fundraising. We also plan to hold more non-equestrian events, such as concerts and trade shows, to generate additional revenues."

This effort to educate state legislators, local elected officials, and the public at large has been assisted by concerned Horse Center supporters who last fall formed the Friends of the Virginia Horse Center, a group led by the Horse Center’s director of marketing, public affairs and development, Lethia Hammond.

"The Virginia Horse Center is an Olympic-caliber equine facility worth saving," said Hammond. "We need everyone’s support and involvement to help guarantee its future."

While efforts to secure the Horse Center’s future continue, Scott and Hammond are enthusiastic about the upcoming season, which kicked off in January with the popular Winter Eastern National Draft Horse Pull followed the next weekend by another perennial favorite, the Lone Star Championship Rodeo.

"We are excited about the many new additions to the Virginia Horse Center’s 2004 line-up including a two-day presentation by Pat Parelli Natural Horsemanship in May, a civil war re-enactment and a five-day eventing clinic by Olympic gold medalist David O’Connor in June, the American Vaulting Association Region IX Show in July, and the United States Equestrian Federation Pony Medal Finals in August," she said.

For more information about the Friends of the Virginia Horse Center, or to join, please contact Lethia Hammond at 540-464-2950. A detailed 2004 Virginia Horse Center schedule is available at www.horsecenter.org. The schedule is tentative and events and dates are subject to change.