Forest City Velodrome in financial trouble

The Forest City Velodrome is $45,000 behind on rent payments — and it’s holding a meeting for members Wednesday night to address the issue.

The non-profit corporation is urging all 131 members to attend, after receiving an email from the building owner that says they’re in a “serious default” from overdue rent payments between January 2017 until present.

“We are trying to figure out a plan to continue to operate in the current area,” said Forest City Velodrome president Craig Saari.

“We want to use this place to continue to offer the best cycling experience we can to Londoners,” he said.

In a message sent out to members, Forest City Velodrome said they’ll discuss the current financial situation of the track, and create a working group to make a business plan that might consider a new location.

It goes on to say the building’s owner has been understanding about the situation, and wants to see the Forest City Velodrome succeed. The memo to members includes a quote from one of the owner’s emails to the club: “Please appreciate that paying rent is not optional and needs to be an integral part of the running of the FCV. Rental payments are in serious default. In this light, I would like to ensure that you have advised the members of the need to pay the fees and also advised them of the current situation.”

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“Striking that balance between paying the bills and charging enough money for membership can be extremely difficult for just about any organization,” said Saari.

“Of course, we’ve certainly lost a lot of members over the years due to other circumstances, so it’s made our financial situation much tighter.”

The Forest City Velodrome boasted a busy year, in which it expanded its Velokids Program, welcomed many new members, and ran several Track 1 sessions. Despite a successful Go Fund Me campaign, they say they weren’t able to get out of financial shortfall, with member fees covering a third of expenses.

They’re urging people who can’t attend to reach out regardless, so they can gauge support for continuing as an organization. They’re also welcoming suggestions for next steps.

“We really need all the help we can get, as being a non-profit corporation, we can’t dedicate our entire time to making sure the velodrome runs efficiently,” said Saari.

Originally known as Treasure Island Gardens, the arena was home to the London Knights from 1965-2002, where it was most commonly known as the “London Ice House.”