Gooey fries could be off the menu in the new concession facilities planned for the Tom Forsyth Multi-Use Facility Expansion.

While clogged arteries might not miss the deep-fried delight, concern was raised at last Tuesday鈥檚 Village of 亚洲天堂 Lake Committee of the Whole Meeting that some user groups might miss the money-making opportunities of a deep-fryer.

The issue is that the current range-hood in the arena kitchen does not meet the latest code requirements regarding the size of the hood relative to the size of the range burners and deep-fryer.

If the kitchen were never moved, then the size of the hood is fine, 鈥榞randfathered-in,鈥� so to speak.  With the plan to move the kitchen and concession area to the other side of the arena, the kitchen, once it鈥檚 put back together again, will fall under new code requirements.

The exact cost of a new range-hood and the related electrical upgrades is not known because planning has been proceeding under the assumption that the old fixtures would be reused as a cost-saving measure.

Village chief administrator officer Sheryl Worthing pointed out that deep fried goods are not a universal option at arenas across Northern B.C., and she suggested that there might be some benefit to encouraging more nutritious snack choices.

鈥淎 few years ago we had a healthy food choices study done and one of the recommendations was to remove the gooey fries from the menu,鈥� Worthing reminded the committee of the whole.

Councillors Frank Varga and John Illes both expressed concern about the elimination of the deep-fryer.

Illes鈥� concern was the potential backlash from the 亚洲天堂 Lake Minor Hockey Association (BLMHA). According to Worthing, the BLMHA had already been brought up to speed on the possible menu change and was okay with it.

For coun. Varga, it wasn鈥檛 just outraged hockey fans that concerned him, but the financial bottom line.

鈥淲e want to provide healthy choices,鈥� Varga said. 鈥淏ut we don鈥檛 want to restrict opportunities associated with a concession stand.  We need to factor that [the cost of a new hood] into the long-run.鈥�

Council will consider how to proceed once a final engineering report is completed regarding the re-implementation of the grill, deep-fryer and existing range-hood in the new kitchen facilities.