Australia's Great Inland Classic Boat Show has not been able to return to the city since the success of its first event two years ago at Lake Albert.

Three weeks out from this year's event, organiser Tony Murphy fears they are about to be "let down again" with not enough water to proceed at this stage.

Mr Murphy said the city is a "great location with excellent facilities" to host an event of this nature. However, he said it is still in its infancy and the committee needs a lake that guarantees enough water to make it a success.

"We are a little bit confused as to why there doesn't seem to be more proactive action being taken," he said.

"To us, the jewel in Wagga's crown is the lake yet the council seems ambivalent towards ensuring events such as ours come back again."

The Barry Carne Interstate Challenge is another event that has been forced to cancel three years in a row due to the lake's water problems.

Mr Murphy said they want to showcase Wagga as best they could to the participants travelling interstate.

"If they turn up and see the water levels where they can barely get a boat off the ramp, then we won't come back to Wagga," he said.

Wagga mayor Greg Conkey said there is nothing the council can do to fix the problem in time.

"It's disappointing and we would hate to lose this, but there's nothing the council can do in the short-term," he said. "It is a concern ... there will be an economic loss to the community."

However, Cr Conkey said the council has sent a letter to the state's Water Minister Melinda Pavey this week with a request to use water diverted from the Murrumbidgee River to top up Lake Albert.

He said this is a long-term solution that will give events certainty in the future.

If the council receives a green light, it will then need to build a pipeline from the river along Marshall's Creek and into Lake Albert, he said.

"It looks to top up the lake at this time each year and that should flow through until the end of summer and attract these events," he said.

Barry Carne Interstate Challenge committee member Jacinta Evans said they hoped to return by 2022, which should be enough time to fix the lake so that the decades-old event could draw a crowd of thousands back to the city.

"They're killing the town because everyone is going elsewhere to do everything and it's small businesses losing the money," she said.

Wagga Boat Club commodore Mick Henderson, however, is concerned that the inconsistent water levels will push events out of town to never return regardless of a long-term solution.

"We try to bring the events here for the people of Wagga and surrounds but, with the water levels the way it is, they are really hesitant," he said. "It has just been too slow a process."

Mr Henderson said this means the city misses out on a lot of tourism and economic opportunities. He said travellers end up cancelling accommodation and do not spend money locally on food and fuel.