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Flames' $890 million arena complex proposal has stadium, fieldhouse for Stamps
The Calgary Flames' mammoth $890 million proposal revealed Tuesday for a new arena complex to replace the Saddledome is largely being discussed in terms of its implications for hockey, but it would also bring a big change for the CFL's Calgary Stampeders (who had the Flames buy a majority stake in them in March 2012). The proposal also includes a new 30,000-seat football/soccer stadium with a fixed roof and a track, where the Stampeders would play. That would replace their current home of McMahon Stadium at the University of Calgary, which has received substantial upgrades over the years but is showing its 55-year-old age in places. Here are the details of what Flames CEO Ken King is suggesting, from Annalise Klingbell and Trevor Howell of The Calgary Herald:
The $890-million budget would be paid from four sources — a $240-million community revitalization levy, a $250-million ticket tax, $200 million from the city to fund the field house, and a $200-million contribution from the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation, the Flames’ ownership group.
...The development, dubbed ‘CalgaryNEXT,’ is proposed for land west of downtown, in the community of Sunalta, near an existing Greyhound bus station, auto dealership and a recently built LRT station.
King said it was “dumb luck” that Sunalta LRT was built near the proposed West Village site but “it works perfectly.”
At the session for ticket holders on Tuesday morning, King described the project as a “live, work, play project” that is on par with something you would see in New York.
The football stadium would be housed inside a sports field house, and the project would include a regulation sized FIFA soccer pitch, and a track. In total, the facility will be almost 1.4 million square feet.
On a lot of levels, this sounds pretty good for the Stampeders. Yes, moving to an indoor stadium may hurt them a bit in the summer months, but it should boost their attendance in October and November, where McMahon has often experienced brutally-cold conditions. A newer stadium should also offer much better amenities for fans, and, especially if the stadium is expandable for big events, it should put them back in the Grey Cup rotation (they haven't hosted the CFL's championship game since 2009). Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell was very supportive of the idea Tuesday, and it's not hard to see why.
There are numerous obstacles to this plan, though. For one, the Flames' ownership group would only be contributing $200 million of the total under this proposal, with the remainder coming from the city ($200 million for the field house/stadium), a $240 million "community revitalization levy," and a $200 million ticket tax. Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi has previously stated his opposition to publicly-funded stadiums, and his comments in a statement posted on his website Tuesday were far from unconditionally supportive:
This project has been in the works for some time, and I am pleased that the Flames ownership group is now engaging the public on what they would like to see. I also appreciate that the ownership group has come forward with a definitive financial commitment—something that has rarely been seen in other cities.
However, there are a number of challenges that must now be addressed:
The proposal has not been part of The City's comprehensive capital planning process, and does not form part of the plan, under which the City's capital funds are fully allocated through 2018.
The proposal includes incorporating The City’s proposed (and much-needed) fieldhouse into the facility. However, that project, while a very high priority for the City, remains unfunded.
The funding proposal includes a $250 million “ticket tax”, but it is unclear if The City will be asked to provide the upfront financing for this.
The proposed site requires significant expenditures to remediate the environmental contamination there. That remediation is also unfunded.
In addition, the proposal requires the contribution of land, a community revitalization levy and significant investments in infrastructure to make the West Village a complete and vibrant community.
Therefore, there are very significant requirements for public funding beyond the fieldhouse funding, and there is currently no money.
I have said for a long time—and continue to strongly believe—that public money must be for public benefit and not private profit. The question for Council, the ownership group, and all Calgarians is whether this proposal meets that test.
That environmental contamination deserves further discussion, too. From The Herald:
...The entire development is proposed for several blocks in the West Village that has long presented an environmental headache to the city and developers.
Much of the area is contaminated from a former creosote plant. The project’s price-tag does not include the costs of remediating environmental contamination on the site.
Previous estimates have put the cleanup costs at between $50 million and $300 million, and a city-owned agency is in the process of hiring a consultant to review previous reports and study the scope of environmental contamination in the area.
Does this mean this won't happen? Of course not. It's notable that the Flames' and Stampeders' ownership group is contributing far more towards this overall project than any CFL team has to their arena (the Herald has a nice list of those, and Canadian NHL arena projects, here), and the length of time they've spent putting this proposal together before coming forward with it suggests it's a concept they're pretty comfortable will work. Lots can happen in arena deals, and claims of "we have no money to give" can often turn into funding. All reports about this plan should include that it's just a proposal, though, and one with its funding anything but secure at this point. If it does come together, it could be very beneficial for the the Stampeders, but it's far from a sure thing that it will.
