I have to admit I’m glad I wasn’t there. I shouldn’t feel that way but I couldn’t help it. That was my immediate reaction when I heard there would be another city council meeting regarding funding for the new arena in downtown Edmonton.
I wasn’t actually in the Alberta capital and just decided to skip it. I’m on assignment in Saskatoon for the 2013 MasterCard Memorial Cup. I’ll be covering hockey games. It saved me from covering all the political games that have been part of this ongoing saga.
It’s been nothing short of a soap opera. Hope and Bo Brady haven’t had this many problems on ‘Days of Our Lives’. I mean this deal almost got sent to ‘General Hospital’. Thankfully it had more than ‘One Life to Live’. We know that after what happened Wednesday.
The final piece of funding for the downtown arena was approved. In case you passed out after reading the previous sentence here it is one more time. The final piece of funding for the downtown arena was approved.
There were times I never thought I’d write that, see that or hear that the way things were going with all involved in this arena deal. When the conversation began regarding Edmonton getting a new arena, to replace the one that has been named Northlands Coliseum, Edmonton Coliseum, Skyreach Centre and Rexall Place, I knew it would take some time. I never imagined this long. Years of squabbling, chastising and bickering over how much and who would pay is now over.
Here’s what Edmonton mayor Stephen Mandel had to say: “This is an outstanding day for Edmonton’s downtown and our city. This project is without a doubt the most significant investment that we have made in our downtown in the last decade.”
“This is a great day for Edmonton. It’s been a long road for everyone involved, but the result is a landmark agreement that will drive investment in our city, help revitalize the downtown core and put the Oilers right in the heart of our community where they belong,” Katz Group chair Daryl Katz said in a statement.
Hear, hear gentlemen, I agree with both of you. Maybe it’s not how you get to the arena deal finish line it’s just that the city and owner eventually got there. This is how costs will be covered:
$279 million from Community Revitalization Levy (CRL)
$125 million from ticket surcharge on all events in the new arena
$137.81 million from lease revenue for the Arena
$23.68 million in cash from the Edmonton Arena Corporation (EAC)
$25 million from other government sources
I’m not sure I understand exactly what an EAC and CRL are but I do know what an NHL is and how important it is to a community’s confidence, belief, stability and economic growth (ask anyone from Winnipeg what that city is like with and without the Jets).
It’s more than just hockey but it’s the base on what this is all built. Speaking of building the spring of 2014 is when the first shovel will go in the ground and the last Nail (not Yakupov) will be hammered by September, 2016. Hopefully I’ll be around to cover that even if I wasn’t around on Wednesday to cover a ground breaking announcement before they actually break ground.