‘Anything is possible’: New life for arena deal after late-night meeting

Things have looked bleak for the last several weeks when it comes to the quest to build a new arena in Calgary, but a late-night meeting has ended with encouraging signs at city hall.

After speaking for hours behind closed doors, councillors emerged on Wednesday night to present a new plan that creates an updated vision on how to replace the ageing Saddledome.

Councillors voted unanimously to identify a third party to help with several goals. First off, they will work to establish whether or not negotiations can still be restarted between the city and the Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation (CSEC) after the deal between the two officially fell apart to start the year.

Secondly, the city could also start looking for different private partners to help pitch in the cash to build an event centre, rather than just relying on the ownership group of the Calgary Flames.

Lastly, there will be a report back to council on Mar. 8 to provide some updates on this preemptive plan. The Event Centre Assessment Committee will also be re-established to assist with future work on this file.

Earlier on Wednesday, council got an update on the overall timeline that got them to this point as administration explained they were ready to make it work with CSEC but there was no movement in the final ten days of the year.

CSEC eventually walked away from the agreement which was first reached back in 2019 due to an ongoing dispute over how much they should pay for the new arena, as costs have risen due to several factors.

It was also revealed the city and CSEC are both on the hook for about $11 million in costs relating to the failed agreement, although some more costs may come up as it is all finalized.

Related article:

City still on hook for around $11M in terminated arena deal

But the bad news ended up getting tempered, with Mayor Jyoti Gondek saying on Thursday morning that there is some renewed optimism.

“It’s a brand new opportunity to get this right,” she said. “We know what the old deal looked like, we have an understanding of how we achieved it, we know how it was structured. So, there’s opportunity to work within those parameters with small changes or there’s an opportunity to do this completely differently. It’s open right now.”

By adding in a third party to take over some of the responsibilities — namely attempting to find a compromise between the city and CSEC — there is the prospect of reducing some of the risk and any lingering animosity.

“A third party allows for some distance for the city, and it’s the best deal for everyone,” said Ward 1 Councillor Sonya Sharp. “So, a third party allows a neutral conversation.”

This is not the place proponents of the deal expected to be in after so much work was put into this agreement including a re-negotiated deal in the summer of 2021 that was hopefully going to eliminate the already existing concerns of a ballooning budget.

Since this is also a brand new way forward, Gondek could not say if there was any early interest coming in from private parties and could not reveal any specific details of some conversations that happened behind closed doors.

Even so, the sense is that this is a massive open door.

“We have lots of opportunities available to us right now. It may be bringing back that plan and moving forward with it, it may be something different,” Gondek said. “The fact of the matter is we have the opportunity to look at this at the present time, instead of being confined by an agreement that we entered originally into in 2019. So we will see what happens.”

Read more:

• City still on hook for around $11M in terminated arena deal

• ‘I think that’s really regrettable’: Premier responds to dead event centre deal

• New arena deal dead as Saddledome continues to age

She added this also harnesses elements from the original talks of an event centre deal, which happened while Gondek was the councillor for Ward 3. In particular, there was discussion in the early days about having a third party on hand to assist with the talks and even trying to find other private partners.

“What we did yesterday is went back to that model, to make sure that we have got that third party engaged to identify the interests of each party and make sure that we reach an equitable deal. So it’s kind of a revisitation of something we did in the past.

“Anything is possible at this point, and that’s what we are exploring. I know that in 2019 we had looked at all kinds of different models and we will revisit some of those and figure out which one works best for us now.”

As for what this future event centre could look like and the role it would play in the revitalized Rivers District, that is also an open-ended question. Throughout the life of the deal, many questions have been raised about why the city should put up public dollars for a facility that will be largely used by a private company but Gondek said they want to make sure this is something that will create benefits for everyone in the city.

“We remain committed to delivering an entertainment district that all Calgarians can engage with,” she said. “There are property tax implications and uplift implications if this project is done right. There are many benefits for Calgarians if this event centre is constructed in a way that offers access as well as that property tax uplift.”

The fact this updated approach was approved unanimously also gives the sense of greater unity in the council chambers.

Ward 8 Councillor Courtney Walcott also expressed concerns over the use of public money but believes they can now move past the trust issues that plagued the last council.

This moment in the development of the Rivers District is an opportunity. If we are going to spend public money, it should be in the public’s interest. #yyc #yyccc https://t.co/8lxqqBXgjA pic.twitter.com/N38e1EpqwD

— Courtney Walcott (@CWalcottYYC) January 13, 2022

“Whatever comes next, whether it be an Event Centre, new partnerships, or a different approach to the revitalization of east Victoria Park,” wrote the councillor of the ward where the arena would eventually sit, “we are not tied to rumours and gossip or to rushed decisions from the past.”

Ward 12 Councillor Evan Spencer said he had many sleepless nights when considering what to do about this deal, but is glad he finally has all the information — both public and confidential — and now they can move on.

“I think it signals that this council, despite looking at things from different angles, can come together when it’s important for Calgarians and unite for public benefit.”

Ward 7’s Terry Wong had a similar thought, adding it gives additional boosts to the overall strategies to upgrade the downtown core and revitalize the economy.

“Those are the things we all centred on: what is going to be the right thing to do, and how do we do it the right way.”

In a series of tweets, Ward 3’s Jasmine Mian said both sides have fought hard to try and get this project done, “through a global pandemic no less.”

She says everyone spends too much time picking sides, rather than realizing everyone involved is on Team Calgary.

Furthermore, this is not the bellweather of doom that some are forecasting.

We have to stop being our own worst enemy when it comes to the narratives we tell about our city.

We are collaborative, the Flames are not leaving and I remain extremely bullish on our future.

— Jasmine Mian (@jasmine_mian) January 13, 2022

Gondek said it feels good to have a council going in the same direction on such a huge file, further adding some optimism that the ship has not totally sailed on this project.

“We want to make sure we have a strong entertainment district, that we have a great event centre in the interest of the public. And we are committed to doing the best that we can for Calgarians.”