Flames’ new arena to begin construction next week

Monday will be a very exciting day for Calgarians.

Sportsnet’s Eric Francis reported Wednesday that the Calgary Flames, the City of Calgary and the Province of Alberta will officially begin construction of a new $926 million Event Centre on Monday with a sod-turning event. The Event Centre includes a new 18,000-seat arena that will become the new home of the Flames.

Francis also reports that renderings of the Flames’ new arena will also be unveiled at the event. The Event Centre will also include a community rink, a parkade and an indoor and outdoor event plaza.

According to Francis, the hope is that construction will be completed in time for the Flames to play there in the 2027-28 season.

The arena will be located two blocks north of Calgary’s current home, the Scotiabank Saddledome. The signature Calgary landmark has been the Flames’ home since it was built in 1983.

Only Madison Square Garden, home of the New York Rangers, is technically older among NHL arenas. But even that comes with an asterisk as the Rangers’ Manhattan home underwent a massive renovation and modernization a decade ago.

The Flames and the city had been negotiating for years without success to come to an agreement on who pays for what amid broader concerns around public subsidies for a private enterprise.

The logjam was broken in April of 2023 as city council and the Flames agreed to the funding deal and Alberta Premier Dannielle Smith’s government pledged its share.

The Alberta government is committing a maximum of $330 million for area infrastructure, to demolish the Saddledome and to cover off half of a new 1,000-seat community rink.

Once the building is completed, it will be the fourth home for the Flames franchise, which began in Atlanta in 1972 and played in the downtown Omni Coliseum before money woes forced it to relocate to Calgary in 1980.

In Calgary, the team played first in the relatively tiny Stampede Corral before moving to the Saddledome three years later.