If you build it, they will come.
Gary Bettman has heard all the negativity from the naysayers about the impact of a new downtown arena, but the National Hockey League commissioner told reporters in Calgary on Tuesday that they are “economic engines” for the cities that go that route.
Speaking at the Saddledome after touring the site of the new Scotia Place Arena across the street in Calgary, Bettman could just as easily have been speaking to people in Ottawa about a new arena at LeBreton Flats when he was asked why new downtown rinks are important to the community.
Ottawa owner Michael Andlauer agreed to purchase 11 acres of land from the National Capital Commission last August to build a new rink and a surrounding Ice District.
“They’re economic engines,” Bettman said. “It brings more events to the particular place. It creates an economic ripple effect because if an arena is being used 80 nights a year, but you upgrade it and now it’s 200 nights a year and more people are coming downtown and going to restaurants and going shopping, they are economic engines.”
The Ottawa Citizen has reported that the Senators have agreed to pay $37 million for the land when the sale is complete, which is expected to happen later this year.
Eyebrows were raised in Ottawa on Tuesday when Bettman was asked for an update on talks between the NCC and the Senators, and noted a finalized agreement wasn’t imminent.
“There’s nothing new in the moment. I know Michael Andlauer is vigorously pursuing the possibilities, and I know he would like to see a new arena at LeBreton Flats, a downtown arena. But it’s not anywhere close to having an announcement or anything close to that,” Bettman said.
Has there been progress on arena talks?
A league executive told the Citizen on Wednesday that he believes talks between the NCC and the Senators are “progressing” and that all the parties involved want to make this dream a reality.
Cyril Leeder, the club’s chief executive officer and club president, stated in January that there is a lot of work taking place behind the scenes to finalize the purchase agreement with the NCC.
Leeder predicted in an interview with the Citizen that it will take a calendar year of trying to solve issues, which include decontaminating the site, working with Indigenous groups, designing the site and financing.
All these elements need to be addressed before the Senators can confirm a timeline for breaking ground. Leeder said once the club does put shovels in the ground, the timeline to build a new rink is 34 months.
There has been a lot of debate about publicly how the Senators should pay for their new arena. Andlauer has stated he will need participation from all three levels of government to build the new events centre.
What is happening with Calgary’s new arena?
The new arena in Calgary is being built in a partnership that includes the city and the province of Alberta. The cost is north of $1.2 billion, which is being funded by 27% by the province, along with $537 million from the city and another $356 million from the owners of the Flames.
The Senators have stated publicly that they will not be asking City of Ottawa taxpayers for money.
Bettman is aware of the public backlash about governments helping to fund new rinks because inevitably a media outlet will call a university professor to pooh-pooh that notion, but he has witnessed the impact that downtown arenas in Washington, D.C., and Edmonton have had.
“I know there are academics who disagree with that, but I’ve been doing this in professional sports for more than four decades, and it has a real impact,” Bettman said. “You look at a place like Washington, D.C., where an arena downtown transformed Chinatown.
“Look at Edmonton, it made a difference with the Ice District. Look at Detroit and what they’re doing. Arenas can have a positive impact economically and on the quality of life because it gives people an opportunity, not just for hockey or whatever sport is predominant tenant, but it also gives you the opportunity to bring other events.
“There are concerts that haven’t coming here (to Calgary) because of the state of the building. That will change with the new facility.”
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That’s why Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe is bullish on the idea of the Senators moving to LeBreton Flats, which is located 10 minutes West of Parliament Hill.
Tobi Nussbaum, the chief executive officer of the NCC, said after the board of directors meeting in January that talk was centred around cleaning up the site.
“Of late, there has been a focus on finalizing the decontamination plan, which will see both parties have a role in that process,” Nussbaum said. “Really, that’s with the goal of getting to the closing date.
“And getting to the point where the Senators can put their shovels in the ground. The news is a bit boring, but very positive in that conversations are going very well. There aren’t any obstacles that are stopping or delaying us from moving forward at the pace that we anticipate.”