Live Chat Is Over
Should Ottawa taxpayer money be spent on a new arena for the Ottawa Senators? Let’s debate it.
Join us for a Bulldog Live Chat on Tuesday, September 9th from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. right here on this post.
Just use the comment boxes below you normally write in when responding to a post. They are, as usual, at the bottom of the page. And they are updating in real time. No waiting to refresh your page.
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The question before the house is:
Should Ottawa taxpayer money be spent on a new arena for the Ottawa Senators? Please tell us what you think below.
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– The Bulldog – News Feed Enter 
Welcome to this evening’s live chat on funding a new Senators arena at LeBreton Flats.
To chat, please use the comment box below and your post will be immediately published.
The chat will be moderated.
Perhaps as a start to the debate, I could express my opinion of funding a LeBreton arena.
Don’t do it. In the Calgary example where they are building a new arena, the province, the city and the Calgary Flames NHL franchise offered offered to pay a third each of the building’s cost.
For the City of Ottawa that means an expenditure of $300 million plus the cost of 50 per cent of the remediation of polluted land at LeBreton where the new arena is planned to be built.
By the time the city paid for the Lansdowne and LeBreton sports complexes, the city would accumulate a total of about $1.3 billion in costs.
The City of Ottawa simply cannot afford this.
Transit is a shambles. Basic services are not being met. Ottawa must spend billions on refurbishing existing infrastructure.
There are higher priorities than $1.3 billion in professional sports facilities.
Professional sports is big business. And somehow this business has come to depend on public funds to build the arenas where they do business.
The city doesn’t build structures for Walmart, Costco or the flower shop on the corner to do business. Somehow the business of professional sports is treated differently. Why?
There is a suggestion that a PPP could be used but the only reason that a private sector organization would want one is to defray the costs of developing LeBreton Flats. This means using Ottawa’s tax base as a bank. Moreover, unlike Lansdowne, the City doesn’t own this land.
Evan:
Were Ron Benn here he would explain how we’re wrong but he’s busy tonight. Somewhere inside a PPP I see a waterfall.
cheers
kgray
What we have heard so far is that the Mayor Sutcliffe intends to work with the Senators to facilitate this development. He has also said there is no appetite for Ottawa taxpayers to be expected to contribute to the project through their property tax dollars. We need clarity on what the Mayor means with respect to helping when Senators CEO Leeder talks about the PPP model.
Robert:
Fan is short for fanatic and pro sports franchises know how to build fan loyalty. The corner flower shop doesn’t have cheerleaders.
cheers
kgray
Evan:
We do need clarity on this. I’m hoping Sutcliffe means helping clean up the polluted site and all the accoutrements of your average development. Not $300 million for nothing.
cheers
kgray
Evan:
We have too many demands for basic services and no money for frills. Furthermore, I’d hate to see the city get into another central library overrun, another flopped Lansdowne and the cruel mess of the light-rail project. The city needs to deal with basics and get smaller. Leave these huge projects to someone other than the taxpayer.
cheers
kgray
I’m very surprised by Leeder’s comments on the benefits of PPPs at such a sensitive time when City Council is about to have a final ‘go no go’ vote on its PPP with OSEG for Lansdowne 2.0. Is someone trying to send Ottawa taxpayers a message?
Evan:
If these people need money they need to go to a bank like the rest of us. If a bank won’t lend to it, I don’t want any part of it.
cheers
kgray
Evan:
I’m not sure I understand your concern about the timing of the Sens’ statements.
thx
kgray
The Canadian Tire Centre was built with private money. Why not the new LeBreton arena?
cheers
kgray
Interesting to note is that when it came time for the Blue Jays to build a new stadium, they opted to renovate the Rogers Centre. Perhaps the Sens could do the same at the Canadian Tire Centre.
cheers
k
Goodnight and thank you for your participation.
Thank you for fielding these issues. Yes, unfortunately Ottawa City has big expensive issues now and can’t look at sports facilities for the profit of sports owners. Yes for citizens, children, improve health and activity for citizens great. Not for the affluent.