CALGARY, Alberta (CelebrtiyAccess) — Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation, owner of the NHL hockey team, Calgary Flames, stepped back from a deal with the city over a new arena after failing to come to terms on the cost of the proposed venue.
According to the Canadian Press, CSEC confirmed that the deal to replace the aging Scotiabank Saddledome with a new, 19,000-seat arena came unraveled after more than two years of negotiation after the two sides were unable to reach an agreement on how much of the project the city would finance.
Estimates for the project, which were initially at 550 million when talks began two years ago, have grown to $634 million, according to the Canadian Press.
Sticking points between CSEC and the City included additional costs for roadway and sidewalk infrastructure and climate mitigation, which the city added to the project since July.
In a press statement announcing a breakdown of the deal, a representative for the CSEC said:
“The most recent cost estimates place the total cost of the Event Centre at $634 million which means CSEC would be responsible for an additional $25.5 million of cost. The resulting cost sharing would have been $346.5 million for CSEC and $287.5 million for the City and, CSEC would continue to be responsible for further cost increases related to the construction of the Event Centre. Unfortunately, there are now $19 million of new cost items related to infrastructure and climate being insisted upon by the City for which they are seeking an additional $10 million in funding from CSEC.
“While CSEC was prepared to move forward in the face of escalating construction costs and assume the unknown future cost risks, CSEC was not prepared to fund the infrastructure and climate costs that were introduced by the City following our July agreement and were not included in the $608.5 million and are not included in the current cost estimate of $634 million.
“The failure of the City and CSEC to find a viable path forward was not based upon simply the “the last dollar” on the table; but rather was based upon the accumulated increase in CSEC’s share of the costs, including the infrastructure and climate costs, the overall risk factors related to the Project and the inability of CSEC and the City to find a path forward that would work for both parties.”
After the arena deal broke down, newly elected Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek said she is hoping that the CSEC will find the money and reconsider.
“It appears that they’re unable to make that financial commitment following the approval of their development permit, so it would appear that they are ending the deal,” she said during a press conference in late December.
