Planning and Environment Committee March 10

Tomorrow at 930, the Planning and Environment Committee will be accepting the Stadium report. It will be sent to Council the next day. Here is the agenda:

That the Planning and Environment Committee recommend that Council:
1. Receive the Needs Analysis for Multi-Purpose Sports and Entertainment Facilities study for information;

2. Direct staff to consider the factors identified in the Needs Analysis for Multi-Purpose Sports and Entertainment Facilities study as base criteria with respect to needs and location in their evaluation of the two unsolicited proposals; and

3. Approve the evaluation process outlined in this staff report for the receipt and assessment of the unsolicited stadium proposals submitted by the Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group (OSEG) and the Senators Sports and Entertainment (SSE).

 

Well, apparently you COULD go to this meeting:

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Sports/Residents+line+make+case+stadium+locations/1373813/story.html

OTTAWA — Elected officials on city council’s planning committee are to approve a process Tuesday to decide what to do with two competing proposals to build stadiums in Ottawa.
One unsolicited proposal to the city is from a group of developers who want the city to fix up Frank Clair Stadium for a Canadian Football League team they have a conditional franchise for, and for the municipality to lease them the park grounds to them to build stores, office space, a hotel, and some residential buildings.
The other is from the owners of the Ottawa Senators, who want the city, province, and federal government to build them a $110-million soccer stadium in Kanata near Scotiabank Place to host a Major League Soccer team they hope to be awarded. They have plans to build shopping and office space, and other mixed use facilities nearby.
10:05 a.m.
City staff unveil their suggested process, which would see the proposals ranked on a scale of 100 and treat the financial impacts to the city separately. If approved, the process should result in a council decision decision by April 22.
10:10 a.m.
City manager Kent Kirkpatrick says a study commissioned by the city that ranked the best sites for a sports stadium in the municipality — a study that found the sites for the two proposals sixth- and seventh-best — wasn’t designed to find the best site, just determine which is better of two proposals.
10:29 a.m.
Capital Councillor Clive Doucet, who is angry with the how the city is dealing with the proposals, expresses frustration. “I’m still having trouble getting my head around what we are doing today,” he says.
10:49 a.m.
Ottawa Senators owner Eugene Melnyk and his chief operating officer Cyril Leeder urge council to accept their proposal. Melnyk says there is no other stadium idea in the city that could serve city needs and be financially viable. He says that he’s willing to invest $50 million of his own money bringing a soccer team to the city.
More to come...

 

Here are Melnyk's comments:

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Sports...ta+Melnyk+vows+councillors/1374260/story.html

I think one key thing that I will emphasize in my pre-April 11 letter to councillors is that Melnyk is risking a LOT more money on this. He is putting up $40 Million (US) for a team and has reportedly offered $10 Million (CAD) towards the stadium.

By contrast, Hunt and his three partners are prepared to put up $7 Million (CAD) which is not "real" money to the Shenkmans and Greenbergs of the world. Their chief interest is in being the developers of the surrounding lands, so they will succeed even if the team flops and they lose teir relatively small outlay.

Melnyk must want the team to increase revenue from his existing assets at SBP BUT he needs the team. If the team folds, those assets will not keep generating value (the way the Lansdowne assets will). All told, I think the fact that Melnyk is prepared to risk somewhere around $60 Million CAD tells us something about his belief.

 

They are discussing this at Council now. I just go in and have it up on the webcast.

They have been livebloging the meeting (for UPass, but whatever) at www.transitottawa.ca

 

Here is the timeline, courtesy of the Citizen
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/Sports...s+priority+council+decides/1377910/story.html

The process will see each group submit detailed plans, including proposed financial arrangements, by Monday, city staff evaluations and recommendations released April 6, public delegations heard and a committee vote April 20, and final council decision on April 22.

Meet you all here on monday to talk about the financial plans!