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Calgary's new arena design revealed. After years of back and forth, it's finally happening for them. Figures crossed we'll be next.

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Far better than the last design they had.

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Some interesting features, the concourse is at ground level, so no need to go up stairs when you get in.

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Activation on three sides. Parking garage will have public art. You'll see at the lower, right corner the entrance to the community rink; it's under the basketball courts and patch of grass.

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Really hoping we can get our LeBreton arena across the finish line.
 
The design is okay... I like the one wavy/colourful side (mimicking flames) but that will only look good at night, might fall flat during the days. The design looks a bit disjointed though, the backside doesn't carry the same style...
 
Honestly the design is a huge step down from the iconic Saddledome but good on Calgary to finally get this one going.
 
Also, it's weird that they are "preserving" a building that has been gone for at least 20 years.
 
Would it kill them to inject a bit of soul into the naming of these arenas? The whole [insert oligopoly name here] Place/Arena/Centre is getting pretty old, especially with Rogers having different arenas with all three of those descriptors.

They're replacing one of the most unique and fitting stadium names with generic garbage.
 
Would it kill them to inject a bit of soul into the naming of these arenas? The whole [insert oligopoly name here] Place/Arena/Centre is getting pretty old, especially with Rogers having different arenas with all three of those descriptors.

They're replacing one of the most unique and fitting stadium names with generic garbage.
Yep, the second you call it the "Scotia Forum" or the "Scotia Saddledome", everyone will drop the "Scotia" and just call it the Forum or the Saddledome. There goes their investment. That isn't an issue when you call it the Scotia Centre. Blandness is the name of the game.

Would be nice to see a team be willing to give up that revenue to create something memorable.
 
Scotiabank paid $800 million over 20 years to have their name on the ACC back in 2018. That almost entirely funds a new arena. Hard to say no to that.

That said, I wonder how much business these naming rights actually bring. Personally, I'm so annoyed by Scotiabank and Rogers plastering their name on everything, I make it a point not to do business with them.

At least when the corporate name is a local company, like Corel, MTS, Avenir Centre... Even Canadian Tire is at least the only one.
 

From the Ottawa Sun:


Talks heating up between NCC and Ottawa Senators on LeBreton Flats​

"We did meet with the NCC this week and we made a little bit of progress so we'll see."

Author of the article:
Bruce Garrioch
Published Sep 04, 2024 • Last updated 4 hours ago • 3 minute read

Cyril Leeder


'Definitely, this week, I've noticed a sense of urgency that we've got to make something happen,' Cyril Leeder, the Ottawa Senators' chief executive officer and president, said Wednesday. Photo by Julie Oliver /Postmedia


There is sense of urgency with talks heating up between the Ottawa Senators and the National Capital Commission on an arena deal at LeBreton Flats.

Cyril Leeder, the club’s chief executive officer and president, told the Ottawa Citizen on Wednesday discussions between the two sides to get a lease in place to build a new arena 10 minutes west of downtown have intensified in the last few days with a Sept. 20 deadline to complete an agreement looming large.

Leeder, who told a group of season-ticket holders last Thursday he was disappointed the club hadn’t made more progress towards a lease agreement with the NCC, isn’t sure if the two sides will be able to get a deal in place, but more talks are planned.

He said he has seen flexibility in the discussions with the NCC and he remains hopeful.

“We did meet with the NCC this week and we made a little bit of progress so we’ll see,” Leeder said. “We’re still talking. As I said last week, we’re hopeful we’ll find common ground, but we’ve got less than three weeks now to get there.”

Leeder said both sides realize it’s now or never for this project.

“Definitely, this week, I’ve noticed a sense of urgency that we’ve got to make something happen if we’re going to make something happen,” Leeder said. “We’ve got three weeks to do it, let’s get at it here.”

As Postmedia reported last week, there are still significant hurdles for the Senators and the NCC to bridge if the two sides are going to make a deal.

Leeder told the Ottawa Citizen that the organization isn’t looking at any other sites in the city and LeBreton is the hockey club’s sole focus because of its proximity to downtown and the Gatineau side.

Are we at the point where someone has to bend to make a deal happen?

“Any time you’re negotiating, compromise is always the path forward,” Leeder said. “They’ve bent a bit, I think we have a bit, so we’re trying to make some progress here.”

The NCC has set aside a seven-acre piece of land on Albert Street between Preston Street and City Centre, just west of Ottawa’s new central library, which is under construction.

The Canadian Tire Centre and the surrounding parking lots sit on 75 acres. The original bid by the group led by late-owner Eugene Melnyk in 2021 at LeBreton only called for a 20,000-seat arena and a hotel.

The NCC said in a statement to the Citizen on Friday it’s willing to alleviate whatever concerns the club might have with the project.

“We continue to demonstrate flexility and openness in our conversations with the Ottawa Senators, we are still aiming to have an agreement in place for September 2024,” the NCC said.

Under the current scenario at LeBreton, sources say the Senators are concerned they have little to no room for public parking and the organization would have to rely on the troubled light-rail transit system.

The club also wants to build an arena district, similar to the one that surrounds Rogers Place Arena in Edmonton, that would have restaurants, bars and other amenities that could be used before or after events.

Postmedia has also been told one of the stumbling blocks in the talks has been the environmental considerations and requirements that have been placed on the project by the NCC.

Leeder said he doesn’t believe the two sides will be working around the clock to get a deal in place, but more talks are planned, and that’s the only way the two sides will get an agreement done.

“There’s more meetings scheduled,” Leeder said. “There are things to get over and issues solved. There’s a good will to get them done. The thing is, can we find terms that work for the NCC and work us as well?

“We’ll see. I don’t want to predict where we’re going to go. We’ve made a bit of progress this week so we’ll see what happens.”

If you think Leeder is being cautious, he is, but where there’s a will, there’s a way.
 
NCC needs to just give them more land from the Park district and call it a day. Give them more land so they can develop what they want around the arena, and keep progress on the remaining other lots while keeping those ones managed by NCC itself. Cut the Parks district in half and just give them more land, it is better for Lebreton anyways. If we really need more parkspace in the future, it can be developed at Bayview yards (imo, there's enough park space).
 
That's not easy to do without radically altering the plan for the whole western part of the district. The road bridge over Preston was eliminated from the last masterplan, so there is very little access to the park area, and let's not forget it's basically landfill. I wouldn't be too surprised if the Senators were pushing at the table for thousands of parking spots and perhaps even bringing back the long-eliminated ramps from the Mikan to Preston. Significant new road connections would be required to develop the parks area.

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Currently the parks area, though it mostly isn't naturally occurring landscape or even land, is probably the most interesting pseudo-natural landscape in the core area. I would be in favour of leaving the west end of it much as it is now but with better access and paths, rather than bulldozing into some over-designed, maintenance-requiring NCC anodyne pastel park. Bayview Yard is easier to develop as a brownscape now, and I foresee a bus running between Tunney's and Bayview station through the higher desnsities coming to Tunney's pasture, Mechanicsville, and Bayview Yard.
 
Phew!

Ottawa Senators, National Capital Commission reach agreement for new arena at LeBreton Flats​

The Ottawa Senators are a step closer to making their dream of a downtown arena a reality.
Author of the article:
Bruce Garrioch
Published Sep 20, 2024 • Last updated 1 hour ago • 2 minute read
https://ottawacitizen.com/ottawa-senators/senators-ncc-reach-agreement-lebreton-flats#comments-area
A view of LeBreton Flats from a helicopter. Photo by Tony Caldwell /POSTMEDIA

Article content​

The Ottawa Senators are a step closer to making their dream of a downtown arena a reality.

League sources confirmed to the Ottawa Citizen that the Senators and the National Capital Commission have reached the next stage to build a new rink at LeBreton Flats after the two sides signed a lease agreement on the land located 10 minutes West of Parliament Hill.

Senators president Cyril Leeder and NCC chief executive officer Tobi Nussbaum will hold a joint news conference Friday at 1 p.m. at the Canadian Tire Centre to confirm the agreement.

The deal came together at the 11th hour with neither side wanting to extend the discussions past Friday’s deadline for a memorandum of understanding to expire.

Yes, this is a historic day for the Senators and the NCC, but be cautioned this is only the first step for Michael Andlauer, who will celebrate his first anniversary as the club’s owner on Saturday. There still is a lot of work ahead before the Senators can even think about putting shovels in the ground.

The deal will also include plans for a district around the rink.

“I think the NCC and the Senators will get to an agreement, but acquiring the land is only the first step,” a source with knowledge of the project said earlier this week. “The second step will be how to pay for it.”

Leeder played a lead role in these talks with the NCC, along with Andlauer’s partners, George Armoyan and Paul Paletta, and with Shawn Malhotra of Ottawa’s Claridge Homes.

League sources say the NCC and the Senators made progress on the size of the parcel of land, which would allow for more on-site parking. The Senators know they can’t rely solely on the troubled LRT system for people to get in or out of the arena.

The Senators also want a district around the rink that will make the area a destination for visitors. Leeder has stated they don’t just want people to show up for the game and head home, they want visitors to have the option to have a nice meal or stop for a cold beverage.

The Ottawa Citizen has also reported that the Senators had concerns about the NCC’s environmental requirements for the rink. The indications are there was also “give and take” where that is concerned, which led to progress.

More to come.

bgarrioch@postmedia.com

https://ottawacitizen.com/ottawa-senators/senators-ncc-reach-agreement-lebreton-flats
 
OBJ's editorial on the news!

‘A light of positivity on the city’: Downtown boosters cheer deal to bring Senators to Flats​


David Sali
David Sali

  • September 20, 2024
  • 4:23 PM
  • ET


Erin Benjamin My Ottawa Life

Erin Benjamin, the president and CEO of the Canadian Live Music Association, predicts a new arena and events centre at LeBreton Flats will spark major growth in the city's live music scene. File photo

A few days after his brewery announced it had leased space from the National Capital Commission for a new taproom in the ByWard Market, Beyond the Pale Brewing co-owner Rob McIsaac was cheering another piece of negotiating from the NCC on Friday.
McIsaac, a self-described passionate sports fan, was all smiles when he was told the Crown corporation had reached a deal to sell 10 acres of land at LeBreton Flats to the Ottawa Senators for a new NHL arena and events centre.
The new venue will be just a slapshot or two away from Beyond the Pale’s brewery and restaurant at the City Centre complex, a block south of LeBreton Flats.

From McIsaac’s perspective, the club’s decision to relocate to the Flats is a winner.
“I’ve lived in a number of different cities, and having the team in the core of the city, I think it’s great for the community,” said the Ottawa entrepreneur, who married a Boston native and spent 10 years living in the sports-mad Massachusetts capital. “It’s great for the team because … it’s a lot easier to get fans out.”
Sports aside, McIsaac also expects the move to be a boon for his business as thirsty Sens supporters in search of sustenance spill over from the Flats.

“I definitely expect there will be some pre-game traffic coming through here on game nights, that’s for sure, and on any nights they’re doing concerts there as well,” he said.
Beyond the Pale is no stranger to capitalizing on its hometown NHL team’s popularity. The brewery has previously collaborated with SensChirp – a site dedicated to all things Senators that has amassed a significant following on social media – on projects such as a SensChirp-branded beer.
With the club eventually to become his next-door neighbour, McIsaac is already musing about the possibility of creating a Sens-themed brew.
“Our business is very much about getting liquid to lips,” he said. “The opportunity to have something like this come right down the street from us means that we’re going to have the opportunity to put our beer in a lot more people’s hands. That will hopefully drive growth for us over the coming years.”
While it will be years before the NHL team vacates its current home at the Canadian Tire Centre, McIsaac and other Ottawa business boosters could hardly contain their excitement that a deal to bring the Senators to the city’s core has finally been reached after a series of false starts.
“I think this really does a lot to shine a light of positivity on the city,” said Shawn Hamilton, a principal at Proveras Commercial Realty who has been among the loudest voices calling for the team to pull up stakes and leave Kanata.

Hamilton said recent discussions about Ottawa’s city centre have been clouded by worries over rising crime and homelessness, transit woes and economic stagnation as remote work took hold during the pandemic.

Magnet for tourists​

He predicts a new arena and events venue will be a magnet for residents and visitors alike and will help trigger a downtown renaissance.
“It makes great use of a great piece of land that’s well-situated,” Hamilton said. “It’s not just about hockey. It’s concerts, it’s trade shows, it’s spectacles. It’s an accelerant for more tourists. This unlocks residential development and helps with the diversification of our downtown that we’ve been talking about in light of the federal government figuring out what they want to do (with their office footprint).”
Hamilton also noted the new arena is part of a “cluster” of new development west of downtown that includes the riverfront mixed-used Zibi development and the new central library, which is slated to open near LeBreton Flats in 2026.
“This is going to create a critical mass that I think will be a really positive influence for our core,” he said. “As we talk about moving away from government dependence to a more live-work-play downtown core, I think this (will be) a huge catalyst for that.”
Erin Benjamin, an Ottawa resident who is the president and CEO of the Canadian Live Music Association, said the new arena will be a “major piece of the puzzle” when it comes to building a stronger live music industry in the nation’s capital.

“If more people see more major shows downtown, when those shows are done, they’re spilling out into the downtown core, which means music venues across the city are more accessible,” Benjamin said.
“I think it’s just going to increase live music activity at every level of the ecosystem. We’ve talked often in this city about the lack of different-sized venues and the proximity of major venues to smaller venues. This solves that problem. If done right, we could have an incredibly robust, thriving live music ecosystem in Ottawa.”
A healthier live music scene will draw more talent to the region, Benjamin added – including young, highly-skilled knowledge workers who are the lifeblood of the city’s high-tech sector.
“They want a vibrant, exciting city to live in, and this will help.”
Ottawa Board of Trade president and CEO Sueling Ching agreed the new arena will be a major economic catalyst, saying it will “build confidence” among businesspeople and outside investors that the city’s downtown revitalization efforts are on the right track.
“We’re determined to work together to make this (project) happen,” Ching told OBJ. “It’s an exciting development for all of us.”

Hamilton couldn’t resist bringing up a less-than-favourable epithet about Ottawa when assessing the potential impact of the Sens’ new home and other city-building projects such as the new library.
“All of these, I think, are things that sort of allow Ottawa to step forward out of its shell of the ‘city that fun forgot’ – which is an expression I hate, but it goes a long way to erasing that.”
 
Nice OBJ Article about the news as well:


UPDATED: Sens buy 10 acres of land at LeBreton from NCC to build new arena​

Both sides say it will be years before shovels are in the ground​


Mia Jensen
Mia Jensen
David Sali
David Sali
  • September 20, 2024
  • 10:53 AM
  • ET

  • NCC chief executive Tobi Nussbaum (left) and Senators president and CEO Cyril Leeder announce the deal at the Canadian Tire Centre Friday. (Photo by Mia Jensen)

    NCC chief executive Tobi Nussbaum (left) and Senators president and CEO Cyril Leeder announce the deal at the Canadian Tire Centre Friday. (Photo by Mia Jensen)

    The Ottawa Senators have reached a deal to buy 10 acres of land from the National Capital Commission to build a new arena at LeBreton Flats.
    NCC chief executive Tobi Nussbaum said Friday at a news conference that Capital Sports Development Inc. (CSDI) has reached an agreement in principle with the Crown corporation that owns the site just west of downtown to purchase the land at “fair market value.”
    Design work for the project has yet to start, and Senators CEO Cyril Leeder said Friday that it will be “years, not months, before shovels are in the ground.” As part of the upcoming due diligence period, the NCC and CSDI will outline next steps and project timelines.

    For 125 years, the National Capital Commission has been bringing to life a beautiful, majestic vision of the region that is befitting of the seat of government. As the organization
    Leeder said the Senators expect to take ownership of the land within the next year.
    “It’s been a long road,” said Nussbaum during a news conference at the Canadian Tire Centre. “Our teams have worked hard over the last year to get here. By siting a major events centre in our downtown core, we will be injecting new energy and excitement into the region, increasing our draw to visitors and helping to really catalyze the LeBreton Flats development.”
    In a statement issued Friday afternoon, the NCC said the agreement “reflects a shared vision to create a new vibrant and sustainable mixed-use community” at LeBreton Flats, which has sat largely undeveloped for the past six decades.

    However, both sides stressed there is still much work to be done before the deal is finalized, including soil remediation and other environmental studies.
    “Negotiations are also ongoing between the NCC and the Algonquin Nation to ensure the Nation secures short and long-term benefits and is a true partner in what promises to be a transformational opportunity for Canada’s capital,” the NCC said in a statement.
    Nussbaum said the goal is to create a “truly dynamic mixed-use neighbourhood,” adding the LeBreton Flats development will eventually have more than 6,000 new housing units, a quarter of which are expected to be affordable.
    The NCC will also build two aqueducts on site to offer new waterfront spaces for other activities and amenities, he said.
    “It’s a great first step, but we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us,” Leeder said. “We had an agreement last September, we just weren’t able to get into the heavy lifting until we had terms that were acceptable, that we could work with.”
    The Senators will be purchasing just over 10 acres of land, as opposed to the six to seven acres originally proposed.

    “Today’s arenas, you need a little more space,” Leeder said. “The loading docks are bigger, the amenities in the building are bigger, the people spaces are bigger. So that will allow us to have a site now that we can design around. There are a couple things that we know we can do better on now that we have this size of site to work with.”
    There is no firm budget as yet for the project, though Leeder has previously said that arenas these days can cost more than a billion dollars to construct.
    While Leeder defended the concept of public-private partnerships, he said Ottawa taxpayers shouldn’t expect to be on the hook for the arena.
    “We’re a long way from getting into details on how we’re going to approach this project with the city,” he said. “I don’t think (taxpayers will be contributing). If you look at the history in Canada of public venues, whether arenas or stadiums, (they) have not been funded by the taxpayer.”
    Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe congratulated the two parties on social media Friday, following the announcement of the deal.
    “It’s very encouraging to hear about this big step forward,” Sutcliffe wrote. “I’m looking forward to hearing more about this potentially very exciting economic opportunity for Ottawa.”

    While the Senators are purchasing the land, Nussbaum said the NCC will continue to play a pivotal role in its development as the overseer of the entire LeBreton Flats area.
    “This is one key parcel, but within the context of a broader development, there’s going to be all sorts of moments of co-operation and co-ordination,” he said. “This really is an agreement.”
    Designing and building the new arena will be a years-long process. In the meantime, the Senators will continue to play at the CTC in Kanata. Leeder said there are no plans as yet for what will happen to the facility once it’s vacated.
    “We’re going to be here for a while yet, so that’s the good news,” he said. “We thank them. I think we’ve been good for the businesses here and the businesses certainly have been good to us. We’ve had great support from the Kanata residents, businesses and people in the area. This has not been a bad location for the team the last 28 years.”

    A deal years in the making

    It’s a long-anticipated deal, and one that had started to wear on local observers as the process dragged on.
    Just this week, local business leaders told OBJ that if the Senators and the NCC failed to secure an agreement, it would potentially be a blow to their respective reputations.

    While expectations have been high, Leeder said it’s a challenge he appreciates and will continue to appreciate as they tackle the roadblocks that will crop up.
    “Pressure can be good sometimes, whether it’s in sports or business,” he said. “It helps focus the mind. I take this as a personal challenge and I’m committed. One of the reasons I came back to the team was I thought it was important to have an arena downtown, so I’m personally committed to that process. I want to make it happen.”
    The site for a new arena has been a topic of speculation for some time. In April, Leeder told an audience of local business leaders at the City Building Summit that the club was determined to set up in LeBreton Flats.
    Leeder told OBJ at the club’s season launch event earlier this month that talks were intensifying between the two parties and he was hopeful that a deal would come through.
    Leeder has said a new 800,000-square-foot arena — which the hockey organization, the city, and local stakeholders have said should be constructed downtown — would cost between $1.2 billion and $1.5 billion. Surrounding infrastructure, such as hotels, condos, restaurants, bars and office buildings, is expected to cost three to five times that amount.
    A new arena could be a similar size or slightly smaller than the Senators’ current home, aiming for a capacity of between 16,000 to 17,000 people. It would also include newer amenities and improved loading zones, with the hopes of doubling the number of shows the facility can host.
    “You’re talking about a three- to six-billion-dollar project,” Leeder said. “It’s a big, big project.”
    Following the death of former Sens’ owner Eugene Melynk, the Senators were granted preferred-bidder status in June 2022 to negotiate with the NCC on a plan to build an events centre that would be the crown jewel of the Crown corporation’s long-term efforts to redevelop the Flats.
    The site was identified for a potential major facility in the 2021 LeBreton Flats Master Concept Plan, which reflected the feedback of more than 5,000 Ottawans who participated in public consultations.
    The NCC signed a memorandum of understanding with the organization led by the Senators in June 2022 to build a major events centre as part of a mixed-use development at a six-acre plot of land on Albert Street between City Centre Avenue and Preston Street.
    Earlier this year in January, the NCC agreed to extend its memorandum of understanding with the Senators to Sept. 20 to give the two sides more time to negotiate. The MOU was originally slated to expire in September 2023.
    Ottawa Sens building LeBreton arena
    An artist’s rendering shows a proposed design for a new NHL arena at LeBreton Flats. File photo
 

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