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Originally Posted by Bill Bumface
Sounds like a great place to throw our tax dollars!
Maybe they could pay players $2.2 Million instead of $2.4 Million and pay for their own depreciating assets.
I doubt that sends players flocking to the KHL.
The only reason cities pay for arenas is because the gun to the head approach of pro teams skipping town. If every city called their collective bluffs, this would no longer be an issue.
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It is what it is, the cities and provinces invest in these things because ultimately they're supposed to revitalize an area of the city increase the possible tax revenues and they're basically shiny.
But sitting here and saying well the owners should pay fully for them, and accept the loss lends the question of where is the incentive to do it?
Lets be honest, a few years back when there was a real threat of the team actually leaving Calgary, the owners hung on and stayed on until the league forced some level of salary control, and from that point on they've played in the dome and while they probably aren't losing money, they probably don't have a scooge mcdunk type of vault full of money with a pool full of coins.
But the problem now is that salaries are going to continue to accelerate as is the cost of operating the franchise. So the Flames and they've said this multiple times need to find other revenue streams. The only way that they're going to get those is in large part to a new facility. But they're not looking at a new facility where they're going to take a loss, that makes no sense.
At some point there is going to have to be a talk about a funding partnership, its that simple. The Flames are going to have to puck up money and as much as Nenshi is taking a strong stance against it, the city and possibly the province is going to have to buck up some money.
It certainly won't be a $400 million dollar plus deal that Edmonton gave the Oilers, which was frankly due to a weak government that gave into Katz's blackmail. I certainly don't think that the Flames owners are as ruthless as that.
But at some point whether its 20 or 30 percent of a new facility its probably going to have to happen.
Either that or the Flames owners in search of new revenue streams, and a NHL who will feel that Calgary isn't a serious NHL city will put out feelers to cities with either newer prebuilt already paid for arenas, or some US city that states that they will be a NHL partner.