Quote:
Originally Posted by Freeway
Probably a good place to mention this (and please forgive the soft plug): I've put together a questionnaire for the mayoral candidates and sent it to the campaigns, with the goal of having a piece comparing the stances of the eight campaigns on the arena issue for FlamesNation. We'll see if everyone gets back to us, or even has a nuanced stance.
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Probably should have sent it to council candidates as well...
Ward 11 (Where I live... don't care to find out the position of the Wards where I can't vote):
Linda Johnson (Per Twitter)
Looking forward to having a conversation about a new arena. I'm more comfortable with a land use transfer, rather than public funds. If tax payers are going to saddle a portion of the investment risk, they need to be directly exposed to the upside.I'll have a more detailed explanation of my stance on my web site in the near future.
Robert Dickinson (Per Reddit)
When it comes to public dollars (taxes, other city revenue), I believe that investment of public dollars should provide public benefit. We need to see a return on the investment in some way. At this stage without being privy to the discussions and options before Council related to funding methods, land needs or other topics it is challenging to have a really detailed position on investing into an arena. I think the Flames are good for our City and a new space is needed, but the deal needs to make sense for the City as a whole.
I feel that the arena in Victoria Park, logistically makes the most sense and investing in that area would stimulate growth and provide economic benefits to businesses beyond just the Flames. I struggle with the idea of providing direct funding to sports teams, as I don't feel that in most situations public dollars should subsidize private business. That said, when you look at the big picture,the Flames provide value to our community. I think our city is better off having them as part of it. How they are supported is the big question and I would be more inclined, with limited information before me, to support them with a land deal that ultimately benefits growth in the Victoria Park area. Again, I need to have a better idea of what the Flames organization is looking for in terms of assistance, and then would need to determine if there is a good business case to support that. I think there is potential, if we make the right deal, to have a great new facility and revitalize an area which would benefit residents, local businesses and tourism.