Quote:
Originally Posted by Bunk
Let’s be clear, the Flames owners can finance this arena on their own, they just don’t want to.
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Your point is likely true. Does that mean they should? This actually has nothing to do with whether they can finance this on their own, or even whether they could still be profitable if they did.
It has to do with what the right move is from a business perspective based on the specific situation. And this is where it gets muddy for people. If the city feels it's in the cities best interest to let the Flames leave and not build a new arena at any point down the road unless it's completely funded by private business, because they don't see the value, then it should be all on the Flames owners to pay for it. If the cities vision for Calgary includes an arena and a full time major league tenant occupying that building, and would pursue such a venture and try to attract another team here if the Flames didn't exist, then they have stake in this project and should be paying for some.
It's that simple. It actually has nothing to do with what is or isn't possible from the ownership point of view, it has to do with what this specific situation dictates is the right business move (for both the owners and the city). You don't become wealthy enough to own a hockey team by simply doing things because you can "afford it", you get that way by making the proper business deals.