Quote:
Originally Posted by dino7c
Compared to the rest of Canada, which is a low bar...the comparison made here was New York and the Las Vegas strip. The funding model suggested doesn't work in Calgary. Flames deal is the best the city is gonna get if they want an arena.
|
A few things that we need to be clear on as a fanbase:
1.The Flames are mid pack for capital value according to forbes, and the assumption is they are break even to profitable under the current arrangement.
2. With the current math a previous poster went through, relocation devalues the franchise by $100-$200m from the Forbes valuation
3. The city doesn't really want a new arena, they want a place to hold concerts/events...if you have been to those specialized venues they can be amazing compared to an arena. They also want a field house...and should probably have 5 already.
4. The Flames want a new arena so they can take their gate from under $2m to mid $3m per game like the Oilers. That extra money is coming from the fans, which is why a ticket tax is touchy with the CSEC, as that's "their" increase being taken. This lift in revenue will lift the capital valuation to $1bn+ like the Oilers just received.
Now with those comments in mind...someone would finance the arena, but they would charge the Flames market rates. They haven't even gone down the private path, because the playbook in North America previous to the past 5yrs has been to leverage public funds and maximize revenues and valuation. The big cities have stopped doing those stinky deals as populations have become more educated. It is not a LV, NYC, SF, etc thing. Its a Flames ownership group trying to get the best deal for them. If they REALLY needed a new building there are tons of debt funders that would work with the city and take a 3%-7% yield in a city with Calgary's demographics.
Finally...the Flames aren't moving.