New Edmonton Arena Construction will begin in March 2014

[saskflames69]

Please welcome yourrrrr Seeeaaaatlllllllllee Tooooootemmmmmsss!

[TurnedTheCorner]

They are collapsing something special up there.

[Plett25]

Originally Posted by Bouw N Arrow

Make it Six!!!

Isn't this the kind of post you whine about in the Phoenix thread?

[Hatter]

Good on Edmonton City Council. They shouldn't be extorted by a billionaire. If his life is so difficult owning a team that sells out every game, I'm sure somebody else will step up and buy them. The Oilers aren't going anywhere, and nor should they.

[iggypop]

Originally Posted by Isbrant

Here is a link to the original deal or framework the City of Edmonton and Katz Group worked out in New York. I don't know if it has already been posted.

http://www.edmonton.ca/city_governme...framework.aspx

The latest cost estimate I saw was now 475 million, not 450 million.

Katz was putting in 100 million, approximately 5.5 per year for 35 years.
Facility Improvement Fee (ticket tax) 125 million
City of Edmonton $125 million
Short $125

These are just for the building. The City would also buy the land, pay for the community rink, pay half of a pedestrian bridge and all the related infrastructure.

With this last letter, did Katz just say he would come up with the missing $125 million (plus cost over runs) with the $250 million statement?

No, the $250, is a combination of the:

Katz was putting in 100 million, approximately 5.5 per year for 35 years.
Facility Improvement Fee (ticket tax) 125 million (I thought this # was supposed to be 150.)

For a total of "more than a quarter-billion dollars into a new arena."

Really though, he's actually only paying the 100, as obviously the ticket tax actually comes from the tax payer too.

Least that is my understanding.

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by iggypop

No, the $250, is a combination of the:

Katz was putting in 100 million, approximately 5.5 per year for 35 years.
Facility Improvement Fee (ticket tax) 125 million (I thought this # was supposed to be 150.)

For a total of "more than a quarter-billion dollars into a new arena."

Really though, he's actually only paying the 100, as obviously the ticket tax actually comes from the tax payer too.

Least that is my understanding.

Yes. Then a month or so ago he said he wanted another 6 million per year as what he called an offset of operating costs. That money would basically offset the mortgage payment on his 100 million.

In other words, via his shell game, the arena was free, as long as he could get the City to agree.

Total ######y move. When you add the fact he also wanted a guaranteed tenant in a nearby office tower, he was trying to spin this into something more profitable than his drug stores.

[browna]

Those were his terms, and as he always said from the first presser while Oiler fans were busy debating who was going to lift the Cup first, he needed to make this work as a business for himself, and that included partners paying their share.

If the partner's share is more then the partner's like, then yeah, its not going to work out.

Maybe Katz also has gone sour on the whole experience in the last months, and if he doesn't get this lopsided sweetheart deal, then he's done with it all and gives him the excuse he needed to get out.

He may well put the team up for sale and then hop on the Seattle expansion bandwagon. My guess is the new potential owners (or group of 30 Part 2) if they can find one, are also going to see tough short, medium and long term economical justification with the current building, just as Katz did.

[Dion]

[Daradon]

Well on the plus side, 'Ha ha! Stupid Oilers!'
On the negative side, we may be waiting longer for our arena.

[killer_carlson]

For an idea of how negotiations have gone sour, the Edmonton journal's David staples wrote a great piece yesterday that Katz should sell the team if this deal can't work. Previously I thought staples had been katz's buddy or on his payroll with how pro katz staples had been.

[albertGQ]

I wonder what the next step is now? Katz can't move the team (Gary and the NHL won't allow that). Renos to Rexall? That is a horrible idea. They need a new arena. Darryl will just have to put some cash in it himself

Is he even worth as much as he says he is?

[Locke]

Originally Posted by killer_carlson

For an idea of how negotiations have gone sour, the Edmonton journal's David staples wrote a great piece yesterday that Katz should sell the team if this deal can't work. Previously I thought staples had been katz's buddy or on his payroll with how pro katz staples had been.

Originally Posted by albertGQ

I wonder what the next step is now? Katz can't move the team (Gary and the NHL won't allow that). Renos to Rexall? That is a horrible idea. They need a new arena. Darryl will just have to put some cash in it himself

Is he even worth as much as he says he is?

On 'Thats Hockey' a few weeks ago Mackenzie said it best; The NHL will not allow the Oilers to leave as long they're profitable but they also want the Oilers to have a new arena, so Katz has 2 choices;

- Get a deal done on a new arena whether he has to pay for it himself or whatever.

- Sell the team to someone who will.

And the NHL may have to force the second option.

Ultimately, Katz is a window-licking idiot. I can not believe he screwed up the NHL's sweetest deal. He could have summarily executed kittens at centre ice before every home game and still have had the fans behind him.

It takes effort to screw up that kind of goodwill.

[Flash Walken]

The city of edmonton should buy the team.

[Reaper]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

The city of edmonton should buy the team.

I thought they already tried that when 41 different entities owned the team before Katz.

[Reaper]

Originally Posted by Bouw N Arrow

Make it Six!!!

Make it 5 - lets not forget about the Leafs.

[CedarMeter]

Municipal affairs boss Doug Griffiths says new Edmonton Oilers arena would be 'eligible' for MSI funding

Here's another update on the ongoing saga up in Edmonton.

http://www.calgarysun.com/2012/10/30...-msi-funding-2

[Locke]

Originally Posted by CedarMeter

Municipal affairs boss Doug Griffiths says new Edmonton Oilers arena would be 'eligible' for MSI funding

Here's another update on the ongoing saga up in Edmonton.

http://www.calgarysun.com/2012/10/30...-msi-funding-2

Wait a second.

Didnt I read somewhere that the money the City was putting up was an allocation of these funds already? They were considered Provincial funds allotted to the City of Edmonton to do with as they saw fit and hence they were going to allocate it to the arena deal as the City's Municipal involvement.

Its Provincial money that the City gets to decide what to do with, I thought that was where the cash was coming from in the first place and hence doesnt address the missing funding.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

Originally Posted by Locke

Wait a second.

Didnt I read somewhere that the money the City was putting up was an allocation of these funds already? They were considered Provincial funds allotted to the City of Edmonton to do with as they saw fit and hence they were going to allocate it to the arena deal as the City's Municipal involvement.

Its Provincial money that the City gets to decide what to do with, I thought that was where the cash was coming from in the first place and hence doesnt address the missing funding.

The money the city is putting up comes from the CRL (community revitalization levy) which is essentially a percentage of money from expected increases in property taxes and new property taxes as a result of the arena being built*.

That and a ticket tax which currently goes straight to the Oilers. It would instead go to the city.

* An even larger percentage of the CRL is going to downtown/Jasper Ave revitalization.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Sidney Crosby's Hat

The money the city is putting up comes from the CRL (community revitalization levy) which is essentially a percentage of money from expected increases in property taxes and new property taxes as a result of the arena being built*.

That and a ticket tax which currently goes straight to the Oilers. It would instead go to the city.

* An even larger percentage of the CRL is going to downtown/Jasper Ave revitalization.

So this is an independent fund then that would actually cover the gulf in the funding?

But, then again, doesnt the Edmonton City council decide how to spend this money and then would effectively be taking it away from other municipal publics works projects? Which they sound like they're not willing to do?

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

Originally Posted by Locke

So this is an independent fund then that would actually cover the gulf in the funding?

But, then again, doesnt the Edmonton City council decide how to spend this money and then would effectively be taking it away from other municipal publics works projects? Which they sound like they're not willing to do?

That's correct. It would cover the $100 million gulf.

Council would decide but they've really already decided. They're not taking money away from other projects because there will be an increase to the MSI and that is what will go to the arena.

Calgary will be getting the same increase, which makes me wonder what they will do with it.