Politics, Sports and Money: Quebec Arena
Quebec City has been aching to get a new arena but struggling to find funds. The cost is estimated to run into $400 million. The province and the city had pledged to provide 40 percent of the funds and hoped to make Ottawa cough up the rest. But the Stephen
Harper government can’t seem to figure out how to arrange the finances without drawing the ire of voters west of Quebec.
The government has made it clear that unless Quebec City Mayor, Regis Labeaume, can guarantee that the private sector would bear a significant portion of the costs, Ottawa would not back the project. Political pressures just won’t allow public funds to be
diverted into building a stadium in Quebec unless the private sector funding matches the public expense.
Getting that kind of funding might not be impossible and with it, the plan could move forward.
The political picture is still murky. Hockey is big in Canada and Quebec wants to see a return of an NHL franchise to the city. If the conservative government becomes the reason why the arena is not built, it would take its toll on their vote bank in the
next elections. Labeaume’s government is starting to tug on that thread in hopes of getting the government to play along.
“The Conservative Party is gambling on its future in Quebec City,” city councillor Marc Simoneau said in a radio interview. Stopping just short of making it a threat, he said that if the arena is not built that would be the end of the conservative party
in Quebec. Simoneau could be exaggerating the effect a bit but there is no doubt that there would be a political price to pay that the Conservative Party cannot afford.
They are stuck between a rock and a hard place. Reducing federal spending has been one of the cornerstones of conservative party. Recently, they denied Edmonton’s request for funding to hold an exposition to mark 150th anniversary of the Confederation.
To throw close to $200 million into an arena now would just look bad and enrage western voters. It would also hurt the Conservative Party’s credibility regarding their claims of cutting federal spending.
Time is running out. Mayor Labeaume has said that the finances for the arena have to be finalized by the 21st of December. It is unlikely that the federal government would provide funding for the Arena which would be the focus of Quebec’s 2022
Winter Olympics' bid. Not to mention a home for a Quebec based franchise.
This is the end unless private sector funding can be gathered to cut the burden on the federal government. Ottawa could be persuaded to finance $70 or $80 million but $180 million in federal funding just is not going to happen. Federal assistance in building
sports facilities is not unheard of. The price just has to be right.
There are still private sector options open for the arena. Naming rights, among other things could generate enough funds to get the project off the ground. Naming rights would go for something around $20 million and local businesses could possibly provide
$60 million. Adding that to the $175 million the provincial government and the $50 million the city has pledged, that comes out to be around $300 million in funding of the arena. Ottawa could pick up the tab on the remainder.
Mayor Labeaume has recently said that he has a ‘plan B’ to finance the stadium but didn’t give additional details of what that might be. It has been said that a new tax might be introduced. But a spokesman for the city denied the rumours.
Tags: