Let me say this right off the bat: I don't know the best location for a new Sudbury Arena/events centre.
South End? Kingsway? Downtown? I'm honestly not sure. But I do know how much I'm dreading a divisive debate between supporters of the two private-sector proposals and those who say it must stay in downtown Sudbury no matter what.
To review, the existing Sudbury Arena on Elgin Street, while full of charm, is badly outdated and needs to be replaced. Maintenance costs are approaching what we would spend on a mortgage on a new facility. It's not suitable for people with mobility challenges, it lacks proper humidity controls and we miss out on concerts and sporting events because it's not structurally able to host them. It's a rotary phone in an iPhone world.
A new facility, judging by the South End and Kingsway proposals, is going to cost in the neighbourhood of $60 million to $80 million. With a pricetag like that, ensuring whatever gets built is of maximum benefit to taxpayers is obviously important. No private group has come forward with a comprehensive proposal for a downtown location. You can debate why, but it's clear finding suitable property and parking without driving up costs will be a challenge.
Solving those obstacles won't be easy or cheap. Unless the city comes right out and says the new arena must be downtown, it's unlikely a private-sector partner is going to emerge that can compete with what's already on the table.
And if that's what the city wants, they should say so, sooner, rather than later. These sorts of public debates can get divisive and disingenuous quickly, so clarity from city council would help everybody.
Not to say downtown doesn't have a strong argument. Many, many cities have redeveloped their downtown arenas successfully and reaped the benefits. And in principle, encouraging development downtown is good for taxpayers, because services and infrastructure is already there. There's no doubt existing businesses would benefit, and likely more would locate downtown.
Combined with the Synergy Centre, the new art gallery/main library and LU's School of Architecture, an arena development would boost the area. So if that's the priority, and the private sector proposals don't have an equal chance, it's only fair to say so as early as possible. Some on council openly support downtown, and if that's the majority opinion, councillors should declare it publicly.
Then when the RFP is finally ready, developers will know what they're really bidding on. It would be bad for everybody to go through the process, only to find out later that downtown was the favoured location all along.
Another wrinkle in all of this is the long-delayed casino. What if the successful bidder decides they want to build a new facility as part of the arena development, rather than stay at Sudbury Downs? The original motion in 2012 declaring support for the casino said council's priority was a group willing to help fund a new facility.
Many people who don't like the idea of a casino are especially opposed to putting one downtown. But money from a gaming operator could significantly reduce the amount of tax money and risk residents will have to shoulder.
The OLG has said an operator will be selected early next year, around the time the RFP for the arena should be getting close. Clearly, it's a complicated situation. But it would be a lot simpler if city council declared whether their priority is the long-term health of downtown Sudbury, or replacing the Elgin Street barn at the lowest cost and risk to taxpayers.
Darren MacDonald is Northern Life's city hall reporter.
