June 27, 2017 will go down as one of the most interesting, if not significant, dates in the City of Greater Sudbury for some time.
That evening, I sat in council chambers and watched as our elected officials sat and debated over where the new Sudbury Community Arena would be located. It was disconcerting to see the mayor and council fumble over a process that would ultimately change the dynamics of this city and send it unfortunately in the wrong direction against its very own official plan that is intended to enhance the viability of downtown Sudbury.
It was obvious from the beginning of the meeting that no one other than Caroline Hallsworth understood the process of determining/voting where the new arena should be located. There should have been some type of preliminary in-service on procedure and protocol when it came to a decision of this magnitude. There were many blunders that night, and I’ll try and mention a couple of them.
First of all, everyone in Greater Sudbury knew it was Elgin Street against the Kingsway, and as much as Coun. Joscelynne Landry-Altman asked questions about another downtown location behind the Lorne Street Beer Store, it really wasn’t in the running. While listening to the dialogue around the table that night, it was evident that council and the mayor felt they would be voting location against location instead of the “downtown” location first.
They had no idea the only way the location on the Kingsway would even be discussed is if the downtown vote failed which, for Dario Zulich, turned out to be the icing on the cake. Other than Ms. Hallsworth, everyone was shocked when a tied vote for Elgin Street meant the demise of the downtown site. I wonder if the Kingsway vote would have been first, resulting in a 6-6 tie, would we be talking about a new downtown arena right now? I guess that’s why it’s called the luck of the draw, and quite surprisingly, no one questioned the voting order of each location or how that order was determined?
Secondly, I have to tell you that I have a lot of respect for Dario Zulich and the team he put together for this project, especially when it comes to marketing. Kudos to True North Strong for including the possibility of a motorsport park, a second ice pad, a basketball team, the possibility of economic development and let’s not forget the much-debated new casino.
You see, the vote that night was theoretically for the site of Greater Sudbury’s new “Community Arena.” Instead, it turned out to be the “Downtown Elgin Street Arena” location versus the “Kingsway Entertainment Centre” location. They weren’t comparing apples to apples, and no one around that council table even questioned this. If the voting had simply been about what address the new arena will call home, then quite honestly, I don’t see where Coun. Gerry Montpellier has a conflict of interest. The motorsport park and all the other promises tied into the Kingsway site had nothing to do with the vote on the arena. Great marketing, Team Zulich.
Thirdly, Ron Bidulka, a consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers, did study the impact the arena would have on either location. He pointed out the only benefit that the Kingsway site had over the downtown location was parking, and honestly, there are ways to circumvent that issue. Any venue where people feel the need to park right at the front door will succumb to parking/traffic concerns regardless of where it is.
Mr. Bidulka stated that “the True North Strong location could have significant economic impact for Sudbury if Zulich develops it the way he has envisioned it. The property owner is not guaranteeing that the property will, in fact, be fully developed, but they have agreed to pay a financial penalty if they fail to use a reasonable effort to effect a substantial development of the site.” But what is the definition of reasonable? If he asks one company, 10 companies, or 20; does that suffice?
What determines when that penalty kicks in? Ron Bidulka did say there would be an immediate economic impact if the arena goes downtown. As you can see, that could and would have two different meanings.
Although there were many other things that derailed the Elgin Street site that night, I find it hard to see how council can spend upwards of $300,000 for a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers and then simply ignore their findings that supported the city’s official plan. They felt downtown was best. How could council turn away a million dollars being offered by the BIA of downtown Sudbury towards the project? How could they simply not understand the process of such an important decision that would change the dynamics of this city?
Moving forward, is that what we as Sudburians want from our municipal government? Go anywhere in Greater Sudbury and the arena location debate still lingers and it will continue to bring up questions as we head in to the 2018 municipal election.
Jeff Huska
Sudbury