The president of the Ottawa Senators says LeBreton Flats remains the only site the team is seriously considering for a new arena, though nothing is definitive and there are “shortcomings” to its existing deal with the National Capital Commission (NCC).
Cyril Leeder told a city building summit organized by the Ottawa Board of Trade on Tuesday that a new arena would have a “transformative” impact on the city. He responded to a question about “rumours” the Senators might move to a different downtown site rather than the long-explored LeBreton parcel along Albert Street.
“The only site we’re really focused on right now has been LeBreton Flats,” he said. “Obviously there are other sites in the city. We’ve looked at a number of those. Probably too early to say definitively where the arena’s going to go, but at this point the only site we are really serious with is LeBreton Flats.”
His comments come just days after Mayor Mark Sutcliffe again floated the possibility of bringing a major attraction — possibly a new arena — to one of the underused office properties the federal government is looking to offload in Ottawa.
It wasn’t the first time the mayor has signalled that other sites might be viable candidates for the Senators.
On Tuesday, Sutcliffe’s spokesperson said the mayor’s thoughts haven’t changed and that he’s “looking forward to seeing how the process between the Senators and the NCC plays out.”
LeBreton has been in the NHL club’s sights for years. In 2022, Senators-led Capital Sports Development Inc. signed a memorandum of understanding with the NCC to work toward bringing an arena to LeBreton.
Leeder told the Board of Trade summit that there are “shortcomings in that agreement,” though he said the Senators are working on them with the NCC.
Progress on leasing deal slower than desired
In an interview with CBC right after the event, Leeder declined to delve deeper into those shortcomings.
“Those are between us and the NCC. It’s a negotiation. We have to get that right,” he said. “They’re being very accommodating. They’re prepared to negotiate with us, and it’s really up to us to put our best shot forward.”
He said the two sides are making progress, though not as quickly as either would like. He said the goal is still to reach a leasing deal before the memorandum of understanding expires.
“We’ve got some issues we’ve got to deal with and that’s normal in this type of process,” he said. “It’s a big project. At the end of the day, it’s probably a compromise to get something done.”
He repeated to CBC that LeBreton is still the only serious candidate for the arena.
“The only site we’ve really had any discussions on — serious discussions — has been LeBreton,” Leeder said.
He wouldn’t speculate on what the most viable Plan B would be if the LeBreton negotiations fall through.
On Tuesday afternoon, NCC spokesperson Valérie Dufour responded to the talk of “shortcomings” by saying it’s normal to have issues to work through on such a major file.
“There’s a lot of little things they need to tie together before we have a deal on such a complex issue, but the NCC is flexible, has demonstrated flexibility many times. We’re open and we have good conversations with the Sens,” said Dufour.
“We still think we have the better location to offer. It’s a location of choice.”
No major roadblocks: NCC CEO
NCC CEO Tobi Nussbaum told reporters last week that there are no major roadblocks to the deal, and said the two sides are meeting on a regular basis. He said the Senators are still working out the financial plan.
“My sense is there is a lot of work underway on their side to determine all the major facets,” Nussbaum said, adding that he hopes to see a lease deal signed by Sept. 1.
Leeder said comparable arena projects have cost in the $1.2-billion range, and a new arena in Ottawa would probably be about the same order of magnitude.
“Whatever we do with the NCC has to lead to a viable project,” Leeder said. “Something we can finance, something we can build that will work with us in the long term. It’s got to work for us and our fans.”
Asked about his timeline, Leeder said the sooner the better — not only for the team but for the city.
“We understand there’s an urgency to act now, to get this done when our downtown needs it most,” he told the Board of Trade summit.