Look What Can Be Done for Only $38 million ,instead of $106 million!

 

 

 

 

 

 

So City admin & council are hell bent on their (not ours) event center plan? We're told we'll get an AHL hockey team, with ticket prices ranging $20-35? That team will have an average crowd of 4200 so they'll break even, while the LU Thunderwolves average 2500-300 at $13. Hmmm? I never saw that strategy in either volume of, "What They Don't Teach You At Harvard Business School", and certainly not in any credible business school! To get such a great opportunity of getting one of the AHL's nomadic franchises, we need to spend $106 million? In Toronto I attended a Toronto Marlies AHL game @ Ricoh Coliseum. Strange, this facility was not shining new ,but was built in 1920 It was extensively renovated at a cost of $38 million in 2003, expanding its capacity from 6500 to 9700 ,building a higher roof, lowering the floor and adding new seats in the expanded area, with 38 private suites. Abbotsford BC, with a much denser surrounding population, has had a horrible experience of building & now subsidizes the AHL team's losses! Recently the NHL Florida Panthers have sought more taxpayer dollars (read article) to help pay their millionaires! Does spending $106 million plus, really seem like a great choice for Thunder Bay? Is the "Convention" area gonna be a plus or minus? Will it really bring new prosperity to this city? MacLeans magazine (Jan 16 2012) states,"there is a glut of convention facilities in North America." With internet capabilities destined to reduce travelling to conventions, is it a worthwhile investment, or a big dollar "roll of the dice?"
http://www.thehockeynews.com/blog/panthers-ask-for-public-funding-promise-competitive-team-in-return-no-really/