Monday, April 22, 2013

Arena Timeline 2011

The following information is presented by Mimi Williams aka @willmimi on twitter. This is the fourth part of a 4 part series. A huge effort has been made to compile this, and the work presented is copyright by the author.

Part 1 deals with the 2005 to 2007 time period. Part 2 will handle the 2008 to 2009 period, leaving Part 3 covering 2010, and Part 4 (what this section is about) will include the 2011 year. Please enjoy the read, and remember to thank Mimi for her extensive work.


OH ... WAIT! ... Who would have thought ... yes... a Part 5 will be coming, maybe even a part 6 (compiled by me).. One thing you have to love about never ending sagas, is they never end. Also as an "editors note" if you will, I have changed the format of this post a bit, by putting the dates in bold. This was done because several date entries now include much longer quoted text. I have also tried my best to verify that the links supplied, work... Mimi had included many more than shown, but they were no longer valid. I'm kind of sad that some media outlets would pull stories or place them someplace else other than their original links. Just saying...

Edmonton’s Downtown Arena – All the News that was Fit to Print (Part 4)

2011


Please note: This is a non-exhaustive list of media coverage of the downtown arena project throughout 2011. In an effort to reduce redundancy, I have not bothered to include any of David Staples’ columns. For the entries below, I have attempted in every case to cite the source. If no source is cited, it’s because all local media reported the item and I haven’t directly quoted any of them. Despite my efforts, if errors have been made with attribution, I take full responsibility and will correct any that are called to my attention.
Mimi Williams 

1/1/: Canadian Business Magazine places Daryl Katz 16th on their ‘Rich 100 List’. “Claim to fame: Katz's 2008 purchase of the Edmonton Oilers has led to a public tango with the City of Edmonton over a proposed downtown hockey palace both want but neither wants to pay for. Katz's latest offer: $200 million,with a vague "or else."” 

1/14: Arena report says Katz Group has agreed to put $100 million into construction and the city expects it could cover the cost of borrowing $250 million from property taxes on surrounding new development and a ticket tax.  Does not mention the missing $100 million and suggests the arena be operated by a non-profit organization. City conducted telephone survey found 59% respondents approve of arena if number of conditions met, including a plan for Rexall. (Gordon Kent, Edmonton Journal)

1/17: City Council refuses to hear from citizens & Cdn Taxpayers Federation representative registered to speak at arena public hearing.

1/18: Council approves the Katz Group rezoning application.

1/25: Katz Group's Bob Black repeats student housing part of arena district vision; U of A says it's interested.

2/9:  John Allemang asks the question, if arts and culture are publicly funded, why not sports arenas? Globe and Mail

2/10: No No No to federal funding of Quebec Arena, Lorne Gunter National Post

2/10: Mayor Mandel upset about rumours that Quebec City might be able to use federal gas tax credits for their arena, because Edmonton’s is already committed to the south LRT. “I’m a bit disappointed that they made changes to help a group with something when other people have already committed,” said Mandel. “I don’t think it’s fair.” - Heather McIntyre, MetroNews

2/12:  Colby Cosh answers Allemang in Maclean’s: “The piece starts by asking why pro sports shouldn’t be subsidized with working people’s tax dollars when museums and concert halls are. The most obvious answer, and stop me if you’ve heard this, is that professional sport at the uppermost level is played for profit by people who are already millionaires.” 
 
2/14: Montreal Gazette editorial ‘Spending our tax dollars on arena absurd’. “The madness of the publicly financed professional sports facility has to end. It's a con game, the process by which billionaire owners and millionaire players blackmail the public into footing the bill for the venues where they earn billions for themselves...”
 
2/20: Watching Oilers game, Gary Bettman declares, “There's no question about it, they're not going to stay in this building." Councillor Sohi says such anultimatum is inappropriate.

3/2: After a closed door meeting with councillors where they received an update on arena negotiations from administration, Mayor Mandel says he wants a vote on a final decision on April 6th. "Either we build a newarena or we become a second class city," he said.
 
3/3: Fed gov’t announces it will not fund NHL arenas. "This is not the priority of taxpayers. Right now we are in the middle of an economic recovery that is fragile," said Rona Ambrose, federal minister of public works and an Edmonton-area MP. Meanwhile, Mayor Mandel tells Elise Stolte with the Edmonton Journal that a decision must be made by end of month. “"There is not an option of fixing Rexall. Either we build a new arena or we become a second-class city, which in my mind, I don't want to be. I believe the City of Edmonton will negotiate a good deal with the Katz Group." 
 
3/4: Edmonton Sun editorial (unsigned):

“Mayor Stephen Mandel is faced with a choice today: he can either assume the federal government rejected funding an arena out of an examination of the facts, or he can assume the federal Tories did it for purely political purposes.
What either assumes, however, is that there is a strong case against building a new arena in Edmonton using public money…
Either way, the decision not to accept a $100-million funding request is a damning indictment of Mandel's continuing attempt to build a legacy for himself against public wishes - using money, it has to again be noted, from school tax collections. …
And every other logical examination supports why: it would be the only new Canadian arena in the NHL to have been built almost entirely with public funds. If private investors can make it work in other cities, why can't Daryl Katz do so here?”

3/10: Edmonton Oilers owner Daryl Katz drops down on Forbes’ annual list of the world’s most wealthy.  Katz's net worth appears to have stalled at around $2 billion and he dropped more than 100 spots on the Forbes list within the past five years. In 2006, Katz was at No. 486 with $1.6 billion. In 2008, the year he bought the Oilers for $200 million, he fell to No. 573 on the list of the world's richest with a net worth of $2.1 billion. On this year's list, Katz comes in at No. 595 with $2 billion.  Sharon Singleton, QMI Agency

3/18: The federal government staunchly defends its decision not to fund the Quebec arena. House Leader John Baird explained to QMI Agency: “"We are not financing rinks owned by billionaires so millionaires can play in them."

4/1: City unveils CRL map; new property taxes in 29-blk radius to fund arena. Administration says they unable to project amount of money that might be raised, but it won’t be enough to service debt for 10 yrs.

4/4: In letter to Mayor, released to media, Katz says Oilers don’t agree with ticket tax idea.

4/7: Council votes to proceed with formal negotiations, though some conditions remain unmet.

4/8: City reduces CRL contribution & Katz Group agrees to ticket tax; $100M funding gap remains.

4/8: Northlands vows it will keep the Coliseum open: Northlands isn't bluffing with plans to continue operating Rexall Place even if the Oilers move to a new downtown arena, president Richard Andersen says. "We want to be clear, so there's no confusion. Until there's some other direction, our full plan is to get on with our business and run Rexall." (Gordon Kent, Edmonton Journal)

4/28: Council asks Katz Group to look at seat ownership proposal; Katz Group declines.

5/19: Council votes 8-5 to approve deal framework after late-night closed-door session. The motion they pass empowers the City Manager to finalize the details of the deal.

5/20: TheSun’s Terry Jones thinks that because Daryl Katz invited him to his private box at the Rogers Centre during a Canucks game this is a sure sign the province will be providing $100 million for the arena. Terry Jones also mistakenly thinks the city controls Northlands.

5/20: Oilers owner Daryl Katz says Northlands will do the right thing and not operate Rexall Place as a competitor to a $450-million downtown arena. 

"This (project) is in the best interests of the city, and clearly we can't support two arenas," he said from Vancouver, where he had watched a Canucks playoff game.” (Gordon Kent and John MacKinnon, Edmonton Journal)

5/21: Coun Sloan says tells the Edmonton Journal, “Councillors were puppets, with Mr. Katz, Mr. Bettman & the Mayor pulling the strings."

5/24: The Edmonton Sun’s Terry Jones offers a rambling narrative wherein he states the Winnipeg Jets left in 1996 because the city forefathers didn’t have the foresight to build them a new arena. (He does not mention the old Winnipeg Arena had 15,300 seats and was the smallest in the league, a fact the team owners cited among their financial difficulties. Nor does he mention the $1.40 exchange rate of $1.40 and rapid expansion into the US which forced Canadian teams to pay US salaries and operate on Canadian revenues.)

5/27: The Sun declares that if there were a new arena Doug Weight (who had announced his official retirement) wouldn’t have had to leave. (cited at Sportsnet)

5/28: Contending with Slave Lake fires & High River floods, Premier says arena not on his radar.

6/4: Edmonton Journal reports Katz wants $125M interest-free loan (to be repaid with ticket tax) in addition to $100M provincial funding.

6/4: Councillor Gibbons tells the Edmonton Journal he felt 'corralled & pushed to the chute" in arena vote. Councillor Diotte is worried about cost overruns.

6/12: Calgary Mayor Nenshi tells the Edmonton Journal he's no fan of public funding for arena-like projects.

6/30: Progressive Conservative leadership contender Gary Mar tells a CBC editorial board: "In the scale of priorities for provincial infrastructure, I would say that Albertans would agree that hospitals, schools, long-term care centres, roads, other infrastructure would be a higher priority than an arena in the city of Edmonton.”

7/5: The Sun’s Terry Jones reveals why Ryan Smyth and LuxSteakhouse are firmly behind the arena deal. “You get the idea Ryan Smyth is projecting himself to be in the team picture in 2014 and thinking ahead to playing in Daryl Katz’s new downtown arena. 

“That would be great,” he said at the press gathering yesterday at the downtown Lux Steak House where he is a 10% owner. 

“With the location of the Lux, I’m definitely on Katz’s side for building that arena where it’s been planned.””
 
7/13: Premier says province won’t fund arena, might help with infrastructure like LRT. Katz Group tells the Canadian Press the Oilers are losing money.

7/20: Edmonton Examiner’s Scott Haskins writes that even though he likes the idea of a downtown arena, he can’t support this deal. Of Katz, he says, “He wants his cake. And the whole pie. And the sweetest of all deals. In the Katz Group's perfect world, others would help pay for a building he totally controls, with every nickel going to him. Plus, a non-competition clause would basically eliminate Northlands as a viable organization after 130 years of operation. “

7/22: The Edmonton Journal reports that all 6 PC leadership candidates veto idea of province funding arena.

7/23: PC leader candidate Ted Morton pitches a referendum to ask voters to voluntarily add 1% to GST for 2 yrs to pay for arena.

7/26: Premier Stelmach meets w/ Mayor Mandel, says province might find MSI funds and the city could decide to spend that on arena; the Municipal Affairs Minister pans Morton's tax idea

8/1: “In Edmonton right now a similar debate is going on, with one side preaching the virtues of civic renewal with a downtown arena, and the other protesting that public money needs to be allocated somewhere other than the pockets of a billionaire who owns a sports team…. Every reputable study ever published has established that sports stadiums have a negligible effect on local economies, but these tend to be presented as economic decisions. No, what these are are leveraged negotiations, with the love towards a franchise used to prop up its business model.” (Bruce Arthur, National Post)
 
8/5: CBC reports Katz Group asked MLA offices to redirect constituent calls about arena to them. MLAs are not amused.

8/6: Local media report Katz Group met w/ Enoch Cree about locating arena there.

8/23: Self-declared arena supporter & Journal Biz Editor Gary Lamphier writes, “downtown arena project badly needs some adult supervision”

8/26: City expands CRL zone to encompass 60 blocks; $100M to arena $266M to 9 other catalyst projects; tax lift estimated at $1.2B

8/29: In ode to Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Metro News' Terence Harding writes “In Edmonton did Khubla Katz a pleasure dome decree.”

9/9: City confirms $1.2M arena costs via late afternoon press release after VUE reporter reveals the information (me - via twitter). It was handed to me by councillors who were upset that the information was deemed confidential in the first place.

9/10: Arena talks have cost city $1.15M; Spending on lawyers, consultants moving too fast for some councillors Elise Stolte, Edmonton Journal

9/13: Local media reports Daryl Katz living in VCR since April.

9/14: City council announces Special Meeting 9/23 for a public arena update.

9/15: PC leader candidates grilled on arena funding at final debate in Edmonton. Crowd boos any suggestion of public support.

9/17: Katz's rumoured Vancouver move muddies Oilers arena negotiations (Gary Lamphier, Edmonton Journal)
 
9/20: City council agenda for 9/23 Arena Update Special Meeting released; meeting will not be public after all. 

9/24: “City council will be hard-pressed to finalize key details of an arena decision before a Halloween deadline, but might need to vote on it anyway, councillors were told Friday morning.
A $100-million contribution from the provincial government has still not been secured, nor has a noncompete clause between the Katz Group and Northlands, city manager Simon Farbrother told council in an arena update Friday morning. But Edmonton Oilers owner Daryl Katz and the Katz Group have said they would like to finalize a deal by Oct. 31, in part because their options on land north of 104th Avenue are set to expire soon. That leaves city hall just five weeks to finalize details.” (Elise Stolte, Edmonton Journal)

9/28: Scott Haskins, Edmonton Examiner, writes, “Coun. Linda Sloan had the best line regarding Katz' line in the sand of Oct. 31: "That kind of ultimatum is not a demonstration of good faith," she said. Since when did good faith have anything to do with bad business? I knew this was destined to become ridiculous, but I never thought it would go beyond ridiculous. It's increasingly obvious that Mr. Katz believes he's dealing from a position of power. Yes, Edmonton needs a new rink. But not at any cost.”

9/28: “The city could hold a final vote on whether to build a downtown arena by the end of next month, Mayor Stephen Mandel says.” (Gordon Kent, Edmonton Journal.)

9/30: “The Katz Group laid down the gauntlet Thursday when a senior official said the company must make a "significant" land investment by Oct. 31 to keep the downtown arena project alive.” (Gordon Kent, Edmonton Journal)

10/5: Northlands denies allegations they demanded $250M from the city. Andersen said he is surprised by the allegation, adding the figure comes from a May 18 email to Farbrother after a May 16 meeting between Andersen, Farbrother, and Mayor Stephen Mandel. The $250-million figure was “a conceptual response” to what a 35-year non-compete clause might be worth, Andersen said. “This was purely a response to their question,” Andersen said. “We never had a follow up, nobody ever responded.”

10/6:  Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel andCity Manager Simon Farbrother announce they are traveling to New York City at the request of NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman to meet with Katz Group officials about an agreement on the new $450 million downtown arena.
 
10/12: The mayor and city manager meet with the Katz Group in a closed meeting at the offices of NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman.  Terry Jones, Edmonton Sun 
 
10/14: City council has a closed door meeting and emerges to announce that the Katz Group has dropped its’ “No Compete” demand re: Northlands and that the city has agreed to put a ticket tax on any event at Northlands that is equal to the ticket tax at the new arena. The city also agreed that the KG contribution of $100M could be paid over 30 years. The city will have to borrow $350 million dollars to allow the arena to go ahead. The city also voted in favour of purchasing the arena lands from the Katz Group.
 
10/18: ‘Katz's power play scores major concessions; Arena deal exempts Group from investment and hobbles competition’ Paula Simons, Edmonton Journal

10/19: Northlands needs more arena info “Northlands needs more information about a proposed downtown arena deal to determine how well Rexall Place would do as a competitor, president Richard Andersen says. 

Although Andersen has vowed since last year to keep operating Rexall for concerts and other events if the Oilers move out, he said Tuesday Northlands has always looked for a "collaborative" way to be part of the arrangement. 

"It was never our desire to be in a situation where we would be a town with two public assembly facilities that are essentially Class A arenas," he said in his first public comment on the agreement recommended to city council. 

"There's a lot of information that still hasn't been sorted out. We're really unclear how this works, how the (ticket) surcharge works. Candidly, we don't think the city is clear either." (Gordon Kent, Edmonton Journal)

10/21: “The head of construction giant PCL warns that Edmonton risks becoming another Winnipeg if it passes up a new arena and loses its NHL team. 

"This has been dragging on for such a long period of time, and to me it's somewhat reminiscent of what went on in Winnipeg over 15 years ago," said Paul Douglas, president and chief executive of Edmonton-based PCL Constructors Inc.” (Bill Mah, Edmonton Journal) 

[Later, PCL would be given a contract to manage the project.]

10/25: City holds a public hearing on the arena project. Meanwhile, administration recommends spending $30 million to start designing the facility, but Couns. Diotte and Caterina want that move put off until councillors decide if the arena is going ahead.

“The land purchase was premature, this $30 million is premature,” Caterina said. “We could be spending taxpayers’ money … before we even know if an arena is a go or not.”


Although city officials have estimated the land price would be about $20 million, Caterina said it’s actually “considerably higher” — final details won’t be made public until the transaction is completed by Oct. 31. 


(We found out later it was $74.9 million)

10/25: New arena deal bad for taxpayers; But this week's city council vote may be a done deal “As Paula [Simons] explained, the long list of strict conditions under which city council had authorized negotiations with Oilers owner Daryl Katz back in April had been abruptly tossed aside. Instead, council was pushing ahead with a whole new plan - one that's even sweeter for the drugstore tycoon than the last one. 

Instead of contributing $100 million toward the cost of the $450 million project, as Katz had long proposed, the revised plan - unveiled following a closed-door meeting in New York between Katz, NHL commish Gary Bettman and Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel - calls for Katz to make annual lease payments of $5.5 million over 30 years. 

With no funds pledged toward the arena by either the feds or the province, and no funds due to flow from a proposed $125-million ticket tax until the arena is built, the new funding model means the city will have to finance the project's entire construction cost. 

That's not all. As Paula reported, the new scheme includes a 10-year sponsorship agreement under which the city will cough up $2 million a year to the Oilers, ostensibly as payment for marketing the city to fans who watch the team's games on television. The fact that most of those fans already live here is apparently irrelevant. 

The net result? Katz Group's $5.5 million annual lease payment would effectively be slashed to $3.5 million, at least for the first 10 years that the arena is in operation. That's quite a comedown from the $100 million upfront commitment that was previously dangled before the eyes of taxpayers. ….

For a sum that has yet to be disclosed, the city has agreed to purchase the downtown arena lands optioned by Katz, thereby increasing the city's current $125-million commitment to the project. 

On the flip side, despite Katz Group's sharply reduced upfront equity commitment, it still gets to choose and hire the architect for the project, come up with the design, and keep 100 per cent of the proposed arena's revenues.”… 

"It's a terrible deal," says U of A sports economist Brad Humphreys. 

"They're still short $100 million and I don't see it going very far until they come up with the remainder of the funding." 

What's more, by allowing Katz to forgo the $100 million upfront funding commitment in return for a 30year lease at $5.5 million per annum, Humphreys says the city has further softened the financial burden on the Oilers owner. 

"I notice in the reporting to date, people are saying Katz is paying $165 million, which is $5.5 million over 30 years. But that's not right. That calculation ignores the time value of money, which believe me, is coming out of the taxpayers' pockets." (Gary Lamphier, Edmonton Journal)
 
10/26: Council votes 10-3 to approve the arena financialframework. Under the framework, the building will have a maximum price of $450 million. Katz is contributing $100 million, to be paid in installments over 30 years. Another $125 million will be raised by a ticket tax. The Community Revitalization Levy (CRL) and parking revenues will provide another $125 million. Katz will pay $100 million to spark development around the arena, with $30 million being paid up front. The city has approached the federal and provincial governments for the remaining $100 million but so far there is no indication the money will come through. Councillor Caterina gives the project his support after securing an amendment that Katz will invest $30M of his promised $100M surrounding private development immediately. Councillors Kerry Diotte, Linda Sloan and Don Iveson cast the dissenting votes. According to administration, the city would actually have to spend as much as $305 million which includes infrastructure, land and interest on the debt. 

“Councillor Sloan Sloan spoke out against the lack of clarity about much money the city needs to spend. She is also concerned that the city hasn't sought enough collateral from Katz to cover the losses if he defaults on the $100 million.

"What impact this deal has on current capital budgets or future is unknown," Sloan said.

"The lack of analysis and publication of this corresponding impact, in my mind, constitutes at the very least a breach of trust and at worst, an abdication of our elected respsonsibility."”

10/27: “Supporters of the plan argued that the arena will revitalize the downtown core and give a boost to the economy. Unfortunately, this argument flies in the face of more than 20 years of economic studies, which suggest that sporting arenas provide little economic benefit. 

A study published in the Journal of Economic Perspectives in 2000 concluded that, "independent work on the economic impact of stadiums and arenas has uniformly found that there is no correlation between sports facility construction and economic development." 

Likewise, the Cato Institute found that the results of its study were "no different from those of the previous studies that found no relationship between the professional sports environment and local economies." 

Other studies have found that even successful arenas provide only localized benefits, rather than improving the region as a whole. Oftentimes, new stadiums actually hurt local businesses by taking away customers, and only serve to reshuffle jobs and capital, rather than attract new investment to the city….This is nothing more than corporate welfare …But cities should not be in the business of giving subsidies to billionaires, and governments should not allow their finances to be co-opted by companies shopping around for special favours - which necessarily come at the expense of the taxpayers. 

The deal to secure a new arena for Edmonton should be upsetting to Alberta's large conservative base and the Occupy Edmonton movement alike.” (Jesse Kline, National Post)

10/28: “Mayor Stephen Mandel said he hopes to meet government officials within the next couple of weeks to discuss ways of paying for the arena, but wouldn't reveal whether his suggestions include gambling money.” (Gordon Kent, Edmonton Journal)

11/1: “The money for the land purchase is not included in the $450-million cost for the arena, and will be paid for out of the city's general revenues, not from a ticket tax or community revitalization levy.
The purchase price only became public Monday, once the title transferred to the city.” (Edmonton Journal)

12/1: “The value of the Edmonton Oilers jumped 16 per cent in the last year to $212 million US, Forbes magazine reported Wednesday. … The overall rise in value came despite the fact that more than half the league’s teams lost money during the 2010-11 season. The Oilers are ranked as the league’s 15th most valuable franchise, with revenues of $96 million and profits of $17.3 million.

Forbes noted that Oilers’ owner Daryl Katz has struck a deal to build a $450-million arena to replace Rexall Place that could raise annual revenues by $20 million. However it noted Katz has little chance of moving the team if the deal falls through.” (Global Edmonton) 


12/14: Northlands will thrive even if the Edmonton Oilers - its anchor tenant and main drawing card - never play another game at Rexall Place after the team's lease expires, president and CEO Richard Andersen said Tuesday. ... “While Oilers owner Daryl Katz dropped the demand that Northlands accept a non-compete clause during negotiations on a new downtown arena, the city agreed to impose a new ticket tax on Rexall Place equal to that earmarked for the new arena. 

Andersen said he doesn't know what the effect of the ticket tax will be. "We have not had any sort of followup, official or unofficial, from anybody from the public sector or whoever. I don't think anyone really knows. These sorts of things take years." 

Andersen said he also doesn't know where the Oilers will play if their lease runs out in 2014 and their new arena is not built.” Bill Mah, Edmonton Journal

12/24:  The Edmonton Journal names the arena the top business story of 2011:
“Under terms of the deal, the city agreed to contribute $125 million toward the arena's cost, with another $125 million coming from a ticket tax or "facility improvement fee" to be levied on patrons.
Katz Group, which previously pledged a $100-million upfront investment, instead agreed to a 30-year mortgage at $5.5 million a year, along with various other commitments and obligations.
Although some criticized the deal as too generous - Katz Group retains all arena revenues and naming rights, and the Oilers stand to receive city promotional fees of $2 million a year over 10 years - others were relieved that a deal, any deal, was finally concluded. 

Except, well, it's not. 

Since the province has yet to commit any of the $100 million in funding the city hoped to secure for the project, key questions remain. And with the Oilers' lease at Rexall Place set to expire in 2014, just two years off, the NHL team may be forced to negotiate an extension with North-lands before it's ready to move into its new home.” (Gary Lamphier, The Edmonton Journal)

12/16: In a year-end interview Mayor Mandel predicts his long-sought deal to build a new arena will be finalized in 2012 and that he anticipates the process will be faster and cheaper than expected.
"I think we can have a fairly good idea of the price by springtime," he said. 

"My hope is you can build it for less than $450 million. Basically, you have to have a price less than that, because you have to allow for contingencies." 

The city, Oilers owner Daryl Katz and a ticket tax are each covering part of the funding, which is still $100 million short. Proponents want the province to make up the difference, although Premier Alison Redford has repeatedly said her government won't provide any extra money for the city-owned, Oilers-run facility. (Gordon Kent, The Edmonton Journal)

12/29: “It's been called the key to one of Edmonton's biggest downtown revitalization projects and a billionaire's massive tax-funded gift, but like it or not, a new arena is finally poised for construction.” (Gordon Kent, Edmonton Journal)

12/31: Gary Lamphier, Edmonton Journal makes bold predictions for 2012:
·         Alberta Premier Alison Redford will lead the Tories to a landslide election win next spring.
·         Under a new municipal sports infrastructure spending initiative, she will allocate $100 million of provincial funds toward Edmonton's new downtown arena. Similar amounts will be allocated toward a new arena in Calgary, and arenas in smaller Alberta cities.
·         Redford's announcement will be made on the evening of April 5th, just before the long Easter weekend. The Canadian Taxpayers Federation will blast the province for investing public money on a facility run by a private enterprise. Redford will not be available for comment.
·         As was the case in 2011, Edmonton Oilers owner Daryl Katz and his subordinates will not grant this columnist an interview in 2012.
·         The Edmonton Oilers will continue to rank among the NHL's most profitable franchises in 2012, according to Forbes magazine. The club's current estimated franchise value of $212 million US will also increase, boosting it to 12th spot among the league's 30 clubs.
·         The Oilers will be forced to negotiate a one-year extension of their current lease at Rexall Place, which expires in 2014. The talks with Northlands will drag on for months.
 

Rest In Peace, my dear sweet friend...

Many months back, I was delighted to spend a little bit of a home visit with @lonesomebilydad (John) checking over some lights for a trailer he uses to haul his Greyhound rescue dogs. At the time, I also took advantage of the opportunity to see his setup in his house, where he lovingly provides to the needs of his extended pet family. Anyone who has pets, knows they are just like your children, and these dogs were clearly John's children.

John was at the kitchen counter, tending to some badly needed coffee, and one of the greys came trotting over to my side, and stuck her nose into my hand... "Pay attention to me!" was the clear intent of the nudge and licks... and I was happily petting away and scratching her ears when John turned around and saw what was going on.

His face went numb, and his jaw dropped.. I didn't think anything much about it at that instant, and I just smiled. .. And then I went a little quizzical and John said something like "but you don't understand!"

He went on to explain that this grey whose name was Sadie, came from a very abusive environment and did not trust strangers.. especially male strangers. But here Sadie was, by my side... and not leaving. I would try to take a few steps, head for the freshly made coffee... and every step I took, Sadie just stayed with me. John continued to be shocked, and I was totally blown away. I mean, I always loved animals, and they almost always took a shine to me... but this was just extra special. At a time in my life where something so simple like unforgiving love was given to me by someone (yes... Sadie IS a 'someone') without hesitation.. Well, I honestly can not tell you how warm I was feeling inside. Sadie my dear, you made my day on that day.

Time would go by, and John and I would exchange tweet updates on how "my girl" was doing, and of course there would be pic's like crazy of family members here and there, running around, noses in the snow, or just lapping up the sun rays while lazing on the couch. It was wonderful to be able to see stuff, those kinds of things that just make you want to smile. :)

Sadly, there is a bad part. Another message from John today, was about cancer. That horrible C word that you'd just love to bash over the head with a hammer. Many of you already know John is living with that word in his personal life... Naturally, I offered the "whatever I can do" stuff, because John is my friend. And a while later I got a DM... and my heart sank.

Sadie... she too was suffering from cancer . ... and today was her last day. John had to do the right thing. I .. I just can not imagine that pain but.. you can tell the love from him was there... big time. And John.. well, John is just one of those big guys.

John says Sadie really loved ice cream... on the last day, the love shows.

Thank you my friend, for being that loving parent, and sharing your family today. .. And thank you for allowing me to share that love as well.

Rest in peace Sadie

Monday, April 15, 2013

Open Letter Part 2

To those reading this post, if there ever was a time when citizens of Edmonton and indeed all taxpayers in Alberta ever needed to speak up, NOW would be it. Our city infrastructure is falling apart, we are close to the point where all comfort levels within our debt limits are being overtaken (making reserve cash for emergencies almost non-existent), and future funding amounts, especially for the MSI side, is no where near a guarantee. You deserve to have a voice in this matter, a voice that will be heard. And it's really very simple, all you need to do is tweet to or call the Premier and Municipal Affairs with something simple like:

"@Premier_Redford @GriffMLA What he said" and include a mention or a link to this post.

Without further a due, here is the open letter.



April 15, 2013

An Open Letter to the Government of the Province of Alberta
Attention: Honourable Premier Alison Redford
Attention: Honourable Doug Griffiths, Minister of Municipal Affairs

Re: Taxpayer concerns

On July 12th 2012, I wrote my first ever open letter, in which I expressed many concerns and suggested some possible solutions. I received a response on November 19th 2012, which addressed some issues but provided no solutions. Today I am writing “part 2”; something that I had never anticipated would be needed.

Taxpayers have expressed continued concerns over the proposed Arena project in the Edmonton Downtown core area. The Mayor has not listened to these concerns. And now we have more deception being cast against the citizens of the City and Province. The fact that the CRL requested, will remove in excess of $71 million from education, considering the current situation, is shocking. The recent implication of using much needed MSI funds designated (in spirit) towards maintaining existing infrastructure and directing that towards a private for profit is deplorable. The Mayor has insisted this project will go through regardless of what citizens want, and this is a complete breach of public trust.

While it is true that council is required to hold public hearings on the bylaw for the CRL and that the majority of the people will speak against this, the Mayor will sit there and twiddle his thumbs and be bored being forced to hold hearings that he has no intention (and apparently no obligation) to listen to. And that is something that slaps the concept of democracy right in the face.

With all due respect, I think I have a simple option that will allow your Government to not only save face with the taxpayers concerning the association with Mr. Katz, but will allow for a legal option to be exercised and bring a little bit of the power back to the people. This is always a good thing.

According to the MGA, with respect to the approval of a requested CRL, section 381.2(4) states the following:

The Lieutenant Governor in Council may approve a community revitalization levy bylaw in whole or in part or with variations and subject to conditions.

The Mayor has stated that it will probably be September before the documents for the arena are signed. In October, Edmonton residents will be voting for a new Council and Mayor. Considering the Public School Board is looking to add a request for additional taxation for education on this same ballot, it would be reasonable for the LG to impose a condition on a CRL approval, requiring the City to also add a question on the same ballot concerning the arena project. Something simple such as “Do you want taxpayer dollars as proposed, going towards this development”… This will let the people be heard. And if the result is yes, then so be it. And if the result is no, then it allows a new council to take a bit of time to craft a better honest deal.

Again, I remind you this is also the opportunity to remind those running for office that they need to listen to the people, and that taxpayer dollars are supposed to be used towards essential items and not to be directed towards any private business. There is NO urgent need for this arena. Rexall will still be there, and it wouldn’t hurt anyone for them to play there for one more additional year.

I have polled the majority of city councilors, and my own MLA has also said… the vast majority of the people do not want this deal, under these terms. Hundreds of thousands of citizens are waiting for their voice to be heard, and your Government is in the unique situation to allow that. I only ask for that right of democracy.

Gary McCallum


Fax to: Premiers Office 780-427-1349
            Municipal Affairs 780-422-9550

Email to: linda.sloan@edmonton.ca; kim.krushell@edmonton.ca; dave.loken@edmonton.ca; ed.gibbons@edmonton.ca; karen.leibovici@edmonton.ca; jane.batty@edmonton.ca; tony.caterina@edmonton.ca; ben.henderson@edmonton.ca; bryan.anderson@edmonton.ca; don.iveson@edmonton.ca; kerry.diotte@edmonton.ca; amarjeet.sohi@edmonton.ca; Stephen.Mandel@edmonton.ca

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Its ALL about .. love

Ok, I get it.. you are probably thinking "what the f... .. he never writes about positive shit".. Well, sorry to shock you and all but, if you knew the real me, you would know that my insides are filled with very deep caring for friends, family.. even folks I don't know. Despite life being a bitch, and wanting to write about things you really should be opening your eyes to, which is still kind of a love... a love of wanting you to wake up... I've had some great things happen as well.

I tend to not be that "mushy" kind of guy, I carry my heart very carefully and I try to share it with the people that are close to me. And with most of you, we aren't really close close...and.. thats cool.. :) .. Recently I've been having some interesting "off twitter" conversations about something I have a lot of, which is passion. Now, passion isn't just about love or caring... its also very much about things you believe strongly about.

I remember when my daughter Katie was growing up (she's 25 now) and that 'first love' hit her. I think she was about 10 or so... and I often wonder how, as a parent, I would deal with that. You can't deny them the right to believe and you sure can't just say "don't worry, you will get over it". .. I had recalled my first love. A love so real, so deep... it shocked me that I could even feel this way. I mean, I knew nothing about love, other than the family thing. We were on holidays in B.C., and had stopped at a place called White Spot, which at the time was a well known dining chain. I must have been about 8 or so, and Dad and I were just sitting at the counter and I recall eating a hamburger and fries.. And as a typical kid, I was glancing around looking at the other people. A few seats away, a man and his daughter were just finishing up their food, and I saw her face. She had to be the same age and.. I don't know why but... my heart just started to race. I was stunned, shocked.. I'm not old enough to feel or understand love but here I was, going head over heels for this girl I'd never seen before. I almost got up and walked over to ask her what her name was, but I was just glued to the chair and couldn't move. As they walked out the door, I noticed the car they got into had Alberta plates and I wanted to write down the license plate number so that I could some how or another find her. Course, I had no pen and I was too embarrassed to ask Dad.. My heart sank as they drove away, and to this very day I often think about that.

It was this experience that taught me how to deal with Katie's problem.. there was a lot of holding, back rubbing, being compassionate and understanding... and crying too.. And she eventually got over it just like I had done, way back then.

Time goes on, loves come and go, friends come and go.. I still take a lot of pleasure from helping people today and I've found some really cool people in twitter that have helped me in some way or another. Many of them know that of course, and some may suspect.. and of course, there are some that also don't know. So this blog post is about those that I do love, in one form or another. Understand that none of this is about sex! It is all about *passion*..

Please.. don't be angry at me if I didn't mention you. This post would be 400 pages long, and no one wants to read that shit.. And.. I'm not ... singling out (???) anyone specifically... Some of the people I haven't even met (yet) although I hope to at some point. This is about concepts of people, because passion is all about concepts as well.

So to start with, huge kudos to Carol Anne (@dream2screen) and Diana (@DancinginLife)... for the passion and caring about life, food, health... and the gentle way of trying to guide you to being better without bashing your head in trying to do it.

Also big props to Rene and Kari (@Rainyfool @kerimayer) and especially, to John (@lonesomebilydad) for their never ending love of saving and rescuing dogs... Side note to John, I have lots of man hugs waiting for our next coffee... and hush, you like them so...

Recently I've gotten tangled in ... ... with this spunky little girl who is so wildly and madly in love with... floss .. (seriously? Floss??) Anitka (@indrdh). You may have to watch out for her (joking!!!) to come tie you up and do your teeth for you if you don't do them..

Family is important, and the list of family folks and values in my twitter world is pretty much endless. One couple though recently went a little above and beyond. Some of you know my car has been prissy lately.. Well, totally out of the blue Erin (@erinklassen) contacted me and asked if she could help with access to some parts I might need. Her husband Josh (@PureiTek) has a friend with a parts store, and one thing lead to another... Josh picked up a part for me (sadly, it didn't cure the problem but thats besides the point) and was kind enough to deliver it to my door. Neither of these people have met me before. Josh and I had a quick chat and he left. Several weeks later an opportunity came up and I was able to meet Erin, along with a host of other people, at a gathering at the edge of Sherwood Park. It wasn't that far from where I am in Edmonton, and I babied my car to get there and back. It was nice to get out for a bit, something I seldom do in the winter time... and I had a really super great time. A few wine samples, some hugs and handshakes from many... nibbled a little sausage here and there (oh shush!) and took home a little pulled pork on a bun, and a few other chocolate type things. Hey, thanks for that!

Anyway... they say love is a many splendor thing. And I have to agree. And it comes in many forms, some which are more passionate than others but still completely meaningful with all. They also say that it is better to have loved and lost, then to never have loved at all. This can be hard to accept but, it also is very true.

Back in high school, one of my favorites was "If you love someone, set them free. If they come back, then you know they are yours. If they don't, then they never were". So with that, I simply say... to my friends...

I love you. I really do.Your passion in so many different ways, drives me to be better, and you complete me.