Stadium shortfall closer to $10 million than $40 million, source says
The shortfall for the proposed Ivor Wynne Stadium renovation is closer to $10 million than $40 million, and the province is willing to put up the extra funding, a source tells The Spectator.
Requesting anonymity because they were not authorized to speak on the issue, the source said the cost estimates for overhauling the east-end stadium include a hefty contingency and the actual cost of building the stadium is much lower than $159.1 million forwarded by Infrastructure Ontario ? and so is the funding gap of $38.6 million.
City staff is scheduled to report to council Thursday morning on the progress of discussions between the city, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and representatives from the provincial and federal government.
City council voted Monday to cap its contribution at $45 million while upper levels of government have committed a combined $70 million. A city report suggests $5 million can be generated via a naming-rights fee.
Councillor Lloyd Ferguson has been challenging the Infrastructure Ontario numbers since they were unveiled to council Monday. He says per-seat costs for the Ivor Wynne project are wildly inflated compared to previously proposed West Harbour and East Mountain stadium projects and other stadiums of similar size.
“My issue is that we have the wrong estimate based on what they gave us in the past and what BMO Field cost to build,” Ferguson said Wednesday. “We should have more than enough money.”
It’s unclear, however, whether Infrastructure Ontario is willing to revise its cost estimates for the 25,000-seat Ivor Wynne project — which includes a new grandstand on the north side and improvements to the south structure — or whether the Pan Am committee would accept anything less than a fully funded plan.
City manager Chris Murray told council Monday he has received a “commitment” from the province that they will provide extra funding.
“It’s a matter of what our commitment is and then they’re going to look at what their commitment will be,” Murray said.
On Wednesday, Murray met with representatives from Infrastructure Ontario and Toronto 2015, the committee running the Pan Am Games, but was unavailable for comment.
Other city representatives, including mayor Bob Bratina, did not return calls.
Ticat owner Bob Young sent a response to questions regarding the talks via e-mail.
“I cannot talk today, or, I suspect, this week. We are in heavy discussions with all our partners, and are studying all options as I write this, so there is nothing definite about any of the answers I might give you today,” Young wrote. “We will be in touch as soon as the dust starts to settle on the outstanding issues, one way or the other.”
Sophia Aggelonitis, MPP for Hamilton Mountain and a member of Premier Dalton McGuinty’s cabinet, declined to comment through a spokesperson.
If the Hamilton stadium deal falls apart, another backup plan appears to have fallen through. Reports from Brantford indicate that city is not interested in building a smaller venue due to concerns over costs and tight timelines. Only Mississauga remains among the Plan B cities floated by Toronto 2015.
http://www.thespec.com/news/local/ar...on-source-says
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