Let’s talk about the Canalta Centre

It seems every year, just like the downtown core, the Canalta Centre becomes the hot topic around the city.

All is quiet until the Medicine Hat Tigers playoff games, and then social media starts to hone in on the Canalta Centre and attack. This year it was especially bad — and rightfully so. The Tabbies hit a 21-year playoff attendance low this year, when 2,943 people showed up for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference quarter-final against the Brandon Wheat Kings on a Sunday afternoon.

The News ran an in-depth story on the attendance issues, which created quite a bit of conversation on its Facebook page.

After not even coming close to selling out any playoff games, the Canalta Centre’s general manager, Tammy Sweeney, made a lengthy post on Facebook about the upcoming Cars and Guitars lineup, and that there is pretty much no star power. It’s a great post, it’s absolutely worth a read and will be linked at the bottom of this editorial.

The ‘too long, didn’t read’ synopsis of the post is that the Canalta Centre cannot afford to have big name bands and events without hardcore, real support from the community — and she’s right.

If the $70M building that is the Canalta Centre is ever going to succeed, people need to start showing up to events — it really is that simple.

People in this city are so quick to complain about the headliners who come to the city, yet there has been a consistent mix of what people can see.

Country, rock, comedy, figure skating, ice hockey, classic rock, rap — there’s been pretty much something for everyone, yet there’s never a sellout.

People also complain about concession prices, but whatever happened to eating and drinking before you get somewhere?

If people don’t like the prices at the concessions, then go support some local, or heck, even chain restaurants before your show.

People have to want Canalta Centre to work, in order for it to work — and that’s a pretty big issue, most would agree.

Revisionist history is easy, of course, but should the arena have been built downtown?

While the land around the current Canalta Centre is being developed, downtown would be in a far better place right now if it had the Canalta Centre, a hotel, The Keg and even maybe, possibly a Swiss Chalet.

The Canalta is a world-class facility, no one can argue that. We’re spoiled to have something that nice in a city of 65,000, but maybe we just missed the mark on it.

Again, hindsight is totally 20/20, but maybe we just swung for the fences with this one and popped out — maybe it’s a great investment for the future. Only time will tell, really.

The post that sparked this editorial — www.facebook.com/CanaltaCentre/posts/1934294006644795

(Mo Cranker is a News reporter. To comment on this and other editorials, go to www.medicinehatnews.com/opinions.)