City won’t lead CFL effort

Halifax team an ‘exciting opportunity,’ but not a capital priority: mayor

Halifax Mayor Mike Savage says bringing a Canadian Football League franchise to the city is an “exciting opportunity,” but the municipality will not be leading the charge.

The CFL confirmed Thursday it has had talks with a group looking to secure an expansion franchise for Halifax.

Savage said there has been a long-standing interest in the city for a football franchise and stadium - Halifax currently does not have one suitable for a CFL team.

“My consistent response has been that a stadium is not a capital priority at this time,” said Savage in a statement. “Any proposal would need to be private sector led and make economic sense for the municipality.”

Savage added that while the project is not yet at the decision stage, it “could be an exciting opportunity for the Halifax region.”

The league said in a statement there have been discussions with a group interested in securing a franchise for Halifax, but the talks are preliminary.

“While this group has been professional, enthusiastic and impressive, these conversations are relatively new and a very thorough process of due diligence must be put in place and completed before we can fully assess the viability of the project,” it said.

A league official said a timetable for potentially awarding a franchise has not yet been established.

TSN reported Thursday the group made a presentation to the league’s board of governors several weeks ago in Toronto. The report also identified Anthony LeBlanc, a former president and CEO of the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes, as a partner in the group.

A franchise in the Maritimes would give the league a coastto-coast reach and would also allow it to form two five-team divisions.

The CFL awarded a conditional franchise to Halifax in 1982 - it was named the Atlantic Schooners - but financing for a stadium never came about. The league played regular-season games in Moncton, N.B., in 2010, 2011 and ‘13.

In 2014, city staff presented Halifax council’s committee of the whole with several potential large-scale capital projects for the municipality, such as a performing arts centre, multipad arenas and a stadium.

The presentation noted a desire for a multi-use stadium in Halifax, and that the city is “now large enough to support a stadium.”