Halifax takes step toward stadium for CFL team

HALIFAX — Halifax council has voted to take a closer look at a proposed 24,000-seat stadium, the pivotal component of a bid to land a Canadian Football League team for the East Coast’s largest city.

In a unanimous decision, council has directed municipal staff to complete a thorough review of the business case put forward by Maritime Football Limited Partnership, which is in the final stages of securing a conditional CFL expansion franchise.

City staff are also expected to seek changes to the Halifax’s charter that would potentially allow for a special tax arrangement and assist with debt financing of the massive project — pending the outcome of the business case analysis.

“There’s a lot of people that want a stadium at any cost, there are a lot of people that don’t want a stadium at any cost, I want a stadium at the right cost,” Mayor Mike Savage told council.

“So that’s what I want to see when this comes back, is it the right cost?”

The group has proposed Shannon Park, a 38-hectare swath of land on the east side of Halifax Harbour, as the preferred location for the stadium, which comes with an estimated price tag of up to $190 million.

Anthony LeBlanc, founding partner of Maritime Football, said he felt good about council’s 15-0 vote to move the process along.

LeBlanc said he felt confident his group would be able to continue to work with city staff, the province, landowner Canada Lands Company, and the Millbrook First Nation.

“Ultimately there’s optimism that we can do this as long as everybody is at the table understanding what the shared risk is.”

LeBlanc said the city has made it clear it is not interested in owning the stadium, which would be the responsibility of his group.

“They are not averse to being involved as financial partners because they see the value a stadium brings, but their biggest concern was the ongoing risk of operating a facility. We understand that; it’s not our only contribution but it will be our main contribution.”