Mid-sized stadium to start large-sized conversation
It is a stunner, and sized to fill a gaping hole in Edmonton’s infrastructure inventory.
For now, a mid-sized stadium pegged for the city’s Northlands exhibition grounds is off the books. But a citizens’ panel will soon be contemplating a civic strategy for bidding on major events, and a report from that panel to Edmonton city council is due this summer. In addition to laying out the broader vision, it will also help inform the city’s long-awaited decision on a potential bid for the 2026 Commonwealth Games. That’s where the stadium conversation could be restarted, and there are stakeholders hoping it proceeds. But first, a little background. The City of Edmonton’s midsize stadium plan, which was approved by council in March 2014, cites the need for a venue with seating for up to 10,000 people, and centres on a phasedin Clarke Park expansion dependent on increased attendance for the primary tenant, which is now FC Edmonton. The 2022 Commonwealth Games bid committee determined there was a need for just such a stadium to host rugby sevens, but also decided a new facility could be built.
In December 2014, the bid committee informed Northlands executives that their campus in northeast Edmonton had been chosen as the primary site for that venue, to be constructed at a cost of about $140 million.
The total Games bid budget of $1 billion would have included 75 per cent of the cost of the stadium, with Northlands picking up the remainder.
Reg Milley, the former chair of the 2022 bid committee who is now chairing the citizens’ panel, said Thursday he couldn’t comment on the contents of the 2022 bid.
On Feb. 10, 2015, that bid was abandoned before it was delivered to Commonwealth Games Canada. Edmonton officials cited the financial downturn as the primary reason for their decision, and were offered first right of refusal to be Canada’s candidate city for the 2026 Games. That right has lapsed, but an Edmonton bid is still a possibility, according to city manager Linda Cochrane.
Even in the absence of a Games bid, Northlands officials saw merit in the mid-size stadium project and followed through by developing a comprehensive plan for the phasedin construction of the facility, abutting Wayne Gretzky Drive.
At the time, Northlands was still committed to horse racing on their campus, and the plan called for the stadium to be opened to the west as a viewing area for the track.
It also incorporated suites, a buffet restaurant and a casino.
The first phase of stadium construction would have seen 5,000 seats built in a lower bowl, with 15,000 to come in a second loge phase.
The plan also contemplated beer gardens, warm-up, medical and media areas, and a 95,000-square-foot removable dome to make it a year-round venue for minor, high school, college, university and major sports, including the soccer club, FC Edmonton.
Northlands eventually determined the risks were too great, particularly in the absence of capital funding from a potential Games bid budget, so it shelved the plan.
“As a part of Vision 2020 process, we had a six-member working committee explore the feasibility of a mid-size outdoor stadium that built upon prior work performed alongside the 2022 Commonwealth Games bid,” said Northlands president Tim Reid. “To the credit of our board, they felt it was not appropriate at the time.
“However, they preserved the space and site plan for future consideration.”
And if a bid for the 2026 Commonwealth Games proceeds and succeeds, it would be time to consider that stadium plan once again, with or without the horse-racing component.
FC Edmonton is certainly one of the more interested stakeholders.
They play out of Clarke Park and are looking for new digs, and could make use of a mid-sized stadium.
“I’ve talked a little bit with Northlands about some of their plans,” said FC Edmonton owner Tom Fath.
“Building a new facility in Edmonton is incredibly important for us. People, when they go to a professional sport, they want fancy and new, right?
“It’s clear that Edmonton needs a real good, mid-sized stadium. It could be at Northlands. It could be somewhere else. But that’s really important for Edmonton.”
Indeed, in building a venue plan for the Games, committee members had to envision what was right for Edmonton.
“When you’re looking at your venue plan for hosting a Games, first and foremost in that venue plan is really what do you need for the long term, not what’s needed for the Games,” said Brian MacPherson, CEO of Commonwealth Games Canada, who still hopes Edmonton will bid for 2026.
“That’s the legacy value. It’s very important to have the right sized stadium that’s built for the city, not just a singular one-off event.”
The city’s inventory of facilities with artificial turf includes Foote Field with seating for 3,500, and Clarke Park at 5,000, and is topped by Commonwealth Stadium at 56,200.
For now, the mid-sized stadium is still only on a wish list.