Senators’ Cyril Leeder ‘optimistic’ for LeBreton Flats deal

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The clock is ticking on a downtown arena at LeBreton Flats.

Speaking at the Ottawa Senators first annual spring summit with more than 1,500 season-ticket holders Wednesday night, club president Cyril Leeder told the crowd at the Canadian Tire Centre that the clock is now ticking to get a deal in place with the National Capital Commission.

Senators owner Michael Andlauer and his partners have been given an extension on a memorandum of understanding (MOU) until Sept. 20 by NCC chief executive officer Tobi Nussbaum to get a lease agreement in place.

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Andlauer is bullish on being downtown because he’d also like to be closer to Gatineau. Leeder told the fans Wednesday night the Senators will play a Black-and-White intra-squad game in Gatineau during training camp.

“It’s a complicated and very complex project that’s going to take some time,” Leeder said. “I’d say not to expect a weekly or even monthly update because it’s going to be a bit of lumpy process.

“We do have an MOU with the NCC on a small parcel of land at LeBreton Flats. Sept. 20 is an important date because that’s the date when we need to get a certificate of agreement with the NCC or that deal expires. We’re working diligently and hard and trying to do everything we can to try to to get to that agreement.

“Again, I can’t tell you when we’ll be moving downtown, I can just tell you that we’re working very hard.”

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Speaking to Postmedia afterwards, Leeder noted he’s “optimistic” that the organization will put pen to paper with the NCC.

“We’ve got the MOU and we’re working hard to make that happen. We’ve got until September to get a definitive agreement so we’ve got to get that done soon if we’re going to move that forward,” Leeder said.

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“Yes, I’m an optimistic person, I’m not going to get into the details of the discussions, but I’m feeling there’s a willingness to make an agreement there. We’re trying.”

Can the deadline be extended?

“It could, but you need two sides to do that,” Leeder said. “But we’ve all agreed we’re going to try to get this done before September and we’re focused on that (timeline).”

Ottawa mayor Mark Sutcliffe publicly has offered up alternatives, which include 13.5 acres at Bayview Yards. Plus, city staff also have suggested that there may be sites available downtown where federal government buildings currently sit.

Leeder noted the club won’t move anytime in the next two or three years, which is why the Senators are making investments in the current building.

The organization has upgraded the lighting, is replacing the elevators in the off-season and upgrading the hockey facilities. The players will arrive back to a new “state-of-the-art” gym and the coaches will have new offices.

“The downtown arena, that’s going to take some time, that’s not going to happen overnight,” Leeder said. “There’s a group that would like us to be down in two or three years dropping the puck, it won’t happen that fast. This is a big project and we’re working hard at it.

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“I can tell you I’ve spent a lot of my own personal time working on the arena. Erin Crowe, our CEO and CFO, heads up the project from our end. Myself and Chris Phillips are working closely with her to help move this thing along.”

While representatives of the two sides continue bi-weekly meetings to try to get a lease agreement in place, league sources told Postmedia in April there are issues to be settled in this negotiation, not the least of which is the size of the parcel of land.

The club also has concerns about parking around the arena because it’s difficult to rely on Ottawa’s troubled Light Rail Transit system for fans to get in and out of the arena. The Senators want people to be able to arrive and leave the rink in a timely fashion.

The NCC has set aside a seven-acre piece of land on Albert Street between Preston Street and City Centre, just west of Ottawa’s new central library, which is now under construction. The Senators won preferred bidder status to build a new rink in June 2022.

Nussbaum has noted publicly there is flexibility for more space and there has been some talk amongst developers in town that could as much as five or six more acres, which would allow the club to build an arena district.

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He also noted after a meeting with the NCC’s board of directors in April that there is a Plan B in place if the Senators don’t make a deal at LeBreton.

“There’s no question that there will be a point at which we will either have a lease or not. I can’t say with 100% certainty when that is. Is it in September? I certainly hope so,” Nussbaum said. “There’s no ultimatum at this stage, just both sides working in good faith to get this done by the September deadline.”

There may not be an ultimatum, but it sure feels like we’re at the point where the Senators either make a deal with the NCC or the door on building a rink at LeBreton Flats will be closed completely.

bgarrioch@postmedia.com

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