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Campbell: Construction of NHL-sized arena to be proposed in Southern Ontario

Ken Campbell, The Hockey News, Nov 22 2011

The man who hopes to build a 20,000-seat arena in suburban Toronto has been an NHL owner-in-waiting for a number of years and is on a first-name basis with many members of the league’s board of governors, but Graeme Roustan insists he does not plan to pursue an existing or expansion franchise for the proposed rink.

But when you spend north of $300 million to build an arena in the most fertile and underserviced hockey market in the world, you’d have to think he’s taking the approach that if he builds it, they will come to him.

“The answer is no,” Roustan said in a wide-ranging interview with THN.com when asked if he will be pursuing an NHL franchise. “This facility was prepared and designed specifically as a multi-purpose center with the focus on concerts and cultural events and I have no expectations in regards to any professional sports team.”

But make no mistake. Roustan is a hockey guy through and through. The 51-year-old native of Sherbrooke, Que., was raised in Montreal and is the chairman of the board and CEO of Bauer, the world’s largest manufacturer of hockey equipment, and was instrumental in taking the company public earlier this year. (Bauer has nothing to do with his attempts to build the arena, however.) The dual Canadian-American citizen was in the running to buy the Montreal Canadiens before a group headed by Geoff Molson purchased the team in 2009. He also turned down a chance to buy the Tampa Bay Lightning a year later and is one of the first people in the contact list of NHL owners and would-be owners looking for investors. One of his companies has been instrumental in building hundreds of arenas around the world and he is currently working with the charitable foundations for both the Canadiens and Ottawa Senators to build public-use outdoor facilities in those cities.

For the purpose of building his Toronto area facility, Roustan has formed a company called GTA (Greater Toronto Area) Sports and Entertainment, along with Toronto developer Rudy Bratty, who was once described by The Globe and Mail as, “the man who built Toronto.” Bratty is the owner of 250 acres in the northeast Toronto suburb of Markham where there are plans to build a $3-billion development called Markham Centre, which will be home to condos, office towers, retail shops and the GTA Centre arena (corporate name to follow, no doubt). Much of the infrastructure and roadwork that a new arena would require are already being planned for the Markham Centre project, which is scheduled to be completed by 2025.

Roustan is in the process of putting together his proposal, which he plans to take to the council of the Town of Markham early in 2012. If the project is approved, construction could begin as early as next spring, with a projected completion date of 2014. He has already secured the services of BBB Architects, which designed the Air Canada Centre, BMO Field and Rogers Centre in Toronto, GM Place in Vancouver and designed the recent renovations to Madison Square Garden. The group also has a building agreement with PCL, the world’s largest construction company.

The NHL knows about the project and has been in communication with Roustan, but deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in an email to THN.com there are no guarantees in place.

“We are aware (the facility) is being contemplated,” Daly said. “Yes, we have had discussions with Mr. Roustan and he has been informed that in deciding whether to proceed (or not) with the project, he should assume that no NHL franchise will be forthcoming. There is no current contemplation of locating an NHL franchise in Markham.”

But as long as an NHL-ready building is waiting in such a rich hockey market, the rink will always be a target for a possible relocation spot for troubled franchises, of which there are many. Clearly, Roustan does not want to make the same mistake that was made by Jim Balsillie, who was aggressive in his pursuit of an NHL franchise. Roustan would be well-advised to take a page from the book the Winnipeg Jets wrote on patience and silence when it comes to charming the NHL.

Whether that means the Phoenix Coyotes or any other of the league’s troubled franchises will be on the move anytime soon to the Toronto area is open to conjecture. But this much is certain, according to those in the know in NHL circles: The league has absolutely no intention of propping up the Phoenix Coyotes beyond this season and the City of Glendale has made it fairly clear it will not be extending any more $25 million lifelines to offset the team’s massive losses. In nine home games this season, the Coyotes have had four announced crowds of fewer than 10,000 and with no serious owner on the horizon, will undoubtedly be the subject of much discussion at the league’s board of governors meeting next week.

Just reading the tea leaves here, but could the league possibly find a temporary home for the Coyotes for a couple of seasons while a suitable NHL market is found? If that’s the case, you’d have to think the Greater Toronto Area would be at the top of the list.

Even though there are no guarantees forthcoming from the NHL, Roustan plans to forge ahead with his building, saying it has already been deemed to be able to turn a profit on concerts even without an NHL tenant. The group has already had extensive talks with Live Nation Entertainment, which has about 60 percent of the lucrative concert market. When big-name acts come to Toronto, they often find themselves playing one show at the Air Canada Centre and smaller venues around Toronto after that because the arena is booked for hockey and basketball. Another large venue would give them a chance to have more lucrative shows in a metropolitan area of five million people.

Despite both Roustan’s and the NHL’s careful words, you’d have to think it would only be a matter of time before a second Toronto NHL team arrives. By placing the arena where it is, the franchise would not have to indemnify the Buffalo Sabres, but it would have to pay a sizeable fee to the Maple Leafs. The Leafs have long contended they have a veto over any franchise moving into their territory, but the NHL has disputed that notion a number of times.

Roustan did acknowledge his company would be interested in housing an NHL franchise if one became available.

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MCKENZIE: 19,500 SEAT ARENA POSSIBLE FOR MARKHAM, ONT.

Bob MacKenzie, TSN.CA, Nov 22 2011

It needs to be said up front, and quite emphatically, that the NHL has no plans to put a second franchise in southern Ontario.

But if the league's view on that should ever change, there is a potential 19,500-seat arena project in Markham, Ont., that could one day turn out to be a viable option.

Sources tell TSN that Graeme Roustan, the chairman of the hockey equipment company, Bauer, who also moonlights as an arena builder, and Toronto-area land developer Rudy Bratty, ranked in 2010 by Canadian Business Magazine as the 62nd richest man in Canada with a net worth of $940 million, are working together in a massive real estate venture that includes a 19,500-seat facility that they hope will be built regardless of the NHL interest, or lack thereof, in southern Ontario.

The project is located a slapshot away from where Tampa Bay Lightning superstar Steven Stamkos grew up in Unionville, or the western part of the town of Markham that is situated on the northeast border of Metro Toronto.

The arena would be built on a tract of land owned by Bratty, just west of the existing GO Transit train station in Unionville, and just north of Highway 407, but would be part of a much larger sports and entertainment complex, not unlike the Staples Center and L.A. Live entertainment block in Los Angeles. And all of that would be just one element of what's known as the Bratty-inspired Markham Centre, a $3 billion , 900-plus acre high-density residential, commercial and retail development that is part of the official plan of the town.

Markham mayor Frank Scarpitti is believed to be a proponent of an arena venture and town councillors are well aware of the project, although they have all signed non-disclosure agreements and cannot discuss it publicly. Mayor Scarpitti will reportedly update council on the project on Tuesday night during an in-camera, or private, segment of the regularly-scheduled town council meeting.

If this project is green lighted, the expectation is the arena will be economically viable even without a major spots tenant, that concert and show promoter Live Nation and arena management firm Global Spectrum are said to have some interest as well.

It is not a reach to suggest that Roustan's and Bratty's ultimate vision would be to one day secure an NHL franchise. Roustan was in the running to purchase the Montreal Canadiens at one point.

But NHL commissioner Gary Bettman's message to all of would-be suitors, including those from Quebec City, has been the same: do not construct a building thinking there's a chance to get an NHL franchise because the league has no plans at this time to relocate another team.

Nevertheless, the wheels are in motion to get this arena built in Markham. While nothing has been formally approved by Markam town council, there appears to be a desire to try to break ground on this project as early as 2012 with a potential completion date of sometime in 2014.

Whether that's realistic, remains to be seen, but it's quite likely we'll be hearing a lot more about this project.

Dean
M.Ed (Coaching)
Ch.P.C. (Chartered Professional Coach)
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