Billionaire oil tycoon and Calgary Flames co-owner Murray Edwards spoke about his forthcoming demand for a new arena on Friday (it’s Canada, they have some crazy Canadian Thanksgiving in August or something, so Friday was just a regular news day), and here’s what he said:
“We’ve been looking at options for both new buildings and new sites. We haven’t finalized on anything but we’re getting close and what we’re trying to understand is what works as the best model that works for the province, works for the city and works for the teams,” he told reporters at a business forum in Lake Louise.
“And when I say that, I don’t mean that in the context of the financial support or contributions. We haven’t got to that model, but the concept of something that’s an iconic building for the province, an iconic building for the city, something that’s a gathering place. You know, arenas in cities are gathering places, where people gather for pro sports or concerts or conventions.”
So let’s see, that comes down to: We want a new arena, but we don’t know where or how to pay for it, but we want it to look really really cool and arenas are important because people go to them!
Wake me when Michael Eisner weighs in, okay?