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Today the Flames are releasing details about their proposed arena/stadium/mixed use project. A private season ticket holder session (occurring presently) is to be followed by a public press conference at 2:30pm this afternoon. 

What we know so far: The proposed project would be in Calgary’s West Village and feature an event centre, field house and FIFA sized sports stadium. More details as they surface. 

What we don’t know so far: Who will pay for what. See update below.

The city and province are justifiably wary about giving up public funded towards an arena. We also know that sports teams and marketing firms have spent the last three decades figuring out the most efficient ways to bilk tax payers out of literally billions of dollars for elaborate arenas and real estate development projects. Today’s media volley is likely the Flames first step in a PR campaign designed to court public “investment”. 

There are ways for a public/private partnership to potentially work, but usually the arrangement is: the team gets the rights and the revenue while the tax payers get the risk and the expenses. We’ll see if the Flames have come up with something a bit more equitable or not. 

Add your thoughts in the comments. 

Update: Proposed project could cost up to $1.2 Billion (!!)

Update 2: If I’m reading this right, the Flames want fans/the public to cover $700M through a few different mechanisms.