Senators take major step toward new stadium

The idea of a new stadium for the Ottawa Senators is finally coming to fruition. Earlier Monday, the National Capital Commission (NCC) and Capital Sports Development Inc. (CSDI) announced the agreement of purchase and sale of the LeBreton Flats (roughly 11 acres of land) to the Senators.

It’s a major step in the right direction for the Senators to move on from the Canadian Tire Centre, which broke ground in 1994 and opened in 1996. The Canadian Tire Centre has been the home of the Ottawa-based franchise since the team’s relocation from the Ottawa Civic Centre.

There are several issues regarding the Senators’ continued presence at the Canadian Tire Centre. For one, the stadium is located a fair distance southwest of downtown Ottawa, which makes it unnecessarily difficult to get to with common forms of transportation. In contrast, the LeBreton Flats land parcel is located in downtown Ottawa, adjacent to the Ottawa River, and is only a short walk from Parliament Hill.

Outside of the relatively long distance to the game, the Canadian Tire Centre has suffered the normal wear and tear that would be expected of any stadium that has stood for nearly 30 years. The typical life span of any sports stadium is roughly 30 to 50 years, with those that have existed for longer requiring fairly pricey renovations. Michael Andlauer, the relatively new principal owner of the Senators franchise, has chosen to build a new stadium altogether.

In a statement from the team, Senators’ President and CEO, Cyril Leeder, said, “We are pleased to reach an agreement of purchase and sale with the NCC to take the next step in this process. There are still many more hurdles to clear and we look forward to working with the NCC and other stakeholders to achieve our shared vision of creating an event centre at LeBreton Flats that can be enjoyed by our Ottawa-Gatineau community.“