No more mister nice guy. The deal that would have seen chairperson of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) Larry Tanenbaum foot the bill for a new athletic complex and stadium on U of T’s vacant Varsity site fell through this weekend.
“We worked hard with the University of Toronto on plans to develop an arena and stadium at the Varsity site,” said Richard Peddie, president and chief executive officer of MLSE in a media statement released Saturday, March 13. “However, we found that the proposition simply does not work from our standpoint.”
As recently as early February, U of T remained publicly optimistic that the deal would go through. In the Varsity’s Jan. 29 issue, U of T’s VP of development Jon Dellandrea said that “Tanenbaum is really interested in quality of life in this city, and he believes, as we believe, that this [stadium deal] would enhance the quality of life in Toronto.” Dellandrea did admit at the time, however, that “this is a very thin deal.”
This breaking decision marks the end of more than three months of negotiations between the university and MLSE. A possible partnership to build a new stadium had been in the works since talks began in late November, 2003. The proposed athletic complex was slated to include a 25,000 seat stadium, an all-weather track, a refurbished Varsity ice arena, a second ice surface, and renovated commercial space along the Bloor Street facade.
If the prospect of re-building on the empty Varsity site an eyesore on campus was not enough to call the U of T brass to attention, Tanenbaum and company were willing to sweeten the deal: MLSE offered to cover all of the stadium and arena’s capital building costs. In return MLSE would have owned the building until a fixed date, at which time the company would donate the land and complex back to the university. Details such as these had not been worked out by the time this weekend’s announcement was made.
The reasons behind the collapsed negotiations have yet to be revealed. At this point, the understanding is that MLSE and not U of T backed away from the bargaining table. “U of T is committed to this project and has every intention of seeking partnership with government at all three levels,” said Dellandrea in a Saturday morning press release. “Our paramount priority continues to be the development of high-quality athletic and recreational facilities for our student and campus community. We are continuing to have discussion with the Toronto Argonauts and the Canadian Soccer Association around the possibility of developing a 25,000 seat stadium that would meet our collective needs.”
The Argonauts, Toronto’s Canadian Football League (CFL) franchise, joined the partnership talks in their nascent stages. After declaring bankruptcy last season, the Argos began searching for a more economically viable alternative to their current playing field the SkyDome and zeroed in on U of T’s campus. Successful stadium-sharing partnerships between CFL teams and Canadian universities are beginning to crop up across the country, with the lucrative deal between McGill and the Montreal Alouettes being the first and best example.
While the Argonauts may still be game to team up with U of T, the university can kiss the prospect of luring major league hockey to the campus goodbye. As part of the deal with U of T, MLSE was preparing to use the proposed second ice rink for Toronto Maple Leaf practices. Now that the plans have been nixed, Toronto’s hockey heroes will continue sharpening their skates on the other side of town. MLSE owns both the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Toronto Raptors.
The university has been looking to redevelop the Varsity site since the former Varsity Stadium was condemned and demolished in July 2002. That same year students voted against a levy to help fund a $55 million renovation project by drastically hiking student fees. U of T confirms that it is continuing to seek out funding opportunities, both public and private, to build a new sports complex on the site.
