Province promising $52M for downtown Edmonton event park

The province has dedicated $50 million to a new fan event park next door to Edmonton's Rogers Place. CTV News Edmonton's Jeremy Thompson reports.

Edmonton’s mayor is excited about provincial funding earmarked for a planned indoor/outdoor event park in Ice District.

The event park would be the first event centre of its kind in Canada, according to the city.

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The planned space is 140,000 square-feet in size and has capacities of 6,000 people outside and 2,500 inside.

The event park is set to be built just east of Rogers Place between 102 Street and 101 Street.

According to an economic study done by the Oilers Entertainment Group (OEG), the event park will add $18.4 million to the local gross domestic product and support 216 jobs.

The indoor space could be used for trade shows, markets, craft shows, classes, meetings, shows and concerts.

One-third of the booking time will be available for public benefit, available for use by community groups and nonprofits at below-market rates, the city added.

Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said the city will be consulting with Edmontonians on what they envision for the ongoing development in the downtown area.

“We have made a number of transformational changes and investments in downtown, we are seeing very positive results of those investments and we want to build on that success,” Sohi said.

“If the event park allows us to do so, we want to know that from Edmontonians.”

The money from the province is part of a $106 million allotment over three years for downtown revitalization. The funding is being split between three projects:

• The Village in Ice District - $16.4 million;
• The Coliseum demolition - $37.5 million; and
• The event park - $52 million.

“This agreement would ensure that Edmonton continues to be one of Canada’s and North America’s leading entertainment and event districts,” Premier Danielle Smith said in a news release.

Sohi said the money is a “step in the right direction.”

“It will help us attract more activities in downtown, it will help us build more housing in downtown,” he added.

In order to fund its portion of the park, the city will need the province to grant it an extension and amendment to the current downtown Community Revitalization Levy (CRL).

A CRL is a financing tool created by the Municipal Government Act that allows municipalities to borrow against future property tax revenues to help pay for infrastructure development.

The current downtown CRL has been in place since 2015 and has funded a number of projects, including Alex Decoteau Park, the replacement of Harbin Gate and most of the city’s contribution to Rogers Place.

According to the city, the current CRL plan doesn’t allow it to fully address challenges to projects in the downtown area such as increased construction costs, operating costs and safety and security.

A report from city administration on the downtown CRL is scheduled to be presented on March 5.

“Look what happened around Rogers place, the condominiums, the office towers and brand new hotel and bars and pubs that we are seeing, that’s what I envision with the extension that we will be able to do more of,” Sohi said.

The total cost of the event park is estimated to be $250 million. The plan is for the park to be owned by the city and operated by OEG.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Jeremy Thompson