Asper out of Blue Bomber stadium plans

Businessman David Asper is no longer partof the deal for a new Blue Bombers stadium in Winnipeg.

Mayor Sam Katz made the announcement following a closed-door meeting with councillors about the latest financing arrangements for the newfacility, to be located on the University of Manitoba campus.

Asper will be repaid $4 million for his contributions to the project thus far, Katz said.

Katz also told reporters theguaranteed maximum costfor the stadium is$190 million a price that has been speculated about in the media for several weeks.

Without the private sector investment by Asper, the facility will now be fully paid for by municipal andprovincial levels ofgovernment and the Winnipeg Football Club (WFC).

Theprovince will put upabout $75 millionwith the expectation that it willbe paid back over many years from tax revenueearned from the old stadium site once it has beendeveloped, Katz said.

The WFCwill provide about$85 million, which it willacquire througha long-term loan from the province.

The City of Winnipeg will cover $12.5 million of the cost, to be financed from the sale of the old stadium site near Polo Park. The city and province will also combine for the remaining $17.5 through a variety ofgrants.

Although the pieces of the prolonged puzzle are now in place,the proposed financing arrangement must still be approved by the bombers board of directors andthe University of Manitoba. City council must also have a formal vote on the matter.

And that all has to happen within an extremely tight timeframe.Katz said the $190 million maximumcost guarantee will expire in a couple of days.

City council meets for the finaltime thisyear on Dec. 15. Before councillors can approve the deal, they must know everyone else is on board.

And if the deal isn't signed off on by then, the costs will only increase, Katz said.

'A few days away'

Earlier Monday, Winnipeg Football Club board chair Bill Watchorn said the deal was likelystill a few days away.

A spokesperson for the club told CBC News the boardwas set to meet atabout 4 p.m. Monday to discuss the deal.

The original estimates for the stadium came in at $115 million, but an updated budget was presented in November to the stakeholders in the deal, indicated the cost had shot up from $115 million to as much as $180 million.

Two days later, Asper, told CBC News there is a chance he might bow out of the process.

Started in spring 2009

The new 33,000-seat stadium would replace the Bombers' current home, the Canad Inns stadium at Polo Park, which needs more than $50 million in repairs. The new facility would also be able to expand seating to accommodate 40,000 for major events like the Grey Cup.

In addition to the stadium, the eight-hectare site at Chancellor-Matheson Road and University Crescent on thecampuswill feature a multiplex athletic facility for the university and its Bison sports teams.

An inflatable dome will cover the field in winter so university teams can use it during the CFL off-season.

When theoriginal plan for the stadium was announced in April 2009, Asper committed $100 million in private money to building it.

In return, the federal government pledged $15 million for the amateur sport component of the facility and the Manitoba government offered up $20 million.

But itall hinged on the successful development by Asper's real estate company, Creswin Properties Ltd., of a ritzy retail plaza on the site of Canad Inns Stadium.

When Asper's plan was slowed by financial problems with the retail plaza,the provincial government announced in March 2010 it wouldcontribute $90-million in bridge financing to fast-track construction.

The date forthe stadium to bereadychanged tothe 2011 CFL season.

There has been no word on whether that timeline is still on track with the latest plan or whether the federal government is still on board for themultiplex component.