EINAR CHRISTENSEN
There has been much discussion about the possibility of building a 24,000-seat football stadium in Halifax/Dartmouth — and its potential location.
If a positive financial case can be made for a football stadium, I’d probably support it, but not at any cost — and definitely not in the proposed location on the former Shannon Park lands. Much (perhaps, all) of the promotion for this project has been initiated by the Maritime Football Limited Partnership (MFLP). If a stadium is to be built in this region, the following conditions should be met:
1. Hold a binding referendum (either for HRM residents, or even all Nova Scotians — as all provincial residents may be asked to pay for it), asking: Should a stadium be built in HRM?; Should it be built on the Shannon Park lands?; and would you be willing to pay some portion of the capital and operating costs through your taxes? (Canada Lands does not “own” this parcel of land; it is held jointly by Nova Scotian and/or Canadian citizens and First Nations Peoples.)
2. No “public” money should be provided for this project — either during construction or for operating costs: if the promoters are so convinced it’s financially feasible and viable, MFLP should provide or procure all the initial and ongoing funding.
3. It should not be built on the Shannon Park lands. This real estate is much too valuable and strategically located to be allocated for this venture. These lands should be used first and foremost for (mixed) residential and recreational purposes (green space, walking trails, playgrounds, etc.).
The view south through the harbour is too valuable to be wasted on a sports stadium and a huge parking lot. For a stadium of this size to be efficient, it would need parking for thousands of vehicles; the stadium and parking lot would apparently cover 12 acres of land.
Last October, I attended an NHL hockey game at Ottawa’s Canadian Tire Place. It has seating for about 18,600 patrons. So the proposed football stadium would need a similar-sized parking area. After the game was over, it took us 25 minutes just to exit the parking lot! Because of the restricted area in Shannon Park and the inadequacy of the adjacent streets, can you imagine the nightmare of the traffic jam from upwards of 5,000 vehicles exiting this confined space?
4. An expanded transit system (during game days) would help, but Ottawa’s transit system is much better developed than Halifax’s, and Ottawa still has the problem outlined above.
5. If the project does go ahead, any cost overruns (and there will be some) must also be borne totally by the MFLP.
As many permanent residents live in the Shannon Park area, they’d be inconvenienced before, during and after events.
Unless these (and other unforeseen) conditions/obstacles can be met or overcome, the stadium (if built) must be located elsewhere. There is plenty of serviceable land outside the Halifax/Dartmouth downtown area for such a stadium.
Einar Christensen lives in Halifax
