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Calgary council heads behind closed doors to restart Flames arena negotiations

Calgary's Scotiabank Saddledome is shown in a stock photo. (Getty Images) Calgary's Scotiabank Saddledome is shown in a stock photo. (Getty Images)
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Calgary councillors are getting a closed-door update Tuesday morning on the next steps in negotiating a new home for the Calgary Flames. 

The agreement to build an arena in Victoria Park fell apart officially at the start of this year when the city and Calgary Sports and Entertainment Corporation (CSEC) couldn't agree on additional funding for the project. 

In January, councillors agreed to 'start fresh' and gauge the interest of the Flames' ownership group about whether a new deal could be established. The city agreed to find a third-party group to act as an intermediary between it and CSEC. 

An agreement to build a new event centre was signed in December 2019, with the city and CSEC splitting the cost of the $550 million project. Costs increased to $634 million before the deal expired on New Year's Eve. 

If CSEC does not wish to move forward in partnering for a new arena, the city will explore other partners for an event centre. 

Mayor Jyoti Gondek has previously said the city could be open to a tenancy agreement for a new event centre in which a private company would step in to build and manage a new arena for the Flames. Such agreements exist in many U.S. sports markets, including T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, owned by AEG, and Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, owned by Oak View Group.

A short public update of the progress is expected some time Tuesday. 

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