'You need to educate yourself on the history how the KED came into play'...Pat Verbeek
Do tell Pat Verbeek....This proposal was started with Marianne Matichuck term on council and a call for big projects With a thought that we could get MAJOR Dollars from a casino to HELP pay for the cost of building an arena/entertainment venue and lessen the blow to the tax payers of this community. This council and the previous council now have the tax payer pickinging up the FULL cost of building the Arena/Entertainment Venue. $125 -150 million (but who really knows what the final cost will really be). And just too be clear for ALL those who still don't get it...ZULICH IS NOT PAYING FOR A NEW ARENA - THE TAX PAYER IS! 1.5% on our tax bill for how many years.
Have I missed anything? or do I need to educate myself somemore...if so tell me on what? It will take a few years but you and the taxpayers will find out how right councilor Signoretti was and is.
I don't want to go back on every detail, but I will simplify. Zulich approached the City for a P3 RFP, which means basically a Private and Public Partnership. Zulich would tender to build it with the backing and financial insurance by the City.
If Zulich company was tendered to build it and run it, with City financial insurance similar to the Biosoil P3 with Walker Environmental Group , the city would take ownership over a 10 year period.
So council decided didn't want to go that route and wanted to own the arena out right. The city had put Zulich site as one of the proposed sites to build the arena. Council voted for Zulich site, where Mr. Zulich sold the land for $10.
AN ARENA WAS GOING TO BE BUILT REGARDLESS of Zulich proposal because it was already went out to consultation for a new arena to be built. So arena was going to be paid with tax payer money anyways.
People are so ignorant how the KED played out and how it exist to this point. Zulich didn't force the City to build the city on his property. Zulich proposed a P3 model to the City, but council didn't want to go that route. Zulich site was proposed as one of the sites for the arena that Consultant had ranked many talking points at top of the list, the Downtown site was ahead but not by much from this consultant. The Consultant did say after a Casino was proposed to be in partner ship The Kingsway site would the preferred site. COUNCIL CHOSE TO PICK THE ARENA ON THE KINGSWAY NOT ZULICH. Zulich stated many times that an arena is needed, would prefer his site on Kingsway but if it would be built anywhere else he didn't have a problem with it.
Currently there is a partnership to build the KED, City, Casino and Hotel, they will all share in cost of building the KED, which having all 3 will alleviate cost to the tax payer.
Also, the Casino will give the City a certain percentage of profit they make back to the City. The City is estimating it could be around $9 million a year, which would go down to pay the cost of the KED each year. So basically the money we get from the Casino will pay for the KED overtime. Not bad idea I say.
Many of posters don't have a clue, just bark out false information, get educated on the topic.