May 12, 1999
(Executive Council)

The following is being distributed at the request of the Civic Centre Construction Board:

Civic Centre Construction Board gives progress report

Civic Centre Construction Board Chairman Peter Kennedy hosted a briefing today to provide a status report on the progress of the project. At the briefing, detailed design plans of the facility were displayed in a presentation by the project architect, Ron Fougere Associates.

Representatives from the provincial government and the City of St. John's were in attendance including Municipal and Provincial Affairs Minister Lloyd Matthews, St. John's MHAs Joan Marie Aylward and Walter Noel, St. John's Mayor Andy Wells and Civic Centre Corporation Chairman and Ward three Councillor Keith Coombs. Representatives from the Avalon Convention and Visitors Bureau and the St. John's Maple Leafs organization were also in attendance.

Speaking at the briefing, Minister Matthews said: "The province's commitment of $16 million in funding toward the cost of the civic centre represents a strategic investment in the future of not only the city, but the province as a whole." As the tourism industry continues to grow, the province predicts that the new St. John's Civic Centre, in cooperation with other facilities like the Canada Games Centre in Corner Brook, will play an important role in the development of trade show and convention business in Newfoundland and Labrador. "Travel and tourism expenditures in this province amount to more than $500 million per year. The completion of the St. John's Civic Centre is a key component of our infrastructure enhancements."

Ward Three Councillor and Civic Centre Corporation Chairman Keith Coombs said today: "The St. John's Civic Centre represents one of the most important capital projects in our city's history." The new facility will provide a modern venue for public events such as concerts, trade shows and AHL hockey games. "The facility represents the culmination of a cooperative effort that is ensuring this project will be on budget."

Glenn Stanford of the St. John's Maple Leafs organization was also present at the briefing. "The St. John's Maple Leafs and the city will mutually benefit from the new facility," he said. "The civic centre will allow for continued presence of AHL hockey in St. John's."

"The significance of this new centre cannot be understated," Mike Buist of the Avalon Convention and Visitors Bureau (ACVB) stated today. "It is important for the expansion and development of the tourism industry in Newfoundland and Labrador."

The Construction Board, the City of St. John's and the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador are all pleased with the designs and with progress being made on the project. Civic Centre Construction Board Chairman Peter Kennedy said: "Detailed drawings and tender documents are now being prepared and we anticipate calling the first construction tenders in June."

The designs will be on public display at the Foran Room, City Hall during office hours for the rest of the week.

Media Contacts:

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BACKGROUND INFORMATION

ST. JOHN'S CIVIC CENTRE

History

The St. John's Civic Centre Corporation was formed in April 1998 as an arm of the St. John's City Council with a mandate to oversee the construction, marketing and operation of a new Civic Centre in the St. John's area to replace St. John's Memorial Stadium (built from 1950 - 1954) and to enhance the convention space and capabilities in the St. John's region.

A Franchise Agreement and a Management Agreement were signed with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. that extended the current contract for the St. John's Maple Leafs for an additional six year period, beginning from the 1999-2000 season. The expertise and management abilities of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd. and the ensuing entertainment links that will be created between the Air Canada Centre and the new civic centre will result in a professional and successful operation.

On October 23, 1998, a Memorandum of Understanding between the City of St. John's, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Avalon Convention and Visitors Bureau was signed which confirmed the funding required to construct a civic centre in St. John's.

Included in the Memorandum of Understanding was a mandate to create a Civic Centre Construction Board consisting of 10 representatives: four appointees from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, four appointees from the City of St. John's, and two appointees from the Avalon Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The role of the Civic Centre Construction Board is to manage the construction phase of the Civic Centre Project, with the Civic Centre Corporation Board remaining in existence to administer all other functions pertaining to the civic centre. The mandate of the Civic Centre Construction Board is to ensure that the total construction cost of the project not exceed $36 million, including: the cost of land acquisition, site preparation, engineering and architectural services and furnishings.

The Civic Centre Corporation currently has funding commitments from four sources for a total of $36 million. The financial contributors to this project are the federal government in the amount of $4 million, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador in the amount of $16 million, the City of St. John's for $12 million, and the Avalon Convention and Visitor's Bureau for the amount of $4 million. The facility will be owned by the City of St. John's and managed by Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Limited through a management contract with the Civic Centre Corporation.

Project Overview

A consortium headed by Newfoundland Design Associates Limited was selected as the prime consultant for the project.

The civic centre will have a total exhibit capacity of 311 booths, almost triple of what is currently available at St. John's Memorial Stadium. The convention centre will comfortably seat 1,400 for dinner, compared with a 970-seat capacity at the major hotels. The spectator facility will have a fixed seating capacity of 6,350 for hockey, compared with 2,940 at Memorial Stadium and 7,800 for special events and concerts, compared with 4,400 at Memorial Stadium.

Strategic Importance

Three general areas of potential economic benefits have been identified as:

- Physical construction of the facility;

- Ongoing operation of the facility; and

- Tourism impacts associated with the hosting of public assembly events.

The construction of the civic centre will generate significant temporary (or one-time) economic benefits in Newfoundland and Labrador. Based on the Coopers and Lybrand study, construction is expected to generate between 318 and 422 person years of total employment, paying wages and salaries between $14 million and $19 million, as well as $18.6 million of Gross Domestic Product (at factor cost) in the province. In addition to these benefits, significant federal and provincial taxes will be generated.

The ongoing operation of the civic centre will generate substantial annual economic benefits. Some of these benefits result from the transfer of Memorial Stadium business activity to the civic centre, while the remaining portion will be attributed to new activity that the civic centre will generate. Benefits from new activity that the civic centre will generate due to its expanded size and multi-purpose nature include employment opportunities in the facility, employee wages and salaries, local purchases of goods and services needed to operate the facility, and benefits associated with the operation of a hockey club.

The hosting of events by the civic centre will generate significant economic benefits for the city, Avalon Peninsula and the province. These benefits will be generated from event delegate expenditures on accommodations, food and beverage, transportation, retail goods and services, etc. in the local and provincial economy. The number of out of province delegates is projected to range from 7,500 to 12,400 annually (approximately two percent of total facility attendance), which represents new dollars in the local and provincial economy. Based on average delegate trip expenditures and visitation extension patterns, the projected levels of attendance of out-of-province visitors are estimated to generate annual spending in the local and provincial economy of between $5.9 million and $9.8 million.

These expenditure totals will generate annually between 135 and 225 person years of total employment, between $5.1 million and $8.6 million of Gross Domestic Product (at factor cost) and between $3.2 million and $5.4 million in wages and salaries in the province.

Because of the increased size of the civic centre and the attached convention centre, the city will be able to attract and host much larger conventions, in particular those which require separate exhibition space. In addition, the downtown location adjacent to a major hotel and other urban amenities will make the city a more attractive destination to convention planners.

It is estimated that the civic centre will host between 112 - 141 events, resulting in 209 - 285 annual event days of facility usage. The roster of events is projected to attract between 384,000 and 504,000 attendees annually.

1999 05 12                      10:45 a.m.