Mayor Sutcliffe says Lansdowne 2.0 is on budget. But one councillor says that is not true

Lansdowne 2.0 will cost less than what was feared — at least that’s what Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said during a Monday press conference. But is that really true? 

Members of the media received word Sunday afternoon that the long-awaited final details of the controversial project would be shared during a press event in the mayor's office. But the actual reports, which contain hundreds of pages, would not be released until hours later. 

Sutcliffe, a former journalist, cheerfully said the final Lansdowne 2.0 price tag sits at $418.8 million — slightly below the $419 million estimate. The city’s auditor general warned in 2024 that the project could actually be closer to $500 million. 

“The news today is Lansdowne 2.0 will cost us much less than we thought it would when the plan was approved by city council two years ago,” said Sutcliffe.  “The actual construction cost is lower than we forecast, the total project cost is lower than we forecast, and the actual revenues from the air rights are much higher than we forecast.”

One benefit to the project, Sutcliffe said, is that the anticipated revenue from air rights — legal rights to own and use the airspace above a property — is higher than expected at $65 million. Initial estimates from two years ago had predicted the income would amount to $39 million.

Fighting misconceptions, Sutcliffe noted the burden won’t be huge on taxpayers, saying the net cost would be $130 million — or about $4.3 million a year. Budgets from 2023 forecasted net costs at $5 million. 

“Nothing significant has changed from the previous plan. What’s changed is we now know these are the final numbers of the construction costs, for the air rights revenue, for some of the other revenues that are going to be generated by the site,” Sutcliffe said. “We know going forward what the construction costs will be; it’s a fixed-price contract, there’s contingencies built into it…so we can move forward with this plan.”

But are the numbers truthful? 

Capital Ward Coun. Shawn Menard doesn’t think so. He attended the mayor's press conference and said the actual total comes in at $483 million. 

”Our debt is going up. It is moving higher from $331 million to $340.2 million. And then the second is the overall costs,” Menard told the Lookout. “The mayor's costs do not include the parking for the private towers that the city is building. And then the city is also going to ask the developer who won the air rights to pay them for the retail podium.”

The retail podium would add $44 million, Menard said, and the parking another $19 million. 

Sutcliffe doesn’t agree with those comments and said the cost is too high not to build a better Lansdowne now. He said the TD Place arena is falling apart, making it difficult to attract large-scale events. If council decides to hold off, the price tag would only grow, he said. 

He also argues that the Lansdowne 1.0 wasn’t as bad as some thought and has been a game changer for the city, despite losing money. He said most of the people against Lansdowne 2.0 are the same people who were opposed to the first project nearly two decades ago. 

Sutcliffe added that visits to the urban complex have only gone up with high demand for sporting events, the farmers’ market, and other events. In total, 188 events were held at TD Place last year — eight more than the previous calendar year. 

What Sutcliffe failed to say during that press conference is that the Lansdowne partnership posted a revenue loss for the 11th year in a row. The Lansdowne annual report for the Finance and Corporate Services Committee stated it posted an $11.1 million net loss for the 2024-25 fiscal year, up from a $9.2 million loss during the 2023-24 fiscal year and a $9.1 million deficit in the 2022-23 fiscal year.

Revenues are up slightly; the partnership generated $62.8 million in revenues for the 2024-25 fiscal year, which is an increase of $3.3 million from the previous year. 

“Although revenues in 2024/25 grew six per cent, operating expenses increased seven per cent, which resulted in a decrease in the Partnership’s operating income from $5.3 million in 2023/24 to $4.8 million in 2024/25,” staff said.

Menard told the Lookout that while in the red now, independent analysis shows that cash flow objectives start to be met after 2030. He believes that is another reason why the Lansdowne 2.0 vote should fail. 

“We're kind of losing the plot here because OSEG (Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group) is struggling a bit financially to pay the cashflow deficits,” said Menard. “Well, they signed a deal to 2054. it's not for us to manage their expenses.

“We gave them a dollar-a-year rent to help with those expenses. We put in a lot of equity to help with the facilities just 10 years ago,” he continued. “The city should be doing what's best for its residents and not for one private partner.”

What is planned 

Not a whole lot has changed from the original proposal. 

There will still be two residential towers, a new north-side stand with 3,000 fewer seats (11,200 instead of the current 14,000), and a new arena and event space. At one time, it was stated there would be seats for only 5,500 fans, but TD Place disproved this —hockey games could seat around 6,500 or 7,000 for concerts. 

That’s still lower than the current 9,000 seats. 

The new event centre that would replace the current Civic Centre, which was built in 1967, includes “purpose-built athlete facilities”, such as dedicated dressing rooms, accessible washrooms and showers, team lounges, and training/recovery areas for the Ottawa Charge and Ottawa 67’s,” according to the City. 

It would use 36 per cent less energy — providing a 31 per cent reduction in GHG emissions intensity.

The site will also introduce 770 condominium, rental, and hotel units. An additional $5 million is being allocated to affordable housing. 

Some additional funds to pay for the controversial project would come through the Municipal Accommodation Tax — a fee accommodation providers such as hotels and AirBnBs are required to charge customers. A report for the Finance and Corporate Services Committee suggests the tax increase by one per cent come January 1, 2026. That would generate about $44 million for the project. 

“Ottawa Tourism and the Ottawa Gatineau Hotel Association are very supportive of Lansdowne 2.0 and have accepted a one per cent increase in the MAT and directing the entire one per cent to the City of Ottawa to fund tourism infrastructure,” said city manager Wendy Stephanson in the submitted report. 

Ottawa is not the only city to have such a tax; Toronto and New York City are also using it as a way to invest in tourism infrastructure. 

Money would also come from a ticket surcharge that customers would pay for attending events at Lansdowne Park. Menard called it “another hidden fee.”

Sutcliffe also announced that EBC Inc. has been selected as the chosen builder if the project is approved by council. 

Based in Quebec, the firm has worked on the expansion of the Percival-Molson Stadium in Montreal and the Brossard Aquatic Complex. The firm also has an Ottawa portfolio that includes the Ottawa Art Gallery downtown. 

Sutcliffe said there was “significant interest”, with a total of three bids coming in. The other two were Ottawa-based Pomerleau at $316.7 million and Mississauga construction company Ellis Don at $344 million. 

“EBC Inc. is a Canadian construction industry leader, and is active in the building, mining, and major civil engineering sectors,” city staff wrote in the report. 

Where councillors stand 

The Ottawa Lookout reached out to some councillors who said it was too soon for them to comment on the new information, as they are still reading over the 300 pages of new documents. At least one councillor who indicated they intend to vote against the project said the updated facts won’t change their decision. 

On Bluesky, Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper slammed Sutcliffe for jumping in front of a podium to talk about the new Lansdowne 2.0 findings before city councillors or the public had access to them. 

“That’s unacceptable. Transparency and respect for council should come before media rollouts. I’m deeply disappointed in how this process has unfolded, and in the disregard shown for Council by revealing staff recommendations early,” he said. “This isn’t how collaborative government works, and it undermines trust in both City staff and the democratic process.”

Leiper, who intends to run for Mayor in the city’s next municipal election, also criticized Sutcliffe for dismissing community analysis of Lansdowne 2.0 as “misinformation.” He said such language “disrespects residents who’ve worked hard to study this project’s finances.”

Knoxdale-Merivale Coun. Sean Devine wrote in his newsletter days before the announcement that he still intends to vote no to Lansdowne 2.0. 

“I don’t have sufficient confidence in the project’s costs or financial projections. Ottawa’s financial projections for Lansdowne 1.0 didn’t materialize, so why should anyone expect better results for 2.0?” wrote Devine. “I can think of many greater priorities for public investment.”

He also said there is no guarantee the Ottawa Redblacks football team will stay long term and raised concerns over what will happen to the Ottawa Charge women’s PWHL hockey team, which is selling out the current arena, if the number of seats are drastically reduced.

Instead, Devine said he believes significant upgrades can be made to the current facility which could have at least another 40 years left in its life expectancy. Devine would also like to see transportation and transit improvements made to and from the site — something Lansdowne 2.0 does not include.  

Orléans East-Cumberland Coun. Matthew Luloff previously told the Lookout that while he isn’t happy with the reduction in seats, he believes a new arena is needed now to attract bigger events like the Invictus Games, an international multi-sport event first held in 2014, for wounded, injured and sick military service personnel. 

Luloff noted flaws in the current facility, recalling how volunteers were needed to catch water from the ceiling during a recent curling game. 

“We have really two choices at this point and not doing anything isn't one of them. We could either divest ourselves of it and sell it to somebody else, or we can make improvements to it that we desperately need to improve,” he said. 

Lulof also said city council should debate if municipal governments should be involved in a major sports facility like Lansdowne Park. 

Barrhaven West Coun. David Hill confirmed on social media platform X that he also thinks Lansdowne 2.0 is a “good project” and plans to support it. But he is also planning to challenge staff to make it better. 

“Over 4,000,000 people visit Lansdowne now, and the site hosts concerts, comedians and sporting events from around the world, generating over $270 million annually in economic activity,” said Hill. “But there is a ticking time bomb in Lansdowne 1.0 that risks jeopardizing this public asset.”

He said the last city government “didn’t go far enough” and “took a half measure” when new north-side stands and an arena were not part of the last major Lansdowne project. 

“If we do nothing, annual costs to the City could increase to $8 million a year as the city loses event opportunities due to inadequate facilities,” added Hill. “Lansdowne 2.0 is projected to add $590 million in local economic activity over the next decade. A city of over a million people deserves a modern entertainment hub, and young professionals looking to grow their roots want these options.”

What happens next

Lansdowne 2.0 is set to go before the Finance and Corporate Services committee during a special meeting on Oct. 29, but could be extended into Oct. 30 and 31 due to the suspected high number of delegates. If passed, it will then go into council for final approval on Nov. 7. 

Some councillors are asking for that date to be delayed given the amount of new information that’s come to light and to allow time for public consultations. Ottawa's auditor general Nathalie Gougeon said her next audit on the project is expected early in November.