Published on May 29, 2010
May, 2010 will be a pivotal one in the history of the CFL, even if the official record books don’t remember it. First, Winnipeg broke ground on their new football stadium, the first stadium being built for football in Canada in 50 years. The month has also been filled with news on stadiums in Hamilton and Ottawa. Finally, the announcement of a tentative collective bargaining agreement between the league and players association came somewhat unexpectedly after much media talk regarding the hard line stance of the league and the possibility of a lockout. While more pieces need to fall into place, these events are part of the continued evolution of the league that sat stalled through the 1980’s and ‘90’s.
Published on May 10, 2010
The recent back and forth between Bob Young, Hamilton Tiger-Cats owner and Fred Eisenberger, Mayor of Hamilton, is interesting because of the difference in what is being debated. Other stadium debates in Canada, most prominently the one in Ottawa, are about whether to spend public money to build, refurbish or expand a stadium. In Hamilton, the debate is not over the need for a new stadium. All sides except a fringe element see the need for a new stadium to replace Hamilton’s ageing Ivor Wynne. All sides also believe the Pan-Am opportunity provides an ideal time to replace the stadium infrastructure. The debate is over the stadium location, with the City supposedly selecting a location that is best for the community and the Tiger-Cats preferring a location best for them, a tenant. The time frame for a decision and the conviction of both sides to their stands will make the coming weeks very tense and interesting.