$200M arena decision ‘a big step’ for Sudbury’s future, mayor says
In a lengthy council meeting Tuesday night, city council in Sudbury unanimously voted to build a new arena and events centre downtown.
In the four-hour session, 12 councillors and Mayor Paul Lefebvre voted to move forward with the $200 million project.
"We took a big step, investing in ourselves, investing in our city," Sudbury Mayor Paul Lefebvre said in an interview with CTV News following the council meeting.
"Quite proud of council, a lot of courage, big investment, historic investment. It bodes well to show how we believe in our city and, and we're able to invest in our city."
The 73-year-old arena has been up for debate for more than a decade. A project recommending a new casino, hotel and arena on the Kingsway was approved in 2017 but rejected in 2022 after costs soared.
Last year, the city purchased multiple properties in the Shaughnessy Street area for $12 million as a possible location for a new arena.
In the four-hour session Tuesday, 12 Greater Sudbury city councillors and Mayor Paul Lefebvre voted to move forward with the $200 million project. (Amanda Hicks/CTV news)
A staff report on the plan recommended building a new rink as the best option for investment and least risk during construction. It was also pointed out that the current arena has accessibility barriers and environmental limitations.
Ward 11 Coun. Bill Leduc put forth a motion requesting a deferral, arguing that the decision should be made after consulting the public.
"We should hear from the public, it's what they deserve," Leduc said.
"Putting this decision off by two months won't make much of a difference. Let's get it right, people. That's all I'm asking."
'We need to make a decision'
But everyone at the table rejected the deferral. Ward 7 Coun. Natalie Labbée said the decision has been postponed long enough.
"This city has had a lot of time to digest this. If we go to a community consultation, we're going to get the same thing, we're not going to get consensus," Labbée said.
"We need to make a decision -- people elected us to make the tough decisions."
Ward 10 Coun. Fern Cormier said he believed the public wanted a decision made.
"I think we're prepared to move forward and make a decision one way or another," said Cormier.
"I think that’s what the vast majority needs, wants and deserves from us on this particular issue."
Leduc said he was disappointed with the decision.
o Download our app to get local alerts on your device
o Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
"I put a motion on the table to go out for public consultation so that the public can get involved in the decision of the arena, to make sure we're moving in the right direction,” he said.
“I was hoping to get support on that, obviously I didn't … I'm not saying building a new arena is wrong, but not getting public input is definitely wrong."
He said he plans to put a motion forward calling for a referendum on the issue.
Lefebvre said the plan is to hopefully begin construction in 2026 and complete the project by 2028.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Liberal MP says she's leaving politics over disrespectful dialogue, threats, misogyny
Liberal MP Pam Damoff says she won't run again in the next federal election, saying she has experienced misogyny, disrespectful dialogue in politics and threats to her life.
Concerns about Plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall Plexiglass barriers.
Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Ont. woman who faked pregnancy to defraud doulas arrested again on similar charges
Victims of a Brantford, Ont., woman who was sentenced to house arrest earlier this year for defrauding and deceiving doulas say they’re not surprised she’s been apprehended again on similar charges.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Construction begins on LGBTQ2S+ national monument in Ottawa
Shovels have hit the ground for constuction on Canada's LGBTQ2S+ national monument in Ottawa.
B.C. man awarded $5,000 in damages in first-of-it-kind intimate image case
In a first-of-its-kind case, a B.C. tribunal has ruled on a dispute involving the non-consensual sharing of intimate images, awarding damages and issuing orders that the photos be destroyed and taken offline.