The Ottawa Senators and the National Capital Commission (NCC) have reached an agreement for the sale of 4.5 hectares (11 acres) of land at LeBreton Flats, paving the way for a new arena in downtown Ottawa. Capital Sports Development Inc., the team's development arm, finalized the agreement of purchase and sale with the NCC, marking a significant step toward realizing the project. This agreement builds upon a deal reached with the NCC in September 2024 for a development that includes the new arena.
The purchase agreement allows for the progression of zoning, design, and approvals, alongside the decontamination of the site in preparation for construction. While financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, sources indicate the Senators are paying just over $30 million for the land.
Senators CEO and President Cyril Leeder expressed his pleasure in reaching the agreement with the NCC, emphasizing that it signifies a crucial step forward in the process. He acknowledged that numerous hurdles remain and conveyed his anticipation of collaborating with the NCC and other stakeholders to accomplish their shared vision of establishing an event center at LeBreton Flats that can be enjoyed by the Ottawa-Gatineau community.
NCC CEO Tobi Nussbaum stated that the arena constitutes just one element of a broader vision for LeBreton Flats, which will encompass over 6,000 housing units, with a target of 25 per cent being affordable housing, as well as parks and public spaces. Nussbaum added that the promise of a major events center will inject new energy and excitement into the core of the Nation's capital and further catalyze the development of LeBreton Flats.
The new arena aims to provide the Senators with a more central location compared to their current home at the Canadian Tire Centre in suburban Kanata, which has been their base since 1996. The Canadian Tire Centre is located approximately 25 kilometers from Ottawa's city center. In contrast, the LeBreton Flats site is only 2.1 km away from Parliament Hill.
The Senators initially signed a memorandum of understanding with the NCC in June 2022 to develop LeBreton Flats. With the purchase agreement now finalized, the project can advance toward construction. A prior endeavor to redevelop LeBreton Flats and construct an arena, under the ownership of Eugene Melnyk, collapsed in 2019 due to a fallout between Melnyk and business partner John Ruddy. Following Melnyk's death in March 2022, Michael Andlauer, a Toronto businessman and former minority owner of the Montreal Canadiens, acquired the team the following year. The NCC extended the memorandum of understanding to September 2024 to allow for negotiations with the new ownership group.
The agreement builds upon two previous real estate transactions completed by the NCC since 2022 on the Building LeBreton project, which will see over 2,000 new housing units, along with new retail and commercial spaces built on the site.
The next steps in the project involve various zoning, design, and other approvals, as well as the decontamination of the former industrial land before construction of the new arena can commence. The Senators have been working on their next arena for several years, including a failed LeBreton Flats bid that fell apart around the end of 2018 under previous team owner Eugene Melnyk. The agreement in principle was about land on the north side of Albert Street between City Centre Avenue and Preston Street, between the Bayview and Pimisi light rail stops.
