City isn't to blame for Growlers departure, St. John's councillor says
CBC
A St. John's city councillor is firing back at the owner of the Newfoundland Growlers, saying the city-owned St. John's Sports and Entertainment isn't to blame for the team's departure.
St. John's businessman Dean MacDonald told reporters on Wednesday that his professional hockey team failed largely because of his inability to work with city officials on a plan to control the arena.
Speaking with reporters on Thursday, Ron Ellsworth, the council representative of St. John's Sports and Entertainment (SJSE) that owns the Mary Brown's Centre, disagreed with the notion that MacDonald's group needed to run the arena in order to make things work.
"His illusion was that he needed to be able to manage the facility in order to make his operation go well. Well, that didn't work very well in Trois-Rivieres, right?" Ellsworth said.
MacDonald also owned the ECHL's Trois-Rivieres Lions and controlled the arena they operate in. Reports surfaced last week that the team was also in financial trouble, but MacDonald was able to sell the team.
"He had one agreement here with us where he wasn't managing the facility. In Trois-Rivieres, he was managing the facility. Trois-Rivieres was out over a million dollars because of that arrangement. We don't have that issue," Ellsworth said, adding the city is on the hook for about $70,000.
Ellsworth said other professional hockey teams were able to make their time in St. John's work despite not owning the arena — citing the former St. John's IceCaps team owned by Danny Williams.
The IceCaps held attendance records in the American Hockey League during their time in the city, but left when their parent hockey clubs in the NHL wanted them to be closer to home.
"If one proponent can make it work in that environment, why can't the other one make it work in that environment?" Ellsworth asked.
The loss of the Growlers represents the loss of 36 entertainment nights in the St. John's area. Ellsworth said the team contributed about $75,000 to SJSE's bottom line last year, but added that could be recuperated by just two concerts at Mary Brown's Centre.
The real challenge, he said, will be the impact on local businesses and quality of life for residents.
"It's more about the entertainment nights than the result for the bottom line," he said.
"I'm very happy with the [SJSE] team that we have in place between the board, staff and senior staff to take on any challenges to fill up the stadium when it comes to entertainment nights."
Ellsworth didn't rule out the return of pro hockey in the future, saying the city has a great relationship with the ECHL.
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