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What do you think of the Brandt Centre?
It’s a question Regina Exhibition Association Limited (REAL) is giving some insight into, publishing the results of a survey asking questions about the 44-year-old arena.
Of the more than 5,300 people who responded, the average score for the rink was three out of five.
Of the people surveyed, 75 per cent said the Brandt Centre is a very important asset to the city. However, only 41 per cent said they were satisfied with their experiences there.
At a news conference Tuesday, REAL CEO Tim Reid discussed the results of the survey and what they mean for the rink going forward.
He said it shows that the arena works fine, for now.
“I think the general sentiment of the Brandt Centre probably describes a building that’s 44 years old; it was a three out of five,” Reid said. “It’s pretty good. It works OK for hockey (and) it works OK for concerts. It’s not spectacular, but it is a place that we’ve all become accustomed to going for live sports and entertainment events.
“That being said, at 44 years, it’s probably a good time to be having this discussion about what happens next.”
So what will come next?
It’s a long way from happening, but Reid gave some insight on where REAL is in the process of planning and building a new arena.
It has to put together a proposal for city council, which Reid hopes to have done by July.
Results from this survey will be considered, as well as a second survey people can fill out now.
The timeline is not yet nailed down, and Reid believes the Brandt Centre is good enough that there’s no need to rush to any decisions.
“It’s a really good building that’s 44 years old. Once, it was a great building. The nice thing about where we stand today is we’re not urgent in making this decision. We can be planned and we can be processed. We can work with the community and our stakeholders to find the right plan for our city,” he explained.
“So often, you bump into a scenario where facilities end up with structural issues or are deficient. We don’t have that problem … But the reality of it is, it’s coming to the end of its life and we need to determine what comes next.”
There are many things to consider, and Reid went over a few things he thinks would be necessary in a new spot.
For one, he thinks the capacity would have to be about 10,000 seats. The Brandt Centre has about 6,400 seats.
“Unfortunately, we can’t convince the Foo Fighters all the time to come and play (at the Brandt Centre) because the building doesn’t necessarily work. So for those of us that are going to drive to an Imagine Dragons show at the SaskTel Centre (in Saskatoon), well, that show should have been here,” he said.
He’d also like to see more sports teams in Regina to take advantage of a new facility.
“In the modelling around a new arena, we do believe that you need three primary tenants. You need to have a hockey tenant, you likely need to have a lacrosse aspect and you likely need to have a basketball tenant for the financials of the building to work,” he said.
Saskatoon has teams in all three of those sports, but the Brandt Centre only serves as the home of the WHL’s Regina Pats.
Reid said REAL has had early talks with the Canadian Elite Basketball League and National Lacrosse League about bringing teams to Regina, but stressed those conversations are in the very early stages.
As for where a new arena would go, there are a few possibilities.
He wouldn’t name a specific area, but said REAL is looking at five different spots: One at the current REAL District campus, three downtown and one at the railyards.
Reid said the baseline cost for the new arena would likely be somewhere from $100 million to $120 million, but rising construction costs could drive that up.