Event Centre Cost Debate: What’s Really Behind the $200 Million Price Tag

With construction underway on Sudbury’s downtown event centre, political candidates and critics have begun challenging the official $200 million price tag, claiming taxpayers will ultimately shoulder a much higher burden. As the October 26 civic election approaches, the true cost of the facility has become a contentious campaign issue, with some candidates citing figures as high as $546 million.

Former city council member Robert Kirwan recently suggested on social media that “the city may end up having to spend well over $300 million when all is said and done,” a figure significantly lower than his previous estimate of “$335 to $450 million, plus debt charges for the next 30 years.”

Miranda Rocca-Circelli, who ran for mayor in 2022 and is considering another run, has published her own calculations claiming a “realistic 30-year taxpayer cost” between $466 million and $546 million when factoring in construction, interest payments, land costs, and projected operating subsidies.

“When the city says the event centre costs $200 million, they’re not lying,” she wrote. “But they’re not telling you the whole truth, either.”

Meanwhile, Ward 11 Councillor Bill Leduc, who recently filed nomination papers to run for mayor, has built his campaign around cancelling the project mid-construction. While not providing specific alternative figures, Leduc argues that other municipal projects in the vicinity should be considered part of the overall event centre cost.

City officials maintain that the $200 million budget for construction remains intact. According to Community Infrastructure general manager Antti Vilkko, the project is on track to meet this budget, and a city spokesperson confirmed that “the event centre project cannot exceed the $200 million budget without further council approval.”

PCL Construction is leading the project using a construction management delivery model that allows design and construction to overlap while providing “stronger cost control and budget transparency.” The company meets monthly with the city’s executive leadership to ensure the project stays within budget.

While the $200 million figure covers the actual construction, additional costs exist beyond this figure. Land acquisition for the event centre site has cost approximately $12 million, with building demolitions adding another $1.6 million. The city has purchased additional downtown land for ancillary businesses, bringing total land-related expenditures to $15.5 million so far, with a projected final cost of $20.42 million.

The city also spent $4.38 million on the cancelled Kingsway Entertainment District event centre (a precursor project) and $200,000 on consultants specifically for the downtown event centre.

Critics have attributed other costs to the project, including an $8 million reconstruction of Elgin Street scheduled for 2026-27, though this work ends two blocks from the event centre property. The future of the old Sudbury Community Arena remains undecided, with demolition estimated at $5 million if required.

A significant point of contention is whether interest payments on borrowed funds should be included in cost calculations. The city has approved borrowing the full $200 million for construction, with $65 million already secured at a 2.416% interest rate. The remaining $135 million has yet to be secured.

According to city estimates, interest payments on the total borrowing will amount to approximately $164.23 million over the 30-year repayment period. However, city officials point out that this doesn’t account for interest earned on unspent borrowed funds, which have generated returns exceeding the borrowing rate in recent years (5.1% in 2023 and 5.2% in 2024).

Operating costs represent another financial dimension. The current Sudbury Community Arena has net operating costs of $906,726 in the 2026 budget. A 2021 business plan for the new event centre projected net operating costs starting at $655,700 in the first year, increasing to $825,200 by year five, though these figures don’t account for inflation.

“While it is not possible to provide an exact apples-to-apples comparison of net annual operating costs between the current Sudbury Community Arena and the future event centre, they are expected to be relatively similar,” a city spokesperson explained. “Although the new facility is larger, it has been designed to be significantly more energy efficient, which will help offset increased size and capacity.”

Taking the city-approved construction cost of $200 million, adding land costs, previous KED expenditures, and consultant fees brings the total to approximately $225 million. Including estimated interest payments over 30 years would bring the figure to around $389.23 million, though this doesn’t account for interest earned on unspent funds or distinguish between necessary event centre land and additional property purchases.

As the October election approaches, voters will need to carefully consider these competing cost narratives while evaluating candidates’ positions on this significant municipal investment.