Public Report

To: Joint Community Services Committee & Finance Committee

From: Jag Sharma, Commissioner, Community Services

Report Number: CS-15-128

Date of Report: October 26, 2015

Date of Meeting: October 29, 2015

Subject: Bid to Host the 2017 Canadian Tire Skating Championships

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1.0 Purpose

The purpose of this report is to obtain endorsement of the City’s bid for the 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships.

2.0 Recommendation

That the Community Services and Finance Committee recommend to City Council:

1. That ’s bid for the 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships be endorsed; and,

2. That the City of Oshawa, through the 2017 operating budget, fund the bid costs for the Skate Canada facility rental costs at the General Motors Centre, estimated at $120,000; and,

3. That the estimated revenue generated from hosting the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships be used to offset the cost of the event to negate any 2017 budget implications; and,

4. That the Mayor and Clerk be authorized to execute future event agreements between Skate Canada and the City of Oshawa in a form that is acceptable to Legal Services and Finance Services, should the City of Oshawa be awarded the bid for the 2017 Championships.

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3.0 Executive Summary

In early October, the City of Oshawa became aware of Skate Canada’s Request for Proposal to Host the 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships. The bid is due to Skate Canada on October 30, 2015.

City staff have been working with Spectra Venue Management staff at the General Motors Centre, Durham Tourism and the Oshawa Skating Club to review the bid document and conduct research on the viability of submitting a proposal for the 2017 Championships.

The 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships will take place from January 12 to January 22, 2017. The Championships are one of the largest sporting events in Canada and would be a fantastic opportunity for Oshawa to gain national visibility and benefit from significant economic impact.

4.0 Input From Other Sources

Corporate Communications

Finance Services

Spectra Venue Management

5.0 Analysis

5.1 The 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships

The annual National Skating Championships is one of Canada’s largest national sport championships. The event is organized and executed by Skate Canada in collaboration with the Local Organizing Committee.

The Championships are expected to include 500 participants (officials, athletes, coaches and other team personnel) from across the country.

The event will run from January 12, 2017 to January 22, 2017, with competition days between January 16 and January 21, ending with a Gala performance on January 22.

5.2 Benefits of Hosting the Championships

There are several benefits to the City should Oshawa be successful in the bid to host these championships including economic impact, local and national visibility.

The total estimated economic impact associated with this event is in the range of $3 to $5 million. In 2015, the host city, Kingston, generated an estimated $3.3 million in economic impact. The estimate for the 2016 event, being hosted in Halifax, , is $5 million.

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Since this event attracts visitors from across Canada and around the world, the City has the potential to showcase City attractions to visitors and boost tourism in the Region.

This event has national exposure through Bell Media’s main networks CTV, TSN and RDS and corresponding digital platforms. In 2015, the event was broadcast nationally for 32.5 hours over three days to an audience that measured 1.5 million viewers. Oshawa would gain significant visibility through this national coverage.

5.3 Oshawa’s Bid

The City of Oshawa has hosted many sporting events at the General Motors Centre including the 2015 Pan Am/Parapan Am Games (2015), National Pinty’s Grand Slam of (2015), International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Hockey Championships (2014), BMO Canadian Grand Slam of Curling (2011) and BMO Skate Canada Provincial Synchronized Skating Championships (2009).

With estimated ticket sales of close to 27,000 over the six days of competition, the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships would be the largest event ever hosted in the City of Oshawa.

The General Motors Centre meets all of the hosting criteria, and given the investments in hotels in Oshawa over the past few years, Oshawa is now able to have sufficient hotel space in the City to meet the needs of an event of this magnitude.

Hosting this event in 2017 provides a unique opportunity for Oshawa, as 2017 will be a significant year of celebrations in the City. In addition to Canada’s 150th birthday, Parkwood Estate, Durham College, Robert McLaughlin Gallery, Oshawa Community Museum, Ontario Philharmonic and the Oshawa Art Association are all celebrating milestone anniversaries in 2017. Should the City of Oshawa be successful in this bid, the City would launch our 2017 celebrations with the Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, a premier sporting event, just as the year begins.

City staff have been working with a Bid Committee comprised of Spectra Venue Management staff at the General Motors Centre, Durham Tourism, the Oshawa Skating Club and Skate Canada Eastern Section Office on preparations for the bid. These organizations are all supportive of the City’s potential bid.

The Bid Committee is confident that the venue and the City profile meet the requirements of the bid. However, it is anticipated that there will be many communities submitting bids for the 2017 Canadian Tire National Skating Championships, and it will therefore be a very competitive process.

Skate Canada is seeking a cost-efficient community to host the Championships.

With this in mind and in order to enhance the bid, it is recommended that the City indicate that the base rental cost of $120,000 be funded by the City.

It is anticipated that revenue generated at the General Motors Centre will offset this loss.

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6.0 Financial Implications

The base rental fee in the bid to Skate Canada is estimated at $120,000. This fee represents approximately $40,000 in rental fees for ice time on both ice pads, meeting rooms and dressing rooms. The remainder of the base cost covers Spectra Venue Management staff fees, utilities, cleaning and custodial services, use of equipment, and outfit of the arena to Skate Canada specifications including the painting of ice logos and removal/reinstallation of glass, posts, netting, etc.

It is recommended that the $120,000 be funded by the City of Oshawa within the General Motors Centre budget and not recovered from Skate Canada.

Through the event, it is estimated that the General Motors Centre will earn a minimum of $139,000 in net revenue: $61,000 in facility fees based on ticket sales (of which $47,500 would be applied to offset the event) and a further $78,000 in food, beverage and catering through the venue agreement with Skate Canada.

The General Motors Centre will realize a minimum profit of approximately $19,000 if the City is awarded the bid.

The Bid Committee is also exploring grants through the Provincial Government and Central Counties Tourism, which will further add to the revenue projection to the City.

In addition to the revenue generated at the General Motors Centre, the City is estimated to receive incremental parking revenue in the downtown over the six day period. Staff have estimated this revenue would likely exceed $10,000, however given a number of unknowns about the event at this time, a conservative estimate would be $10,000 in parking revenue.

The overall economic impact to the City and surrounding area for this event is estimated at $3 to $5 million.

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7.0 Relationship to the Oshawa Strategic Plan

This report addresses the Oshawa Strategic Plan by responding to the goal of “Economic Prosperity: Ensuring economic growth and a sound financial future” by recognizing the value of sporting events to bring economic impact to the City.

Ron Diskey, Director, Recreation & Culture Services

Jag Sharma, Commissioner, Community Services

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