Halifax Mayor Mike Savage says he know a stadium in the area is a contentious issue for residents

Halifax Mayor Mike Savage believes there are plenty of good reasons to build a stadium in HRM but in order for the municipal government to contribute, it has to make financial sense.

It was reported Friday the group behind a proposed bid for a CFL team and stadium has been in talks to buy up to 20 acres of Crown land in Shannon Park for the project, information contained in a municipal staff report set to come to Regional Council on Tuesday.

Savage was asked about the issue during an interview with NEWS 95.7's The Todd Veinotte Show Sunday and said he knows it's a contentious issue for Haligonians.

"I think there's a lot of people who want a stadium at any cost and I think there's people who don't want a stadium," Savage said, adding there's also those in between that want to decide after seeing a final cost-benefit analysis.

There are plenty of good reasons to build a stadium in the area, according to Savage, including to continue the growth Halifax has been experiencing.

"What's the return on investment on a library? or roads? or schools? What's the return on investment on rec centres?" Savage asked rhetorically.

"The return on investment is you're building a community people want to live in and then when they come to live here, they pay property tax, they pay corporate tax. So the return on investment has to include an awful lot of factors."

HRM is still far from committing anything financially to the proposed project, as municipal staff have recommended a full business case analysis be completed on Maritime Football Ltd.'s plan before it returns to council for more scrutiny. That recommendation will be voted on during Tuesday's meeting of Council.

Savage said Council will also have to see what other levels of government are willing to invest, as Maritime Football has been in talks with the Nova Scotia government and staff have also recommended working with the province to find any extra income sources to fund a potential stadium.

Staff did indicate in its report to Council that if HRM was to contribute, it would be preferable to do so through deferred tax revenue rather than capital cash.

The group says it would cost up to $190 million to build a stadium with debt servicing costs on a new build pegged at roughly $10 million per year.

Maritime Football plans to start a season ticket drive next month with a continued goal of securing a team before the 2021 CFL season.