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“I’m always of the opinion the taxpayers’ dollar should not be supporting any professional sport,” he said.

“From what I’ve heard, people are unanimously saying no tax dollars for this project.”

But Coun. Evan Woolley, who represents the area where the complex would be built, said despite the poll indicating many are opposed to spending public money on the megaproject, it may be exactly what the city needs.

“We have a downturn in the economy and we have an opportunity to build something that will diversify our economy,” he said.

“My economic belief would be that during tough economic times in the private sector, the government should step in to keep jobs and to create jobs … this proposal is one of many opportunities for us to that.”

The poll also found just over half of respondents thought the project would be good for Calgary, and 45 per cent believed the Flames’ ownership should pay the entire cost of the nearly $1 billion project.

Woolley said the results of the poll show the public needs more information about the sports proposal.

“We need to have a conversation with Calgarians give them a much better understanding of how this works, that’s what this poll told me,” he said.

“When people say economic times are tough so we really shouldn’t spend money, it’s actually not very economically intelligent.”

Ward 7 Coun. Druh Farrell, whose ward is directly north of Woolley’s, doesn’t agree. She said the entire project will likely cost more than expected, and it’s too much for taxpayers to cover.