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This article was published 20/6/2013 (2646 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Investors Group Field

Cracks in the concrete of Winnipeg’s new football stadium are the result of "natural shrinkage" and will be maintained at no cost to the Winnipeg Football Club, said the chairman of the non-profit organization that owns the $200-million structure.

There are cracks on the concrete concourse and other areas of Investors Group Field, the new home of the Winnipeg Football Club and University of Manitoba Bisons, which opened earlier this month on the U of M's Fort Garry campus.

The cracks are not structural in nature and posed no concern to building inspectors, said a spokeswoman for the football club, which deferred questions about the concrete to stadium-builder Stuart Olson Dominion Construction and the stadium's owner, BBB Stadium Inc.

Cosmetic cracks on outdoor facilities can lead to more serious problems over time, given the long-term effects of moisture on concrete after a number of freeze-thaw cycles.

BBB Stadium chairman Phil Sheegl said the cracks will be maintained by Stuart Olson Dominion under the terms of a stadium-construction deal that came with a guaranteed maximum price. The football club will not be on the hook for those payments, said Sheegl, who’s also chief administrative officer for the City of Winnipeg.

"It’s all part of natural shrinkage," Sheegl said.

The province was the stadium's largest funder. The Selinger government fronted $160 million of the stadium's $200 million tab and also provided a $22.5-million grant to the project.

Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger says he's confident cracks the cracks can be addressed. "It doesn't sound like it's significant," he said Thursday morning following a provincial soccer-funding announcement in Winnipeg's Brooklands neighbourhood.

Stuart Olson Dominion has been asked to comment.