Article content

Comment

It has been about a year and a half since a proposal to build an NHL-ready arena in Markham was first unveiled, but the central lie at the heart of the plan remains.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Nothing private about Markham arena's public funding Back to video

On Tuesday afternoon, a week before Markham council is to hear a motion that could effectively scuttle the arena project, its proponents issued an announcement that claimed its biggest roadblock — other than the utter lack of prospects for a suitable anchor tenant — had been overcome.

“GTA Centre, LP would be responsible for funding all costs of the GTA Centre above a maximum of $162.5-million,” the release said, affirming in its second paragraph that “the GTA Centre would be 100% privately funded.”

This would mean, the developers said, that the city would no longer have to take out a $325-million bank loan that was part of the original financial framework that council supported in April, 2012. Essentially, GTA Sports and Entertainment, the company headed by businessman Graeme Roustan that has been part of this process from the start, has said it would raise its half of the arena funding on its own, and backstop any overruns. Those are indeed notable developments.