At a groundbreaking ceremony for the expansion of a small Gatineau dairy operation Monday, Ottawa Senators owner Michael Andlaur discussed a much different development: a new hockey arena at LeBreton Flats.
Andlauer was on hand because the team is partnered with Laiterie de l’Outaouais, which is expanding and modernizing its facilities with the help of millions in government funding.
It was among his first times speaking to media since the Sens and National Capital Commission (NCC) reached a deal in August on the purchase and sale of about four-and-a-half hectares of land at LeBreton Flats.
Responding to questions about whether a future downtown arena would require public funding, Andlauer didn’t answer directly, instead drawing a comparison between the dairy and the Sens.
He called investment in the dairy a “slam dunk” and described government funding for the company as “an investment by three levels of government here to do an expansion for the future.”
Then, referring to the prospect of a downtown arena, Andlauer said: “I think we have to have the same mindset going into this.”
Andlauer, who bought the Sens in 2023, said people shouldn’t think of any future downtown arena as belonging to him.
“I think people need to understand, this is not my arena. This is Ottawa’s arena. I don’t need to own it,” he said.
In a joint statement in August, the Senators and NCC announced the agreement of purchase and sale for land parcels at LeBreton Flats.
The Senators declined to comment further at the time, and neither the team nor the NCC made themselves available to the media following the announcement. The statement did not disclose the purchase price.
The Ottawa Citizen and The Athletic have reported the figure at around $30 million based on anonymous sources.
Asked directly Monday for the price of the land, Andlauer refused to give a number.
“That is not to be discussed,” he said. “Anyway, people have speculated, and that’s enough. And that, by the way, that’s just a small part of the whole bill when you come down to it.”
In an email, the NCC said it had agreed to a purchase price at fair market value established by a third-party appraiser.
“The purchase price will not be disclosed until after the transaction closes,” a spokesperson said.
The Senators and NCC had first reached an agreement in principle on the project last September.
At the time, NCC CEO Tobi Nussbaum said the Crown corporation had envisioned a long-term lease but agreed to sell the land to the Senators at market value.
The NCC expropriated and purchased land at LeBreton Flats in the early 1960s, and a large swath has sat empty and contaminated since.
Andlauer said discussions to push the project forward are ongoing.
“As an entrepreneur myself I like to get things done quickly, and cut the red tape and do what’s right,” he said. “It was frustrating at the beginning, but I feel really there’s great momentum now.”
