Rogers Place

Development

The arena building was initially estimated to cost $450 million. The City of Edmonton was to pay $125 million, the Katz Group of Companies was to contribute $100 million, and $125 million was to be paid from a user-paid facility fee. The remaining money was expected to come from the province or federal agencies. Estimated cost then increased substantially during continued discussions to an estimated price of $483.5 million for the arena, and $613.7 million ($ in dollars) for the entire project.

On 26 October 2011, the Edmonton City Council approved a funding framework for the arena by a vote of 10–3. A year later, however, with costs escalating and the Katz Group making increasing demands, the city passed a motion to end negotiations with the Katz Group and to seek a new deal or find other options but would still be open to communicating with Daryl Katz for future talks.

On 15 May 2013, the Edmonton City Council passed a deal that saw the City and Katz each put in more money to offset the $55 million shortfall needed to build the new downtown arena. Katz chipped in an additional $15 million through the Edmonton Arena Corporation and another $15 million came from the Community Revitalization Levy (CRL). On 3 December 2013, Rogers Communications announced a 10-year naming rights deal for the new arena, henceforth known as Rogers Place.

• $231 million from the Community Revitalization Levy (CRL) and other incremental revenues (increased parking revenue, reallocation of existing subsidy paid to Northlands and new taxes from business in the arena)
• $125 million from ticket surcharge on all events in the new arena
• $137.81 million from lease revenue for the Arena
• $27.68 million in cash from Edmonton Arena Corporation
• $92.2 million from other government sources

A new agreement was reached on 23 January 2013, between the two parties on moving forward with the arena. On 11 February 2014, it was announced that the project was completely funded, and would go ahead. Construction of the new arena broke ground in March 2014.

The arena triggered a "hospitality explosion" downtown before ground was even broken, as businesses competed for properties around the arena site. In early 2014, there were far fewer options to lease or purchase as competition mounted, including Brad J. Lamb, who announced a $225 million pair of new condo towers.

By December, it was estimated that $2.5 billion in downtown development had been directly connected to Rogers Place. On 13 July 2015, it was announced that the arena district would be officially branded as Ice District, spanning from 103 Avenue to 106 Avenue. Ice District ranked as the fastest growing arena district in the history of similar projects.

Homeless population displacement

The development of the arena prompted concerns about the displacement of the homeless population in the downtown area. Edmonton officials consulted cities that had similar construction projects that displaced homeless populations like Los Angeles and Columbus, Ohio, in an attempt to ratify these concerns with the local population. City officials were criticized by local social agency, Boyle Street Community Services, for inaccurate homelessness count in Edmonton resulting in a miscalculated attempt to prevent the displacement of the homeless population. Accounts of police harassment and the busy environment has led the homeless population from staying away from downtown despite the number of services available to them in the area.

History

Rogers Place officially opened on 8 September 2016.

The first live event to be held in the arena was 16 September 2016, as 12,032 fans welcomed Keith Urban with guests Dallas Smith and Maren Morris for the Ripcord World Tour.

The first hockey game played in the arena featured the Edmonton Oil Kings taking on the Red Deer Rebels in a WHL match-up on 24 September 2016. Trey Fix-Wolansky scored the first goal in the arena at the 0:22 mark of the second period as the Oil Kings went on to win the game in a shoot-out, marking the team's first win in the new building.

The Oilers played their first game on 12 October 2016, against their nearby rivals, the Calgary Flames. Prior to the game, there was a pregame ceremony featuring former Oilers Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier, where a statue of Gretzky was unveiled outside of the arena. Patrick Maroon scored the first NHL goal in the arena, as the Oilers went on to defeat the Flames 7–4; earning their first win in the building. The Oilers' first season in the arena saw them qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2006, ending an 11-year playoff drought. The first playoff game was played on 12 April 2017, where the Oilers lost in overtime to the San Jose Sharks 3–2. Two days later, the Oilers picked up their first playoff game win at the arena by defeating the Sharks 2–0.

The arena was chosen to be one of two hubs for the 2020 Stanley Cup playoffs during the COVID-19 pandemic, hosting the Western Conference Playoffs, the Eastern Conference Finals, the Western Conference Finals and the Stanley Cup Final. The arena hosted the third, fourth, and sixth games of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final. On 16 February 2025, the first Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) game in Edmonton was played at the arena between the Toronto Sceptres and the Ottawa Charge. The Sceptres won 3–2 in front of 17,518 fans. The arena hosted the first, second, fifth games of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final.

Events

Main article: List of events held at Rogers Place

References

References

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2. (3 March 2014). "Construction on Rogers Place Begins". [[CFRN-DT.
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6. (30 September 2014). "Most exciting phase of downtown arena construction begins". [[Edmonton Journal]].
7. (13 April 2012). "PCL Chosen to Build Downtown Arena". [[CBC News]].
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9. "Rogers Place Hockey Arena". Government of Alberta.
10. Jones, Terry. (17 April 2014). "With Rogers Place Plans, What You Can't See Is Just As Strong As What You Can". [[Edmonton Sun]].
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13. (19 May 2011). "No Promises from Province on Edmonton Arena Money". [[CBC News]].
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15. (26 October 2011). "Council Approves Downtown Arena Deal". [[CBC News]].
16. (18 October 2012). "Edmonton to End Arena Talks with Oilers' Owner Katz". [[CBC News]].
17. Parrish, Julia. (17 October 2012). "Council Votes to Cease Arena Negotiations". [[CFRN-DT.
18. (15 May 2013). "Edmonton City Council Passes New Arena Deal". [[CBC News]].
19. (3 December 2013). "Downtown arena will be named Rogers Place". [[CBC News]].
20. (15 May 2013). "Final Piece of Funding for Downtown Arena Approved". City of Edmonton.
21. [https://www.edmonton.ca/attractions_events/rogers_place/the-agreement/ Rogers Place - The Agreement]
22. (23 January 2013). "Edmonton city council approves arena framework with Katz Group". Corus Entertainment Inc..
23. Kent, Gordon. (11 February 2014). "Downtown Arena Gets Green Light for $480M". [[Edmonton Journal]].
24. (3 March 2014). "Rogers Place construction starts Monday". CBC News.
25. Hicks, Graham. (11 October 2013). "The Downtown Hospitality Explosion". [[Edmonton Sun]].
26. Lamphier, Gary. (12 March 2014). "Condo Projects on the Rise in Shadow of Edmonton's New Arena". [[Edmonton Journal]].
27. Tumilty, Ryan. (8 December 2014). "Edmonton seeing $2.5 billion in downtown development connected to new arena". Edmonton Metro.
28. Mah, Bill. (13 July 2015). "Oilers CEO says Ice District a 'crisp and clean' new name for arena district". [[Edmonton Journal]].
29. (27 May 2015). "Edmonton Arena District is the fastest growing arena district in the history of such mega-projects".
30. "Arena's shadow looms large over downtown Edmonton's homeless".
31. "'Time will tell': Homeless adjusting to life in the shadow of Rogers Place".
32. "City works to ensure Rogers Place arena doesn't force out homeless".
33. "Edmonton homeless count numbers inaccurate, could slow progress, social agency says".
34. (9 September 2016). "Rogers Place grand opening photos: Dancers, tours, speeches — even the Great One was there". Postmedia Network Inc..
35. "Keith Urban: September 16,2016".
36. "NHL hub cities: Edmonton, Toronto will host all Stanley Cup Playoff games".
37. Marceau, Finn. (17 February 2025). "Edmonton Puts Itself On The Map With PWHL Takeover".