At next Wednesday’s City Council Meeting, councilors will be presented with a new agreement framework between City Administration and OVG360, the company selected to operate the future Downtown Event and Entertainment District. 

An agreement framework had been presented last April, and agreed upon by last July, but following a pause in negotiations due to a tumultuous trade environment, OVG has since come back with several changes they wished to see included in the framework. 

Director of Technical Services Dan Willems says these changes include a new operating term of 15 years with a 15-year optional extension, down from 20 years; an upfront capital contribution from OVG of $15 million, down from $20 million; OVG assumes full responsibility for any net operating losses; and a link between operator compensation and higher overall profits.  

“The protection from operating losses is a big one for us, and the massive swing of the incentive fees towards our favour over the higher performing ranges will result in greater revenues for our city,” he explained.

The total net cash flow to the city over the 30-year term, plus the upfront contribution, is expected to be $250 million. That’s up from the previous projected net cash flow of $170 million, but still only one quarter of the forecasted $1.2 billion total cost of the project.

Council will vote on the new framework Wednesday.