Senators Majority Owner Rod Bryden "suggested this
could be the Senators' last season in Ottawa," as the team
"may be forced into the arms of U.S. investors" unless the
Canadian government helps "reduce the cost of operating" the
franchise, according to Michael Grange of the Toronto GLOBE
& MAIL. Bryden: "If we do not get some relief from the
burden of public costs ... I have to turn to where there is
value and that will not be in Canada." The Senators pay "an
estimated" C$30M in taxes to all three levels of Canadian
government, including a 12.5% entertainment tax to the
province of Ontario on every ticket sold and C$4.5M in local
real estate taxes. Bryden said that "it is impossible to
make money in our market with our level of public costs,"
and that Canadian legislators have to "afford the sports and
entertainment industries considerations that are given to
other economic sectors competing in the broader U.S.
market." Bryden: "This is not a small-market problem. This
is a public-cost problem" (Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 2/19).
