The National Capital Commission (NCC) is “willing to wait” for the Senators to determine if they want to build a new home at LeBreton Flats, according to Bruce Garrioch of the OTTAWA SUN. Not long after Senators owner Michael Andlauer and his ownership group officially closed on the sale of the team, he “sat down with” NCC CEO Tobi Nussbaum and NCC officials to “discuss what the next steps will be" for the memorandum of understanding. Garrioch noted in that meeting Nussbaum and NCC officials “agreed to extend the MOU until Sept. 2024” to give Andlauer, Senators CEO & President Cyril Leeder and the club’s ownership group time to “get up to speed on talks and determine the next steps in negotiations for a lease agreement.” On June 23 2022, the Senators “received preferred bidder status” from the NCC for the site. The hope was an agreement on a lease "would be papered by then," but Andlauer and his partners “need time to see if a new rink at LeBreton makes sense.” Garrioch wrote giving the Senators another year to decide what is next “makes sense for the NCC because the organization wants to make sure it gets this right.” Nussbaum has “stated publicly there is room for flexibility if Andlauer wants more room.” The time the NCC has granted Andlauer to look at this project “will give him an opportunity to see what participation he can expect from all levels of government” (OTTAWA SUN, 11/24).
The NCC has agreed to extend the MOU between them and the Senators until Sept. 2024Getty Images
