Days after City Councillors voted to move forward with plans for a new downtown arena, another Edmonton sports team has started to work with the city for a new, larger, indoor home.
Edmonton’s professional soccer team, FC Edmonton, has been playing out of Clarke Stadium for years – but it’s a home base the team said is not big enough.
“We need a medium sized stadium for FC Edmonton,” Team President Thomas Fath said. “But the city needs that facility for all kinds of events.”
The team is looking to the city to help build an indoor training facility and stadium – that can seat between 10,000 and 15,000 fans.
Such a facility would put the team’s base on par with other professional Canadian teams.
“Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, already have good facilities, so if Edmonton wants to host, they need something considerable,” Darryn Donaghey with the Canadian Soccer Association said.
A report on the subject was submitted to the city’s Executive Committee Monday, it outlined a number of options for a medium-sized stadium in Edmonton, including one built specifically for soccer.
Fath said such a facility could cost between $12 and $40 million.
On Monday, the Executive Committee decided the city should wait and see how the upcoming season at Clarke Stadium plays out, to help determine their next move.
“I think at this point in time, the soccer association can manage with Clarke Stadium,” Councillor Karen Leibovici said. “On a go-forward basis, there may be other field sports that have need for a 10 to 15,000 seat stadium.”
City administrators have a year to find out whether or not there’s a need for a stadium of that size in Edmonton – a report on the matter is expected before the end of the year.
With files from Brenna Rose
