Following the City of Edmonton’s approval of $125 million for a new Oilers arena, many Calgary Flames fans are calling out for an equal endowment.

“It’s like a kid’s need to have the same toy as his neighbour, we all want the newest, coolest facility for our city,” said Mark Reynolds, a community league hockey coach during a Trojans hockey game Feb. 4.

“[The Saddledome is] still functional and we should hold off spending the money until it’s really needed,” said Reynolds’ wife, Karen, who believes there are other pressing issues to be fiscally concerned with as a city.

Having opened in 1983, the Saddledome is one of the oldest arenas in the NHL but has undergone some cosmetic upgrades in the past few years to include a new JumboTron and a ring of LED screens that span the second bowl.

Speculative comments by Flames president, Ken King, have created expectations that the team plans to have a new arena built for the 2014 – 15 season, when their current lease with the Saddledome expires.

“I like it the way it is, it has a lot of meaning to Calgary and I wish they’d just make it better instead of building new,” said Kevin Medina, 14, an aspiring NHL player and forward for a community hockey team.

Regardless of Edmonton’s decision to shell out cash for a new NHL arena, and the Flames citing their own facility plans, the City of Calgary’s taxpayer dollars are not likely to be handed out in Calgary.

King has stated in various interviews that the Flames have concepts and designs for a new building, but are not ready to release them. However, some plans have been discussed between the City of Calgary and the Flames on how best to move forward with this type of project.

The Saddledome was designed by Graham McCourt Architects, who hadn’t planned for a western theme.

The Saddledome’s roof was actually designed to be a reverse hyperbolic paraboloid, allowing for a column free view from all seats and condensing the interior volume by up to one-third when compared to traditional arenas to create a more intimate feeling.

At one point this very same Saddledome was the world record holder for the longest spanning hyperbolic paraboloid concrete shell, and was featured on the cover of Time Magazine.

Any decision on whether or not the Calgary Flames will end up getting their new downtown arena will hinge on whether or not their rivals from the north get any sort of financial assistance from the provincial government to assist in funding their new entertainment complex.

Popularity: 12%