Awards

• Short-listed for Scholarly and Academic Book of the Year | Alberta Book Awards, Book Publishers Association of Alberta 2020 (Canada)
• Short-listed for Scholarly and Academic Book of the Year | Alberta Book Publishing Awards, Book Publishers Association of Alberta 2020 (Canada)
• Short-listed for Trade Non-Fiction Book of the Year | Alberta Book Awards, Book Publishers Association of Alberta 2020 (Canada)
• Winner of Trade Non-Fiction Book of the Year | Alberta Book Awards, Book Publishers Association of Alberta 2020 (Canada)
• Winner of Trade Non-Fiction Book of the Year | Alberta Book Publishing Awards, Book Publishers Association of Alberta 2020 (Canada)

Overview

When the Rogers Place arena opened in downtown Edmonton in September 2016, no amount of buzz could drown out the rumours of manipulation, secret deals, and corporate greed undergirding the project. Working with documentary evidence and original interviews, the authors present an absorbing account of the machinations that got the arena and the adjacent Ice District built, with a price tag of more than $600 million. The arena deal, they argue, established a costly public financing precedent that people across North America should watch closely, as many cities consider building sports facilities for professional teams or international competitions. Their analysis brings clarity and nuance to a case shrouded in secrecy and understood by few besides political and business insiders. Power Play tells a dramatic story about clashing priorities where sports, money, and municipal power meet. Foreword by Richard Gruneau.

Full Product Details

9781772124934

Table of Contents

Reviews

Power Play is easy to understand, with a clear message: cities set to negotiate with professional sports teams must be aware there is a carefully-crafted playbook designed to attract maximum public dollars for sports facilities... -- Liane Faulder # 1 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, October 27, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * # 2 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, November 03, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * # 3 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, November 10, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers *

Power Play is easy to understand, with a clear message: cities set to negotiate with professional sports teams must be aware there is a carefully-crafted playbook designed to attract maximum public dollars for sports facilities... -- Liane Faulder # 1 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, October 27, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * # 2 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, November 03, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * # 3 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, November 10, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * In Power Play, Jay Scherer, David Mills and Linda Sloan McCulloch not only clear the fog, they situate the whole ordeal as only the latest example of a long pattern of North American pro sports teams coercing public subsidies for new facilities.... No amount of massaging the messaging or shiny renderings will cover up the most fundamental divide in these debates: whether scarce public resources should be spent building something that will generate private profit, and which many citizens cannot reap the benefits of. -- Taylor Lambert * The Sprawl * Power Play delves into the dark world of billionaire club owners, weak mayors and unconscionable subsidies that litter the world of professional sports. The names and dollar values change, but these grinding sagas are all the same: One false move and the dummy gets it. Pay up or you lose the team. So, taxpayers pay and pay . -- Holly Doan * Blacklock's Reporter * # 7 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, November 24, 2019 -- Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers Ultimately, Power Play asserts that the city was the biggest loser when it came to building the arena. The city financed a majority of the new arena at an enormous cost.... While it agrees the arena has made positive contributions to Edmonton, it cautions future cities and arena developments to think critically about spending public dollars on private ventures. -- Adam Lachacz [The arena deal] was viewed by some as a catalyst for invigorating Edmonton's downtown core and a way to lock in the city's storied Oilers franchise. Others argued it was a gift to a billionaire businessman and the presumed result of backroom deals and public threats to move the team. Now, a new book sheds light on how Edmonton City Council reached the arena deal. -- Jennifer Crosby # 8 on Glass Bookshop's Top 10 list, November 11, 2019 # 8 on Glass Bookshop's Top 10 list, November 18, 2019 # 7 on Edmonton's Bestselling Books list; Non-fiction, December 01, 2019

Power Play is easy to understand, with a clear message: cities set to negotiate with professional sports teams must be aware there is a carefully-crafted playbook designed to attract maximum public dollars for sports facilities... -- Liane Faulder # 1 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, October 27, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * # 2 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, November 03, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * # 3 on Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers list, November 10, 2019 * Edmonton Non-Fiction Bestsellers * In Power Play, Jay Scherer, David Mills and Linda Sloan McCulloch not only clear the fog, they situate the whole ordeal as only the latest example of a long pattern of North American pro sports teams coercing public subsidies for new facilities.... No amount of massaging the messaging or shiny renderings will cover up the most fundamental divide in these debates: whether scarce public resources should be spent building something that will generate private profit, and which many citizens cannot reap the benefits of. -- Taylor Lambert * The Sprawl *

Author Information

Jay Scherer is Professor of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation at the University of Alberta. David Mills is a retired Professor of Canadian history from the University of Alberta. Linda Sloan McCulloch was elected and served on Edmonton City Council from 2004 to 2013.

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