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City of St. John’s, sports teams still negotiating tenancy at downtown arena

Newfoundland Growlers' James Melindy hoists the Kelly Cup to win the East Coast Hockey League championship against the Toledo Walleye at the Mile One Centre in St. John's, N.L. on Tuesday, June 4, 2019 in this handout photo. Sports fans in St. John's are on the edge of their seats awaiting news on the future of two professional sports teams that play out of the city's Mile One Centre. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO, Jeff Parsons, Newfoundland Growlers

Sports fans in St. John’s are on the edge of their seats awaiting news on the future of two professional sports teams that play out of the city’s Mile One Centre.

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A long-term lease agreement has not yet been reached with the St. John’s Edge of the National Basketball League of Canada and the Newfoundland Growlers of the ECHL.

READ MORE: New Brunswick community hosts major celebration of Hockeyville

Discussions over rent and shares of concession revenue at the arena have continued through the summer.

With Growlers’ games scheduled for October, it’s still unclear if this season will be the team’s last in St. John’s.

Growlers owner Dean MacDonald and St. John’s mayor Danny Breen both cancelled press conferences this week, and both parties say they will continue negotiating before making further comment.

The City of St. John’s said in a statement Monday that it offered the Growlers a 50 per cent reduction in nightly rent but would not give the team full control of food and beverage revenue.

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WATCH: Saint John councillor floating idea to sell city-owned assets

City councillors say they want to keep sports tenants at Mile One at a reasonable cost to both teams and taxpayers.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2019

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