The CFL is returning to Ottawa.
A league source said Monday the CFL will award the Canadian capital a conditional expansion franchise during a news conference at Lansdowne Park on Tuesday.
CFL commissioner Mark Cohon will be in attendance to make the formal announcement. Although there is no specific timeline in place for the franchise to begin operation, it could be up and running as early as 2010.
Cohon was unavailable for comment Monday as the CFL office was closed. However, the league issued an advisory Monday afternoon stating Cohon and members of the Ottawa ownership group would be present for a league announcement Tuesday regarding the Ottawa franchise.
The news conference will also be streamed live on the league's website www.cfl.ca
This will mark the CFL's third stint in Ottawa. The Rough Riders enjoyed a long and storied history in the city. Formed in 1876, the franchise captured nine Grey Cups, including three between 1960 and 1970.
However, the franchise ceased operations following the '96 season. The CFL returned in 2002, this time as the Renegades. However, the league suspended that club four years later when its ownership wasn't prepared to take on millions in projected losses.
Last week, the Globe and Mail reported that the CFL and the Ottawa group, headed up by Ottawa 67's owner Jeff Hunt, were close to a formal agreement on an expansion franchise for the Canadian capital.
Hunt's group also includes three high-profile Ottawa businessmen: Roger Greenberg, chairman and CEO of Minto Developments: John Ruddy, the president of Trinity Development Group; and William Shenkman, chairman of Shenkman Corp., another local property development company.
But there are strings attached.
One major hurdle still remaining for Hunt and his partners is a stadium. Last year, the city of Ottawa recommended the lower tier of the south-side stands at Frank Clair Stadium be demolished due to structural concerns. Hunt's group has reportedly been working with civic officials on a redevelopment plan for Lansdowne Park, the complex where Frank Clair Stadium is located.
The Ottawa expansion franchise is contingent on Hunt's group securing an agreement with Ottawa civic officials and for the revamped Frank Clair Stadium to have a capacity of at least 25,000 seats.
Since there isn't a firm date for the Ottawa club to officially begin play, Hunt's group has some time to negotiate with the city. It also gives builders sufficient time to make structural changes at Frank Clair Stadium.
This marks Hunt's second attempt to land a CFL franchise for Ottawa. Last year, Hunt was part of the Golden Gate Capital group that was regarded as the front-runner among three bids to land a CFL expansion franchise for Ottawa. But Golden Gate was forced to withdraw from the bidding after a prominent group member was diagnosed with intestinal cancer.
While this would be the CFL's third stint in Ottawa, league officials are confident Hunt's group can succeed where others failed. Hunt has done a masterful job of turning the 67's into one of the top junior hockey operations in Canada and has developed a reputation of being a shrewd sports executive. And his partners all have the financial clout to ensure enough money to operate a franchise with a league-mandated $4.05-million salary cap.
The Ottawa Rough Riders enjoyed a long and storied history in the city. Formed in 1876, the franchise captured nine Grey Cups, including three between 1960 and 1970. But the Riders' demise began in the 1990s when it stopped being a community-owned franchise and questionable moves by private owners Bernie Glieberman, then Bruce Firestone and finally Horn Chen resulted in the club folding in 1996.
A new ownership group was granted a CFL franchise for 2002 under the name Renegades, but the CFL was forced to mothball the operation prior to the 2006 season after co-owners Glieberman and Bill Smith walked away from the club rather than cover a projected $6-million operating loss.
The Renegades players were then allocated for a CFL dispersal draft. Quarterback Kerry Joseph was selected first overall by the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Last season, Joseph captured the CFL's outstanding player award (the first Rider to do so since '76) and led Saskatchewan to the Grey Cup title, just the club's third ever and first since '89.
Earlier this month, the Roughriders dealt Joseph and a 2010 third-round draft pick to the Toronto Argonauts for offensive tackle Glenn January, defensive lineman Ronald Flemons, a 2008 first-round pick and 2010 second-round selection.
