Vancouver Whitecaps executives are vowing their proposed new 15,000-seat stadium on the downtown waterfront will be more than just a soccer pitch.

Caps president John Rocha and director of soccer operations Bob Lenarduzzi say the $60- to $65-million venue, located on a 26-acre site next to Canada Place and the SkyTrain, Sea Bus and proposed RAV rapid transit line terminus, will revitalize the waterfront and neighbouring communities. It will also reach out to the business sector for the good of the game in B.C. and the rest of Canada, they say.

"We think it's a real jewel for the Whitecaps and the growth of soccer plus a multitude of other uses," says Rocha. "We think the setting is incredible in terms of the wonderful backdrop of the North Shore mountains and Burrard Inlet."

The new facility, which has the working name Whitecaps Waterfront Stadium, is slated to be built by 2009 above existing railway tracks on land that team owner Greg Kerfoot purchased for a reported $17 million.

Illustration courtesy of the Vancouver Whitecaps
Vancouver Whitecaps are proposing to build a new stadium to deliver their soccer product in on downtown waterfront property the team has purchased.

Although the team did not disclose the projected cost at a news conference that unveiled the plans, Lenarduzzi told Business Edge the pricetag should be consistent with proposed, but scuttled soccer venues in Toronto that were in the $60- to $65-million range.

The facility is intended primarily for Whitecaps men's and women's games and Canadian men's and women's national team contests, plus youth and minor soccer events, along with rugby matches featuring local and international sides.

The grass field will consist of square plots that can be removed to transform the facility into a setting for Vancouver Symphony outdoor concerts, and various other music bands and solo artists, ethnic festivals, international beach volleyball and Davis Cup, Federation Cup and local tennis matches.

Rocha and Lenarduzzi are also holding discussions with Vancouver Olympic Organization Committee (VANOC) officials on ways that the facility could be used during the Games. One possible scenario could be nightly medal presentation ceremonies similar to those conducted at Calgary's downtown Olympic Plaza during the 1988 Winter Games.

"We really feel it's consistent with the (Greater Vancouver Regional District's) livable region strategy of people working and playing (and living) in the same area," says Rocha. "We think we can be a significant addition to the Gastown community in terms of the ongoing revitalization there - and great neighbours to the Downtown East Side and catalysts for great things there as well."

The Whitecaps have proposed establishing an employment-training program for Downtown East Side residents considered to be at risk, which is designed to offset the shortages of skilled trades workers in the construction industry.

But during the news conference, some protesters denounced the stadium plans, contending the new building would adversely affect those very residents.

"Frankly, it was mumbo-jumbo to me," Lenarduzzi says of the protest. "We've tried to engage the potential stakeholders and also (address) the potential concerns that might be out there.”

He adds the stadium will be a "creative use" of the land.

"It's not like it's replacing anything," he says. "It's going over top of the railway tracks.”

But, he adds, concerns about shortages of affordable housing in the area are valid and the club will attempt to engage everyone in the process, "even our detractors, to see if there's a resolution that can be reached."

In an attempt to lure the corporate crowd, the stadium will include executive suites, loge boxes and club seats, traditional seats and a "signature Vancouver product" - grass-level suites.

"There'll be a 360-degree panoramic where people can sit on patio furniture on the grass and watch the first half and then go up into their suite or club-seat area and then have a view on the back deck of the water and mountains," says Rocha.

Rocha and Lenarduzzi held sneak previews for companies in Calgary and Toronto before unveiling their plans.

"We want it to be a showcase of B.C. products and technology, so one thing is to use B.C. wood," says Rocha. "We think it's a great showcase for our lumber industry. We've spoken to some lumber executives about the idea of using it as a showcase for their international clients."

The stadium, designed by Vancouver-based VIA Architecture, will also showcase B.C. art, use an environmentally, socially and economically sustainable management system, and employ local engineers and architects in accordance with a mandate from Kerfoot.

The owner shuns publicity, but is considered a saviour for the franchise
because he stepped in after former owner David Stadnyk walked away from the team amidst financial difficulties following the 2002 season. Kerfoot was
originally only going to bankroll the club temporarily, says Rocha, but he
later agreed to stay involved for the long term.

Questions remain about how the stadium will be financed. Kerfoot, who founded Vancouver-based software company Crystal Decisions Corp. and then sold it to Business Objects in July of 2003 for a reported $820 million, appears able to cover the costs, but Lenarduzzi says the Whitecaps will approach the municipal, provincial and federal governments and the private sector for funding help.

He suggests a precedent has already been set in Toronto where three aborted soccer stadium projects, including two at York University and the University of Toronto, secured $47 million in three levels of government funding.

"If Greg Kerfoot and the club are going to have any chance of making this building viable, we need to know that there's a cross-section of the province that feels it is a viable venue," he says. "We've had that response."

Although minor soccer participation numbers greatly exceed those of minor hockey, pro soccer in Canada has endured a rocky financial history.

The Whitecaps men's squad formed in 1973, but folded in 1984 along with the rest of the North American Soccer League. In 1987, the former community-owned franchise was reborn as the Vancouver 86ers (in reference to Expo '86) of the now-defunct Canadian Soccer League and moved to the A-League, operated by the U.S.-based United Soccer Leagues, and now toil in the USL's First Division. (The club regained the rights to its original Whitecaps name in 2000.) The Whitecaps women, born in 2000 (first as the Breakers) compete in the USL's W-League.

Rocha and Lenarduzzi, a former star player and coach of both the Whitecaps and men's national team, are optimistic the new stadium will help the men's squad return to its glory days of 1979, when the Caps claimed the NASL's Soccer Bowl over the Tampa Bay Rowdies in New Jersey and enjoyed a homecoming before 100,000 fans at Robson Square - and help the women's game reach new heights.

"What it will ultimately do is take soccer (in Canada) to another level," says Lenarduzzi.

The club, which has a philosophy of building from the lower levels up like Manchester United and other top European organizations, can dare to dream, whereas the previous goal was mere survival, he adds.

"Since the original years, outside of the two years when Milan Ilich was involved, it's always been (a case) of worrying about being around the next year, so you never had a chance to look ahead and try to plan a long-term plan - which is what we have the ability to do right now," says Lenarduzzi.

Rocha says the club will also invest $10 to $15 million in a future national training facility at a yet-to-be-determined location.

Web Watch: www.whitecapsnewstadium .com

(Monte Stewart can be reached at monte@businessedge.ca)