As part of the 2004 Streets Rehabilitation Program, the City is repaving Queen Street and replacing the sidewalk with decorative concrete/brick paver sidewalk. Also, decorative street lights are being installed. The approximate cost of this project is $70,000.

Ask Keith Coombs who will lose the most when the St. John’s Maple Leafs leave next year and his answer is characteristically twofold.

“I think, first of all, you’d have to look at some of the major sponsors and some of the companies involved…like airlines and hotels and so on,” the city councilor and chairman of St. John’s Sports and Entertainment Ltd. said Monday, soon after Toronto Maple Leafs management announced the coming season will be the AHL farm team’s last one in the city.

“Then there’s your restaurants, bars and taxis.” In the same breath, he’s quick to state the city has no intention of missing a beat.

“Well, to be quite honest with you, we’re shooting for 2005-2006,” Coombs said. “That’s our intention – to have a replacement here for that season.

“Obviously, this news has an effect there and that’s why we say while there’s one door closing, we’ve got to seek an opportunity somewhere else. And that’s what we’ll do.

“It’s a matter now of working very hard to try to get another partner, another team in the arena so that we can carry on.”

And, if not by 2005? “If it doesn’t happen, from a financial point of view for the city, it will either come out even and balanced, or somewhere in the vicinity of a $50,000-$75,000 loss.”

An immediate replacement for the Leafs would make life easier. Coombs predicts it could be a relatively smooth transition; a matter of swapping the Leafs name, which has been so visible in the community, for another.

“What you’ve got to remember is, if it’s another AHL team, they’d bring in another logo or trademark with them. If it’s a Quebec major junior team, then we’ll make our own,” he said.

“The one thing that will happen is all these organizations, charities, and foundations, there’s no doubt in my mind they’ll just change the name and carry on from there. And that’s important. We know we don’t have barriers to overcome to have a good franchise, regardless if it’s AHL or the QMJHL.”

Several city councilors have confided that the city has been actively wooing the Quebec league “for some time” in anticipation of Monday’s announcement. “We have had some preliminary talks there… and we will be making some representation soon,” said Coombs.
“But having said all that, all this stuff will be predicated by whether a team wants to move here, whether a league wants to expand, and things of that nature.”

And it all comes down to money. “Oh yeah, big time. I mean, no matter what you do here, you’ve got to turn around and fly people in and out.”

That may be a serious consideration for the city, but the Leafs departure should have little impact on business at the St. John’s International Airport. “I wouldn’t say we’d feel much of an impact,” says airport CEO Rex Ledrew. “Hockey fans will fly in for games from all around the province just like they do to see an NHL game in Toronto. “But as for the teams themselves, they normally travel with 30 or so people. Multiply that by the number of home games and it’s not a big dent for us. But it’s certainly a shame for the business community as a whole.”

Businesses closest to Mile One Stadium obviously stand to lose the most in the equation, notes Downtown Development Commission chairman Bill Mahoney.
“Those inside the stadium first – they’ve built a business based on those game nights,” he said. “So I’m sure that’ll be a big hit.”

Again the obvious fallout will be in the service industry, said Mahoney, adding the Leafs offices will close, affecting jobs and space. He’s quick to point out, however, that the new stadium was built for more than the St. John’s Maple Leafs. He’s confident the venue will continue to attract events such as the Scott Tournament of Hearts, which will help the city as it seeks a major hockey tenant.

“I would suggest that everyone should really band together and fall in behind Mr. Coombs and these people in attracting business. We had to have that stadium one way or another. It was great to have the Leafs, but we can’t stay stuck in the past.”

Coombs raised the issue at Monday afternoon’s St. John’s city council meeting. “When all the dust settled, to be quite honest with you, it was an issue that we had no control over whatsoever and that was the issue of moving the team closer to Toronto,” he said. “It now means we have to move forward. Where it will end up? Very difficult to say. Ironically enough without a franchise, the sky doesn’t fall.”

Coombs said one way the move will benefit St. John’s is by word of mouth. “Toronto itself will spread the word vis-à-vis Mile One and the hockey operations and the management team that exist here,” he said. “They’ll talk about how it’s first class, it’s professional, and how the hockey fans in St. John’s are die-hard hockey fans – god only knows, they’ve been put to the test for the past several years.”

With an entire season to be played before the Leafs leave, and a booming summer tourism season in progress, the true effect of the team’s departure likely won’t be realized until next spring.

In the meantime, employees inside and out Mile One Stadium hold their collective breath, banking on the second of Coombs’ answers for a quick replacement to save the day.

Brian Callahan, The Telegram, Tuesday, August 10, 2004

A new monument in downtown St. John's marks five centuries of fishing history, and the links between Newfoundland and Portugal.
The sails of the so-called White Fleet are recalled in the monument, which is installed near the Fairmont Hotel.

The monument includes pictures of the Portuguese fleet, which docked so often in St. John's that sailors often called the city their second home.
The monument also features painted tiles of fishing boats.
It was built by the Grand Concourse Authority with help from the federal government.
Portugal has built its own monument, in the city of Illhavo.