Feds scuttle plans for Thunder Bay Event Centre.

• Position: THUNDER BAY

The City of Thunder Bay will have to tweak its plans for an event and convention centre after the federal government denied its eligibility for funding from the Federal Gas Tax.

In a March 31 news release, the city said it received a registered letter from the federal government indicating the proposed Thunder Bay

Event and Convention Centre is ineligible for Federal Gas Tax funding based on the facility design proposal as submitted and the intent for an American Hockey League (AHL) team to be the lead tenant. The letter indicated the facility would be eligible if the convention centre was built as a separate standalone building.

The city was applying for more than $25 million in federal dollars as part of a combined $59-million contribution from Ottawa and Queen's Park for the centre.

The project, worth an estimated $114 million, would include a 5,700-seat arena and 66,000-square-foot convention space. The city had said construction must start this spring if the centre was going to be ready to host an American Hockey League team by September 2017.

In the release, council said it would re-examine the issue at its April 13 council meeting.

In recent months, city politicians had been intensively lobbying key federal and provincial cabinet...