Before you can even say "boondoggle" the ink will have dried on the subsidy package for the new arena owners. Unveiled only a week ago, the deal will be pushed through by a City Council vote on May 23rd. What's the rush?

If a new downtown arena is as glorious a sight as its promoters say, why not take the time to bring citizens up to speed on the wonders of their cash contribution? A two-week courtship hardly qualifies as reasoned public debate.

Time is of the essence. So it's time to drop the gloves. Let's review some of stellar arguments advanced in favor of the True North arena.

1. It's a private sector led initiative. The arena backers and members of the chattering classes make mischief by repeating the already-tiresome myth that the public sector is picking up $38 million or 30 percent of the tab. It ain't so.

The full cost of the subsidy and concession package is $47 million in the first year and $250 million after 25 years. Manitobans will continue to subsidize the arena's operating costs through a myriad of tax breaks, credits and VLT freebies.

2. Nothing is lost by striking a sweetheart property tax break with the city. Instead of shelling out the full $6 million in property taxes assessed against the arena, the new owners make off like bandits paying only $400,000 per year.

Struggling homeowners can expect to subsidize a building that's valued at 1000 times more than an average house but pays only 160 times more in property taxes. The double standard is not likely to win over business owners, particularly competitors in the entertainment industry, saddled with a business tax and entertainment tax that True North managed to negotiate off their books.

3. We need a new arena downtown because the existing one is too low class or not good enough to house second tier hockey players and tractor pull events. That one speaks for itself.

4. It's a "no brainer" to situate the new arena on the existing Eaton's site. Of all the empty windswept lots in Winnipeg, two of the city's larger buildings (the Winnipeg Arena and the Eaton's building) have to be demolished before a new one can rise. I call that "no brains".

5. Public opinion is lined up in their favor of the new arena. The only opinion polls that I'm aware of were taken by the Winnipeg Sun's "talkback line." Of the 1,774 calls registered in two separate polls since the deal was unveiled, an average 84% of callers disagreed that a new arena was good for Winnipeg or the downtown.

Before governments sacrifice their citizen's money at the altar of this new entertainment complex, voter approval should be measured in a referendum or plebiscite. The last time I checked no politician campaigned on taxpayer handouts for new arena owners.

The buck stops at City Council. Unless calls start pouring in to elected representatives, Councilors may mistake silence on the issue for tacit approval.

They would be wiser to chalk it up to public cynicism or the shotgun PR campaign. After all, the dearth of debate and discussion has so far allowed promoters and politicians to describe the new arena as a slam-dunk.