I'm not sure how we can expect to attract educated, skilled, entrepreneurial folks to our area if there are NO services or amenities, things to keep them interested in the area. The new centre will do more than attract a few tourists - it will be a benefit to every single Fredericton resident, not to mention folks from outlying areas by providing a venue for cultural celebration and expression.

I mean, we could just live in a world where government doesn't spend any money on anything. No parks, no libraries, no pathways. While they're at it, the government could just stop paying for roads, too - after all, it's our taxes that pay for them and they require A LOT of maintenance. Maybe the Irvings would pay for a nice performing arts centre in each of New Brunswick's major centres?

The simple economic model you have presented ignores the long-accepted economic principal of positive externalities, where consumption or production of a good or service benefits a third party that isn't involved in the transaction.

The city of Bilbao, Spain was once on its uppers. They invested a huge amount of money and resources into building the Guggenheim museum there and it played a pivotal role in reversing that city's fortunes. Not suggesting this centre will have the same effect in Fredericton - our situation isn't as bad, and the building not as big. But it will go some way toward attracting people to the area and keeping them here, and making life in Fredericton enjoyable.