If nothing is done with Lansdowne Park, the city will have to spend nearly $4 million just to perform upkeep on the aging facility, according to a city report.
City manager Kent Kirkpatrick released the numbers Tuesday at a day-long hearing at city hall examining the redevelopment.
Councillors asked questions pertaining to the retail portion of the development and what happens if the sports franchises slated to use the site fold.
Meanwhile, at a public meeting held on Monday, urban designers and local architects said there was still not enough competition in creating the Lansdowne Live plan.
"I'm so absolutely bitter," said architect Mohammad al Riffai. "I think it's pretty sad for Ottawa and the growth that we expect for the city to end (the competition) that way."
The meeting was held near Bayview Yards, which was once pegged as a top site to place a stadium in Ottawa.
Local planner Fraser Pollock said that location would be far better than Lansdowne.
"What people didn't realize is that some of those first public meetings at Lansdowne Park in 2007, half the people there were designers slowly gauging the public for designs and ideas."
The last public hearing will be held at the Shenkman Centre on Tuesday, with a decision expected to come as early as mid-November.
Local MPP Jim Watson says the province will not provide any money for the Lansdowne redevelopment plan if the project is sole-sourced.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Maggie Padlewska
