Funding for the demolition of the former Northlands Coliseum has been secured, more than seven years after the arena closed.
The Coliseum demolition and improvement project is expected to cost about $90 million. Demolition is set to begin next summer.
The City of Edmonton will put forward about $35 million for the project but will get $55 million from the provincial government.
The Coliseum, where the Edmonton Oilers won five Stanley Cups in a decade, opened in 1974 and has the been the site of numerous concerts, rodeos and other events.
The future of the demotion was tied to other projects, which include the construction of 2,500 housing units in the Village at Ice District and a public event park by OEG.
The projects are contingent on each other because they have been lumped together in what's known as the downtown Community Revitalization Levy, which was approved in June by council.
Debate dominated city council on Monday regarding the merits of approving a master agreement for the event park and site servicing and whether it would jeopardize funding for housing or the demolition if the approval was not granted.
Monday's vote to approve the master agreement passed 9-4.
"That building should have been demolished in 2017 when the new arena opened, and would have cost only $10 million at that time," said Mayor Amarjeet Sohi on why he was voting in favour of the event park master agreement.
"But decisions were postponed and all that dithering that happened now it's going to cost us $55 million."
The city currently has long-term plans to redevelop the site where the arena is and the surrounding property into an urban village, complete with a new LRT station and mixed commercial and residential space.
Ashley Salvador, councillor for Ward Métis where the Coliseum is located, said the demolition will unlock more space for Exhibition Lands redevelopment.
"Some of that preparation work has actually already started. As you can imagine, a building of this size and age, there's a lot of internal work and planning that has to happen before we can start piecing apart the superstructure," Salvador said, adding that there is a significant abatement component to be dealt with asbestos and other hazardous materials.
WATCH | Take a look inside the Coliseum:
Salvador said Edmontonians were paying close to $2 million annually just to ensure the building did not pose further safety concerns such as inspection of pipes to ensure they don't burst or keeping hazardous material contained.
Salvador said " it's been made quite clear that it's a take it or leave it style deal," when asked about concerns about the spending of public funds for something like the OEG event park.
"On the whole, I do think that there is adequate public benefit and that city administration has done a good job of mitigating any potential risk that might fall back onto the city."
CBC requested comment from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs on whether the province would revoke CRL funding if council voted against proceeding with the master agreement.
"The City of Edmonton was party to the [memorandum of understanding] that was developed several months ago and announced in February," said Kevin Lee, ministry press secretary, in a statement to CBC.
"We expect all partners involved in the MOU to abide by its terms."
Salvador said while there were efforts to determine whether the building could be repurposed, demolition was the only option.
Andrew Altimas, president of Eastwood community league not far from the Coliseum, said there has been mixed reception to the demolition.
"Some people are really optimistic about the future of the Coliseum ... the promise this ground holds," Altimas told CBC.
"And other people are concerned, and some people are frustrated that the process has taken this long and that the building has been left in this state for this long."
Altimas said he's heard from the community that there is a need for different types of housing.
"I used to come here back in the day when Oilers were playing here, and the area's completely changed, and it's lost a lot of life," Altimas said.
"I think that we need to bring back life to this area."