Capitales owner confident about team’s future

The owner of the Quebec City Capitales, Miles Wolff, says he is confident the baseball team has a future in la vieille capitale, despite two recent failed attempts to sell the franchise.

Wolff, who is also commissioner of the Can-Am league, met Friday with Quebec City Mayor Régis Labeaume to discuss the city’s plans to increase the cost of the team’s lease on Victoria Park stadium.

The issue has been an obstacle to Wolff’s efforts to sell the team.

The team pays only $40,000 a year for the use of the stadium, but city officials say it costs more than $350,000 a year to maintain the stadium and wants the team to pay $280,000 in rent.

The current Capitales administration has said coming up with that kind of money is impossible.

But Wolff said Friday that Labeaume is intent on making sure the team stays in the city.

"We've reached an agreement today, but … [also] long-term," Wolff said after his meeting with the mayor. "This was also just the first meeting, but we both agree on everything."

This season, the team will continue to pay only $40,000 rent, Wolff said.

He said that he agrees the team should pay more in the future, adding that a $1 increase in the ticket price could be in the works.

Last month, the lease issue forced current team manager Michel Laplante and two Quebec City businessmen, Jean Tremblay and Jean-Michel Picard, to back out of an offer to pay $1 million for 75 per cent ownership of the 2009 Can-Am league champions.

A previous offer from Picard and another Quebec City businessman, Jean-Sebastien Monette, failed in January.