Readers weigh in on bid for Toronto Games,
Re Time to decide on Olympics, Editorial July 29
The Pan Am Games began with much cynicism around the Golden Horseshoe. Media said we didn’t care, that we were apathetic; we don’t support amateur sports, and wouldn’t support the Games. Then it hits us. Whether it was the image of Donovan Bailey base-jumping from the CN Tower, the beautifully orchestrated Cirque du soleil opening ceremony or that first gold medal on the first day, almost all of us got on board.
I love the Games, Pan American or Olympic, but many others had to be won over. The Games would need to deliver in a big way, and did they ever. They are an incredible event: the tradition, the co-operation, seeing athletes achieve success and inspire the next generation. It’s an amazing thing to witness some of the world’s best athletes having some of the best moments of their careers, then minutes later, others committing a seemingly minor error resulting in a situation that is devastating. The margin of error is so small.
Our athletes did us proud. Canada ended the Games second in total medal count with 217, including a whopping 78 gold medals, well eclipsing our previous best performance.
The volunteers did us proud. Every event I went to, they were happy, friendly, energetic and the Games couldn’t have happened without them. The organizers, the city of Toronto, the Golden Horseshoe region and beyond, did us proud. Athletes raved about the facilities, the venues and hospitality.
And the people who attended the events did us proud. Fans stood and cheered, providing every encouragement possible.
We have built a legacy. Now, we are considering a 2024 Olympic bid. Many will say it is too expensive, and sure, it won’t be cheap. But we already have most of the facilities in place. The Pan Am Games meant that new facilities were built all over the region. In 2024, these facilities may need updates but should be close to games-ready, so we don’t need to start from scratch.
Let’s not solely focus solely on the economics. We still need to be prudent and make sure dollars are spent well and accounted for, but let’s consider the impact the Olympics can have on our communities, the great feeling that will come from hosting the world, and the inspiration the Games will bring.
Let’s bring the world to the GTA. There is nothing like the Olympics. Here’s hoping for “Toronto 2024.” Scott Kirby, Burlington Torontonians can be justifiably proud of the achievement of these Games. Not only our athletes but the entire city scored big time. We finally proved that we are indeed a “world-class city.” But talk of an Olympic bid is premature, even though the deadline looms. The price tag so far for Pan Am is $2.5 billion with more to come. Do we know how much the Games brought in? Not yet, so the balance sheet is far from complete.
But more importantly, these Games were not the Olympics. The venues are too small. The soccer arena in Hamilton seats maybe 25,000. We will need an arena at least twice that size just for soccer. We sure can use it, but at what cost?
Olympic security would be far greater than anything we’ve seen so far. And then there is the issue of corruption. Do we really want to be part of that? Finally, while our athletes did amazingly well, let’s remember that it was only a small part of the competition they would face in an Olympics.
Before rushing into a costly Olympic bid, we need some sober second thought, even if we miss this deadline. Let’s not rush into anything in the first blush of victory. I’m urging caution. Stephen L. Bloom, Toronto I’m all for an Olympic bid for Toronto. Sure it’ll be inconvenient for a few weeks and expensive. Hosting a major international event always is, but it’s the only thing that gets local politicians off their collective rear ends.
It pre-empts the endless meetings, discussions, studies, think-tanks, environmental assessments, lollygagging, delaying and deferring of anything the city needs but doesn’t get because it may require a hike in taxes and other revenue streams.
It forces immediate and fast-tracked decisions from those elected officials who are interested more in their own futures than that of the city or their constituents. For some reason, the prospect of hosting an international event moves them to actually do their jobs instead of just trying to keep them.
Would we have a refurbished Union Station or a long overdue rail link from downtown to the airport without the Pan Am Games? Would we have the state-of-the-art athletic facilities like the swim centre at the University of Toronto Scarborough campus; what will be the affordable housing that a converted athletes’ village will become in the coming months? (Not to mention the built-in infrastructure that will already exist if Toronto is awarded the 2024 Games)?
Bring it on. By the time the Toronto 2024 Games arrive, drivers will have been paying tolls for years on the major highways. It’ll be old news and we’ll have a better transit system and roads and highways to show for it. You know it. I know it and those lollygaggers down at city hall know it, too. Rob Cowan, Toronto Although the Star presents a compelling case for Toronto to bid for the 2024 Olympics, I doubt it will be in Toronto’s best interests in the long term.
Boston was recently forced to withdraw its bid because of strong opposition from residents. The 2012 London Olympics ran up an estimated deficit of $13 billion. It is estimated Rio de Janeiro will spend $20 billion on the 2016 Olympics, even though they hosted the Pan Am Games in 2007 and the World Cup in 2014. Montreal was still paying for its deficit almost 40 years later.
Toronto and Ontario are both plagued by serious fiscal challenges and it would not be fair to future generations to burden them with more questionable debts. Robert Ariano, Scarborough As we prepare to bid, we need to do two things: First, get TO-Bid, who led our efforts to land the 2008 Games, to release all expenditures and off-the-books inducements. Second, we need to get assurance from the federal government that it will exempt the Toronto bid from the provisions of the 2014 Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act. Ab Dukacz, Mississauga Perhaps Ottawa should bid on the Olympics. But they never have. I wonder why. Lane Prentice, Little Britain, Ont. I believe I speak for all sensible citizens of Toronto when I say the only way I will ever support an Olympics in this city is if Mel Lastman is put in charge of our bid. Joey Slinger, Toronto Hurrah for Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, who refused to spend millions of dollars in an attempt to put his city on the hook for billions. Could we somehow get him to come and be mayor of Toronto? Andy Turnbull, Toronto In its support of an Olympic bid the Star’s line that “details” about construction costs and “who gets stuck with any overruns” can be left to an unspecified future is irresponsible. It sounds more like the pitch of an unscrupulous snake oil salesman than the editorial of a respected national news voice. Allen Perdue, St. Catharines, Ont. I’m glad to hear that Mayor Tory has committed to not going for the Olympics until after an independent, and thorough, audit of the Pan Am Games. Jeff Green, Toronto The fact that Boston has pulled its bid should be a cautionary note for Toronto. We do not have the time to come up with a realistic budget for a proposal. A hurried study would be misleading to the public. It is economically foolish to consider applying for an Olympic bid. D. A. Robinson, Etobicoke Now that the GTA has all these marvellous sports facilities, it is an ideal time to mount a bid for the World Masters Games, being held next in 2017 in Auckland, N.Z. The Games have been hosted by Edmonton, Sydney, Turin and now Auckland. They are intended for adults over the age of 35 and cover a multitude of sports. No new facilities need be built, no athletes village is required, hotel bookings soar, as do restaurant and retail sales. Holding these games would be another way to hone our skills in preparation for an Olympic bid. Gaynor Reader, Toronto Given all the urgent needs of Toronto, surely city councillors are mature enough to vote for a true capital budget without needing to waste millions of dollars and time just trying to get another party as a reward for doing the city’s business.
Some 90,000 households are on a waiting list for affordable, standard housing and even another athletes village would not satisfy this need. And $1.6 billion is needed to do backlogged repairs in existing community housing.
Mayor Tory has the right attitude. I hope he has the courage to lead council away from the mesmerizing Olympic torch and toward enlightened decision-making on actual long-term benefits for all residents, taxpayers and working people. Constance Demb, Toronto Just because the Pan Am Games were a success, let’s not get carried away. Just submitting our bid would cost taxpayers millions. A study by the Oxford’s Said Business School shows that every Olympic Games since 1960 has had cost overruns. Is this really the way we want to spend our tax dollars? I hope cooler heads prevail and we forget about the 2024 Olympics. Allan Mantel, Victoria Harbour Fifty million dollars just to request the right to bid on the Olympics? I would like to know how the Olympic committees will spend this money. How many first class flights and gourmet meals will $50 million cover?
And they collect $50 million from every city wishing to bid. Is there a public accounting of all this money? Would it not be cheaper just to bribe the right people, like in the old days? Oh, wait, maybe that is what the $50 million is used for.
I wonder how $50 million from just 10 applicants would have affected the ultimatum recently forced on Greece, the originator of the Olympics. Edward A. Collis, Burlington Re 61% of Torontonians want the Olympics, July 27 Any Olympic bid by Toronto must begin with the people, all of them, not just 755 as in this poll. A referendum may well show that citizens have higher priorities for the spending of billions of their tax dollars. All citizens of a free country deserve a voice with regard to unnecessary expenditures. Raymond Peringer, Toronto As an avid sports fan and someone who attended the Games in Atlanta in 1996, I say hold on. I am also a taxpayer quite tired of the many cost overruns that seem to plague our city, from potholes and subways to all things in between.
Can we wait for the honest and final Pan Am budget before we decide? Can we negotiate better with the IOC, who seem to be running out of willing cities to host this expensive circus? Maybe this can become a Toronto-wide referendum with some good debate beforehand? Let’s be the first city to approach this using a better method so we might all be able to stand proud on a podium and claim overall victory. Peter Donato, Toronto When Mayor John Tory mindlessly, during a Pan Am closing ceremony interview with the CBC’s Scott Russell, effusively complimented the network on its great coverage of the Games, one knew the mayor would be quite beyond his depth in deciding any matter concerning an Olympic bid. Douglas L. Martin, Hamilton How to get the Olympic Games for no cost? Cancel the illadvised, politically based, statistically invalid, expert-criticized Scarborough subway, and put in the more intelligent option of an LRT. Those votes lost by the self-esteem challenged base in that area would be more than made up by citywide approval. David Klarer, Oakville