Calgary Olympic dreams hang in the balance of committee vote
Posted October 30, 2018 7:31 am.
Last Updated October 30, 2018 3:43 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
CALGARY (660 NEWS) – No catchy theme song, no opening ceremonies, and no Jamaican bobsled team, the dream of hosting the 2026 Winter Olympics could come to an end with a simple vote.
A meeting at Calgary City Hall Tuesday morning could determine if the bid process will continue to a plebiscite.
These games are too expensive for many people on City Council and Calgary taxpayers bear too much of the burden.
Ward 7 Councillor Druh Farrell confirms there will be quite a bit of lost money by dropping out just before the plebiscite.
WATCH: Is this the end of a Calgary 2026 Olympic bid?
“Oh I imagine that there are significant sunk costs, but that is not the reason why we should be doubling down on those costs.”
She also says now is the time to get out because council hasn’t hammered out a deal to host the games.
“Some Calgarians are already voting through mail-in ballots, and yet we don’t have critical financial information that we promised Calgarians,” Farrell said. ” “We also promised Calgarians that they would have the city financial commitment 30 days before the plebiscite, and we have passed that.”
Any recommendation would have to be approved by the city council which would happen Wednesday.
Just received Clerk’s notice the Olympic Committee meeting has been moved from 1:00 p.m. to 9:30 am instead, Tuesday, council chambers . #yyccc
— Ward Sutherland (@Ward4Ward1) October 29, 2018
The 2026 Bid Corporation isn’t changing its message ahead of these disheartening rumours.
“Calgary 2026 has three great partners. We are working hard on negotiating a deal that is good for Canada, the province and the community of Calgary,” said Board Chair Scott Hutcheson. “We maintain that today.”
Federal Sports Minister Kirsty Duncan says her department worked overnight into Tuesday morning in hopes of resolving the funding concerns, but would not elaborate.
The federal government has committed 1.5-billion dollars to the bid, which is half the three billion dollars the city, province and feds were asked to contribute by the bid corporation Calgary 2026. The sticking point is that the feds want the city and provincial government to match that figure.
