Before i begin this, firstly I want to state i support the athletes and the hard work they put in to make it to the Olympic games. I enjoy all the countries of the world putting down their indifference's and letting their athletes settle it for them. Now what i don't agree with is the added expenditures of hosting the games and over willingness of our government to bail it out when our education system is getting chopped to bits. As the world grows, as does the costs to host and runs the games.
Since we won the bid 7 years ago, things have changed dramatically in the world especially when it comes to the economy. We experienced one of the worse recessions with jobs being lost and no one's job was really safe. Even my wife was a casualty of the job losses. I bet you probably know someone who was affected by this crisis. Now with reduced incomes and higher operational costs, governments can no longer deliver on their promises and is now creating a very dangerous balancing act with our childrens futures at stake.
As a resident of the wet coast here in Vancouver, Vancouverites have seen all the added costs and headaches associated with hosting the games, with some of those passed onto the taxpayers without really an option to say NO. The government claims in the long run, we will benefit but in my opinion, they have fallen flat, at the taxpayers expense, to put on a show for 2010 for us when the games are over. To find that out, we need to look at our so claimed benefits of hosting the 2 week Olympic games first.
To kick it off, we have the $600+ million (more like $1 billion) Sea to Sky highway all nice and shiny for the Olympics. Currently the Sea-to-Sky Highway carries an average of 13,700 vehicles per day from Horseshoe Bay to Squamish, and 7,700 from Squamish to Whistler and doesn't have one toll both. This type of construction wouldn't have been done but was required for the Olympics. Now compare that to the recently built $800 million Golden Ears Bridge, which has 30,000 to 47,000 vehicles per day commuting to and from work and it has tolls. That's 3-5 times the volume. What about tolls for the Sea to Sky?? Assuming they charge the $2.75 Golden Ears rate at 13,000 cars/day, that works out to roughly $12,870,000 in lost potential revenue a year! Does the government only want to tax those living in Langley, Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows but not those residing or traveling to Squamish and Whistler? We already have a 8 cents/liter fuel service charge just for living in the Greater Vancouver Regional District plus our provincial carbon tax, why is our province not trying to collect on the Sea to Sky and recoup some of the expenses? Just makes me wonder why they will toll one new route but not another to recoup some costs and the only difference i see is the Sea to Sky is a tourist and Olympic route to Whistler and a tolled highway could look bad for publicity...
Then we have Vancouver's Olympic Athletes village. Due to added construction expenses, the Vancouver taxpayer has adopted a whopping $750+ million dollar debt. Even the National Post, stated Shahram Malek, director of Millennium Development Corporation, the private developer contracted by the city to build the athletes’ village, gave assurances that "there is absolutely no exposure for the taxpayer. None."
Well...a couple months later, thanks to Bill 47, the City of Vancouver gets approved for unlimited, yes UNLIMITED borrowing to complete the village now close to $1 billion. Possible P3 fail in the making? This has impacted us enough to reduce the city's credit rating for taking on so much debt. All i can say is I am glad i am not a home owner living in Vancouver...
On to the speed skating oval in Richmond, a suburb of Vancouver, which came in at $180-million, costing more than three times the amount originally budgeted. At least the Richmond Olympic Oval will be converted to a multi-use sport facility after the Olympics that will include two Olympic-sized ice rinks, up to eight hardwood ball-sport courts, a gymnasium, a 200 m track and a rubberized turf area.
And lastly, to get my point across on these added expenses, i can't leave out the Vancouver Conference Center. Originally budgeted at $495 million, the expansion project's final cost was $883 million leaving the province on the hook for almost $400 million...hmmm...I wonder where that extra $$ is coming from?? It may be returned in the many years to come from investments and tourist dollars but until then, who pays for it??? Interest needs to be paid and to prevent the province from taking on more debt, like any government, it has to tighten its belt, so education and health care, time to B.O.H.I.C.A.
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