Cost to B.C. to Host Olympics Higher than Promised

[Yume-sama]

It must be nice to invent your own truth and reality to fit your beliefs and biases.

[madmigs]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

global reported the 925 figure but than said but it was really anywhere from 4-7 billion blah blah blah

Having the Olympics no doubt raised Vancouver's visibility in the world and increased national pride, but strictly from a financial/economic standpoint we may never know if the benefits outweigh the costs as it is hard to say what would have happened without it.

Also keep in mind that the approx 1 billion is just the province of BC's portion. As per http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/1...l/oly_bc_bills, it is estimated the fed's spent another 1.2 billion and CoV estimates it spend 554 million(not including its investment in the athletes village). Which adds up to about 2.75 billion for direct taxpayer costs.

And while I agree with what was said earlier that crown corporation expenditures should be separate from gov't expenditures, whatever the crown corps spent should be included in the total Olympics cost. Let's say they spent 100 million bringing total costs to 2.85 billion.

Add in sea to sky - 785 million and Canada line - 2.1 billion and now the total jumps to 5.75 billion. While both of these items will no doubt have been expenditures that needed to be done sooner or later, they were pushed up probably by many years due to the Olympics. And since the other infrastructure costs like the arenas, etc are including in Olympic costs(even though they are still being used after), should not these infrastructure costs also be included?

[Yume-sama]

No. But, then, I am unaware of any sporting events that took place on the Canada Line (which serves a functioning purpose, before, and for many many years after the Olympics, well ahead of projected figures) or the highway, which, was in desperate need of the modernizations. And the VCC is fully booked for the foreseeable future, bringing many large conventions, and a whole bunch of money, in to the city.

[SpongeG]

you got to spend money to make money

free housing is a nice idea but not a good use of money

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by madmigs

Having the Olympics no doubt raised Vancouver's visibility in the world and increased national pride, but strictly from a financial/economic standpoint we may never know if the benefits outweigh the costs as it is hard to say what would have happened without it.

Also keep in mind that the approx 1 billion is just the province of BC's portion. As per http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/1...l/oly_bc_bills, it is estimated the fed's spent another 1.2 billion and CoV estimates it spend 554 million(not including its investment in the athletes village). Which adds up to about 2.75 billion for direct taxpayer costs.

And while I agree with what was said earlier that crown corporation expenditures should be separate from gov't expenditures, whatever the crown corps spent should be included in the total Olympics cost. Let's say they spent 100 million bringing total costs to 2.85 billion.

Add in sea to sky - 785 million and Canada line - 2.1 billion and now the total jumps to 5.75 billion. While both of these items will no doubt have been expenditures that needed to be done sooner or later, they were pushed up probably by many years due to the Olympics. And since the other infrastructure costs like the arenas, etc are including in Olympic costs(even though they are still being used after), should not these infrastructure costs also be included?

So many things wrong with this one post...somehow, every infrastructure project from 2003-2010 is an Olympic cost, as if a city of 2.2-million were to stand still and not build anything. But the Olympics came into town and we had to get our lazy asses off the chair and start building crap, right?

[DKaz]

Somehow the number was less than I had imagined. $200 per resident of BC, what a bargain.

The Canada Line needed to be built and the Sea To Sky Highway needed to be upgrade regardless. I thought I would miss the fun to drive old Sea To Sky but now I'll take the safe new one any day.

[djh]

Originally Posted by DKaz

Somehow the number was less than I had imagined. $200 per resident of BC, what a bargain.

The Canada Line needed to be built and the Sea To Sky Highway needed to be upgrade regardless. I thought I would miss the fun to drive old Sea To Sky but now I'll take the safe new one any day.

Now that's a very good way of looking at it.

[Yume-sama]

Originally Posted by DKaz

Somehow the number was less than I had imagined. $200 per resident of BC, what a bargain.

The Canada Line needed to be built and the Sea To Sky Highway needed to be upgrade regardless. I thought I would miss the fun to drive old Sea To Sky but now I'll take the safe new one any day.

I didn't like the old Sea to Sky for the same reason I don't like roller coasters, or Air Canada. I don't do well with the chance of impending doom!

[Pinion]

Originally Posted by Yume-sama

It must be nice to invent your own truth and reality to fit your beliefs and biases.

I'm not the one trying to convince myself that everything is sunshine and lollipops all the time.

[Yume-sama]

Originally Posted by Pinion

I'm not the one trying to convince myself that everything is sunshine and lollipops all the time.

No, just darkness and sour skittles. Which is just as bad, if not worse.

I don't have an ideology to protect. I come down on the side of reason, and fact, regardless where it falls.

[SpongeG]

i wonder if the government set up a paypal acocunt and said okay people if u wnna donate something do so... i imagine they could get some good money for those who enjoyed the olympics

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by Yume-sama

No, just darkness and sour skittles. Which is just as bad, if not worse.

I don't have an ideology to protect. I come down on the side of reason, and fact, regardless where it falls.

Though more than often, the ideology that best resembles reason and logic is the middle ground - centrism. The far left tends to be arrogant; the far right tends to be ignorant.

[Yume-sama]

The truth in the form of verifiable facts really isn't an ideology lol I suppose, you could have the ideology to only believe things you can prove?

As a sidenote, I think my friends would get a kick out of someone implying I'm a positive lollipops type of person.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by Yume-sama

The truth in the form of verifiable facts really isn't an ideology lol I suppose, you could have the ideology to only believe things you can prove?

As a sidenote, I think my friends would get a kick out of someone implying I'm a positive lollipops type of person.

loll, like i said the best ideology that resembles truth and reason is centrism. Of course, that isn't always the case...but it's the closest you can get without straying into the arrogant left or ignorant right.

[whatnext]

A lot of the Olympic boosters seem to be missing the point: the BC Libs underestimated the costs and clung (deliberately misled?) the public as to what the final cost would be. Whether it was was "worth it" or not is beside the point, these clowns claim to be the expert handlers of our economy vs the "scary" NDP, yet they were apparently clueless as to the final costs, the same way they were clueless that tax revenues were in such bad shape that they had to bring in the HST after intimating they never would.

Gordo's trying to have his cake an eat it to, as usual.

[mr.x]

Originally Posted by whatnext

A lot of the Olympic boosters seem to be missing the point: the BC Libs underestimated the costs and clung (deliberately misled?) the public as to what the final cost would be. Whether it was was "worth it" or not is beside the point, these clowns claim to be the expert handlers of our economy vs the "scary" NDP, yet they were apparently clueless as to the final costs, the same way they were clueless that tax revenues were in such bad shape that they had to bring in the HST after intimating they never would.

Gordo's trying to have his cake an eat it to, as usual.

I definitely do agree that the Liberals haven't presented the full costs of the Games in the past, but I can forgive them for that considering the absolutely asinine faux figures anti-2010 activists have fed to the media. The Liberals left out $600-million in costs, while the leftards added in billions that were not Olympic expenditures.

BTW, where's the logic of including this as an Olympic cost: the sponsorship revenue ICBC created with its exclusive Olympic license plate program?

[delboy]

I'd like to know why there is no mention of economic spin offs due to the games. Tourism is up 8 percent for instance.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by delboy

I'd like to know why there is no mention of economic spin offs due to the games. Tourism is up 8 percent for instance.

You need to take that with a grain of salt, as they're comparing it to last year's Great Recession figures. The proof will be a sustained rise in tourist visits over the next couple of years.

[SpongeG]

they have reported $60 million worth of business deals as a direct result - virgin airlines promises to serve vancouver soon as part of his trip up here for the games, not to mention all the condo sales

[EdinVan]

Originally Posted by delboy

I'd like to know why there is no mention of economic spin offs due to the games. Tourism is up 8 percent for instance.

'Regression to the mean'...