blevkog: And the beat goes on (and it's in my wallet)

Readers of 'kogsworth here will no doubt be aware of my affections for Halifax's bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Now, it might be curmudgeonly of me, but the announcement that even the upper-estimate $785 million isn't going to cover the costs is not doing any more to win me over. On the heels of announcements that the Vancouver 2010 is going over budget and the London 2012 Olympic budget may have to double, this is as disturbing as it is expected. According to the Herald, when asked what the actual cost would be, bid CEO Scott Logan ~~winked~~ said:

How much will it be at the end of the day? At this point in time, it's in the hands of the three (government) funding partners because they'll tell us what they're prepared to pay.

Does this "we'll spend whatever we can" attitude not scare you? What is this guy, a defense contractor? Can we hire him to fix our schools and hospitals?

Let's first set aside the little fib about "three funding partners"; there's only one, the Canadian taxpayer. And they will pay. The feds have promised somewhere around $400 large, which leaves a province with what, a $10-billion debt and a city that is wrankled about having to shell out a few hundred thousand to keep the Sackville Curling Club open to split the remainder. How is HRM going to manage to find that extra change a few years down the road when they (we) are paying interest on a $250-million dollar debt? Sackville - say goodbye to your curling rink.

And if you see anyone out filling potholes you might want to take a picture.

At least in the case of Vancouver and London it's for an event that people pay attention to. I mean, how many people followed the last Commonwealth Games in Melbourne? Okay, now how many of you had family members competing?

See?

Labels: Commonewealth Games, HRM