Toronto 2015

[Apple]

Toronto to get $1 billion for an athletes village so that accounts for 55% of the total budget, $1.8 billion. The rest of the $800 million for renovation and new sport venues. $250 million or so for Hamilton, which means there's about $500 million left for the GTA and the Niagara Region.

[Faster]

Toronto should get at least 1 high profile event, like swimming

[Apple]

I believe the main Aquatic Centre will go to Brampton, they have had this aquatic plan for awhile. Toronto like Hamilton will likely still get an Aquatic Centre though it'll be used for practice.

Though I agree Toronto should get the main Aquatic Centre.

[dave199]

I just want to see the whole plan. Even if it really isn't the strongest bid and not mainly focused on Toronto, it'll still win against the other bids. The competition in my opinion is pretty easy for the "Toronto" bid to win.

My biggest pet peeve with this bid is that I wanted Toronto to atleast host one of the top 2 prestigious sporting events, either "Athletics" or "Aquatics". That isn't going to be happening.

It looks like Toronto will only be hosting these sports in existing facilities:

-Basketball

-Baseball

-Football

-Gymnastics

-Tennis

-Fencing

[dave199]

I believe the main Aquatic Centre will go to Brampton, they have had this aquatic plan for awhile. Toronto like Hamilton will likely still get an Aquatic Centre though it'll be used for practice.

Though I agree Toronto should get the main Aquatic Centre.

I thought Markham were the frontrunners for the main Aquatic Centre.

[Apple]

Yea them. I always get GTA suburbs mixed up.

[Ruling Czar]

In much the same way that someone on games bids reasoned that this is horribly deceptive on Hamilton's part, the people who will ultimately choose the host city will think that way too]. Then more questions will be asked.......what other deceptions lie under the Carpet? If you start with deception your own efforts will deceive you.

[Brans]

Major David Miller of Toronto and City Council have supported the bid. Toronto and its suburbs will be getting a lot of the venues. Remember the GTA Population is about 6 million people.

[Apple]

Athletes Village will be at University of Toronto.

[dave199]

Athletes Village will be at University of Toronto.

There not building an athletes village like you suggested earlier. They're being housed at the Universities residences.

[dave199]

Pan Am venues to be named

By BILL LANKHOF, SUN MEDIA

Last Updated: 21st January 2009, 7:17pm

The bid committee attempting to bring the 2015 Pan Am Games to Toronto and the Golden Horseshoe is close to announcing where individual sports will be held.

“We’re not all the way yet. We’re close ... a couple of weeks away from being able to unveil most, if not all, of the plan,” Jagoda Pike, the bid committee’s president and chief operating officer, said today.

Pike declined to be specific but it is expected that Toronto will see construction of several new sporting venues under the plan. As well, the Rogers Centre will be used for the opening and closing ceremonies. “I think a very poorly kept secret is that potentially we’d be thrilled to have the opening and closing ceremonies at the Rogers Centre,” Pike said. “We want to use the key venues in town like the Air Canada Centre and BMO Field. Those are all key landmarks.”

This would suggest that Toronto will be the site of at least some of the soccer and baseball tournaments.

“It is a Golden Horsehoe bid but Toronto certainly is the international face of this bid. It is a key part of it and I think you’ll see some good developments for Toronto when we’re ready to talk about it,” Pike said. “(Until then) it will be fun to speculate.”

The committee must submit its official bid to host the Games to the Pan American Sports Organization by Jan. 31. They are expected to select a host city this fall. Lima, Peru and Bogota, Columbia, are also in the bidding but the past two Games have been in Latin America and the 2011 Games are scheduled for Guadalajara, Mexico.

As a result, Pan American Sports Organization president Mario Vasquez Rana, has indicated to insiders he would be pleased (wink-wink, nudge-nudge) to bring the Games back to North America.

The federal, provincial and municipal governments within the Golden Horseshoe have established a $1.75 billion budget to host the Games with hopes that it will also help spur local economies, as well as improve crumbling sports infrastructure.

There have been numerous proposals from communities to host events, said Pike. Too many, actually.

“It’s been tough in the sense that you have a lot of municipalities that want to participate and a lot of communities which

want to benefit from the bid,” said Pike. “The hard part has been prioritizing because there isn’t enough money to go around to do all the things everybody would like to do.”

Toronto, for instance, has two Olympic pools that need upgrading, there is no international track facility, no velodrome, and gymnasts practice in places where bouncing off ceilings is a probability.

Hamilton would like a new stadium to replace aging Ivor Wynne and Caledon would like to implement plans for soccer facilities.

“We have to be disciplined about what to build and what not to build, and, if we build where to build it. We’re close (to identifying) where each of the sports will be hosted. Then obviously, we will identify what will be in existing facilities and what will be built,” said Pike.

Some current facilities will be utilized to reduce costs. Athletes will be housed at the University of Toronto to avoid the expense of building an Olympic-style village.

The Games attract more than 5,000 athletes from 42 countries and, if the committee wins the bid, it will mean a projected 17,000 jobs and up to 250,000 tourists.

http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandg...21/8103021.html

[dave199]

The article says Toronto will get several new sporting venues. What venues will these be? From the sounds of it all earlier, it didn't seem like they were building anything new in the city but use the existing facilities here and maybe build up a couple training facilities.

[Apple]

Bigger stadium, bigger costs

January 23, 2009

The Hamilton Spectator

http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/500544

Hamilton will have to top up financing by as much as $50 million to win a Pan Am Games stadium big enough to be a permanent home for the Ticats.

The Toronto 2015 bid company is budgeting for a 10,000- to 15,000-seat venue.

That's much smaller than the 24,000 to 27,000 seat capacity the city is seeking.

It has always been the city's hope that a Pan Am Games bid would lead to a stadium big enough to be a new home for the Ticats.

Bid company president Jagoda Pike stresses the priority is to develop a plan based on the Games' needs.

"We can't go beyond what is required for the Games" in terms of financing, she stressed.

Pike noted that plans "grander" than Pan Am needs will have to find other sources to cover extras.

Hamilton is among a handful of cities asking for larger facilities than the Pan Am criteria demand.

If Toronto 2015 budgets only $100 million for a track and field facility, Hamilton's bill for a larger stadium would rise dramatically.

The bid corporation would pick up 56 per cent of the capital cost, or $56 million. The city would have to pull together the remainder for the proposed $150-million showpiece, $94 million.

That financing would have to come from a combination of city and other government funding as well as a private-sector component, including the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Team owner Bob Young said it's too early to determine what the football franchise and other businesses can bring to the table.

Stressing site selection is critical to bringing businesses onside, Young said, "You want to look at things like a hotel, shopping and hosting entertainment events."

Young said he could live with playing at the badly declining Ivor Wynne as long as the city maintains it, but feels a new stadium located in the right spot could be a symbol of a new Hamilton.

"Stadiums are great gathering places. Where else can you get 25,000 people sharing the experience, whether football or track or a rock concert?"

Meanwhile, Mayor Fred Eisenberger said no conclusions on funding can be drawn until city staff report back on three priority sites -- the west harbourfront, downtown and airport lands.

"We need to find out more about the assembly of land, size of the parcel and how a site's location can lever private partnerships and commercial development like a restaurant or Imax theatre."

Eisenberger said the province is a possible source for some of that additional money.

He said a site's particular attributes could also be a catalyst for more provincial money for transportation and other services if the location fits into a master plan to transform that part of the city.

City council will get a detailed analysis of the sites Feb. 9, possibly with a report fleshing out the kinds of private-sector alliances and other government help possible.

David Adames, the city's lead in researching opportunities within the 2015 showcase, said Hamilton could try to press the view of sports consultants that as a key event in the 42-nation Games, track and field would require seating closer to Hamilton's goal of 24,000 to 27,000.

[Apple]

Pan Am budget slashed by $300M, says T.O. bid committee official

CBC News

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/amateur/story/200.../23/pan-am.html

The Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games bid committee says the Ontario government has cut the budget for the Games proposal by $300 million.

In anticipation of winning the Games, organizers proposed a budget of about $1.8 billion, with most of the money going toward construction of new pools, stadia and an athletes village, should the Golden Horseshoe region win the bid to host the Games.

The rest would be spent on staging the Games and looking after the 10,000 athletes.

But organizers are being sent back to the drawing board, because the province has told them to cut their budget by $300 million, or roughly 17 per cent, a senior official with the bid committee told CBC News.

According to the official, the cut wouldn't have a dramatic impact, but it could mean some municipalities won't get the same level of economic spinoff they might have been hoping for from construction of new facilities.

The Games bid committee is expected to release information later this month listing where the hundreds of millions of dollars for new athletic and housing facilities would be spent if the bid is successful.

Toronto is expected to be in line for the $1 billion athlete's village.

As many as four new swimming pools would be built, along with other facilities to accommodate track and field and other sports. The venues would be spread across the Golden Horseshoe, from Niagara to Durham.

But instead of a number of permanent new pools, for example, a couple of the pools that could be constructed specifically for the Games might be temporary.

The highly anticipated new velodrome, instead of being a permanent structure, could be torn down once the Games were over.

Given the economic crisis that has gripped most of the world, the official said, a reduction in the budget is not surprising.

The final bids are due to be submitted to the Pan Am organizing committee by April.

The final decision on which city will get the 2015 Games is due this fall.

The Golden Horseshoe bid is up against three South American cities: Bogota, Colombia; Caracas, Venezuela; and Lima, Peru.

If the Ontario bid is successful, construction could start in the spring of 2010.

[dave199]

I don't understand. One article is saying an athlete's village will be constructed and the other is saying the University of Toronto's residence will be used for the athlete's village. Which one is it then?

[Apple]

More residence buildings for U of T mostly likely. But really just wait until the 3rd week of February and all the detailed information will be released, well maybe earlier than that.

The bid committee is waiting after a Hamilton City Council meeting on Feb 9th to select the stadium location for the track and field event. After that venue location will pour out.

[jim jones]

In much the same way that someone on games bids reasoned that this is horribly deceptive on Hamilton's part, the people who will ultimately choose the host city will think that way too]. Then more questions will be asked.......what other deceptions lie under the Carpet? If you start with deception your own efforts will deceive you.

Actually Ruling Czar I have a friend in the Caribbean Association of National Olympic Committees and they understand the scope of the venue placement and that Toronto is the top bill of the Ticket to be marketed. They also see a country in Canada that has delivered sports development money to the Caribbean for a long time in the past. They were absolutely not impressed with the No Shows at their conference in Curacao. Bogota and Lima are not selling their bids all of a sudden.

Some in the Caribbean actually favored going to South America for closeness. Not anymore. That huge voting group that includes Two countries on the South America continent has Toronto 2015 traveling to the Southern Caribbean and Acapulco Presenting their case with bid personal that can speak English, French and Spanish in some cases. Bogota and Lima could not see fit to send their bid personal via direct flights that were 2 hour and 3.5 hours to Curacao. Toronto in the Bid campaign has their bases very professionally covered.

Lima does not even have a bid website and Bogota 2015s website you can't even switch to the English version.

The Problem that big voting block is going to have is the two South American City's Commitment to staging a Bid Campaign let alone staging the actual games . If there is again a no show in Port of Spain for the first Caribbean Games by those candidate cities then Toronto will secure the Games simply because Toronto will shown up for every important conference to press their case while a huge voting block would have a collective slap in the face twice in one year from two cities that could get to Trinidad and Tobago and Curacao very easily. April I believe is the Bid lodging and we may indeed see this ended before the Caribbean Games in July If Toronto is the bride left standing at the alter alone . Right now it seems hard from Lima and Bogota to recover. Colombia in the past gave up on hosting the Fifa World Cup in 1986 so their history and this no show is not encouraging especially to the Mexicans who had to jump in to stage the world cup in 1986 on an emergency .

In the CANOC group is Guyana , Suriname, Belize and Bermuda . Those Four not Caribbean Island nations are important votes. Votes that the two South American Cities would have to depend on to win the election. IF the Caribbean Islands nation vote totally for Toronto then there is a huge hill for Bogota and Lima to Climb. Add Guyana , Suriname, Belize and Bermuda and it looks to be impossible. Canada will vote for itself and the Us is likely to vote Toronto 2015. right there could be the numbers to win especially with a split vote in South America for their candidate cities.

Jim jones

[Apple]

Looks like Hamilton got the biggest hit with the cutback.....

Velodrome, pool cut from bid

January 24, 2009

John Kernaghan and Nicole Macintyre

The Hamilton Spectator

http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/501258

A velodrome and pool have been knocked off Hamilton's wish list by a surprise $300-million cut in the Pan Am Games budget.

And that 17 per cent slash by the province has prompted a call from a prime mover for the 2015 showcase to get the big stakeholders in one room.

"You can't do Games without good facilities that provide a long legacy," city businessman David Braley said yesterday.

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty announced a "leaner" 2015 plan yesterday prompted by the economic downturn. He lopped $300 million from the original $1.8-billion budget, citing a need to act responsibly.

The Toronto 2015 bid committee responded to the cut by saying a permanent velodrome and practice pool -- facilities Hamilton had been seeking -- are likely out of the bid.

Braley, who sits on Hamilton's Pan Am advisory committee, said Toronto 2015 needs a summit. No board of directors has been named to make final Pan Am decisions.

"It's time for the Canadian Olympic Committee and provincial and federal governments to sit down at the table and get it right," said Braley.

The major cutback shouldn't have any impact on Hamilton's stadium proposal.

It became $50-million pricier this week when it was learned the 2015 bid company would fund just 56 per cent of a 15,000-seat stadium, not the 24,000- to 27,000-seat facility the city has in mind.

Hamilton would host track and field and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats would become the prime tenant after the Games.

Andrew Iler of the National Cycling Centre Hamilton said he was disappointed that a permanent velodrome was shelved, but said he wasn't giving up on an indoor cycling track for Hamilton.

"These Games are supposed to be about lasting legacy, not two weeks. We'll continue to work on a proposal and the international cycling community will likely have something to say about it."

The cut prompted city councillor Terry Whitehead to question the province's appetite for international events.

"Do they believe in legacy projects?" asked Whitehead, who has supported a local group pursuing an aquatic centre.

And he's worried the federal government will follow the provincial lead by cutting its $500-million commitment. "I'm waiting for the other shoe to fall."

Mayor Fred Eisenberger said it's premature to assess what the cutback means locally.

"For me it's just a wait and see," he said, noting it is clear the province is still willing to provide some funding for the bid.

"They haven't eliminated (the budget) and are still committed to winning this bid."

Eisenberger said he believes the city must continue with its process of assessing venues and looking for preferred locations. If the provincial cut does have a local impact, the mayor said Hamilton may need to be more "creative and innovative" in funding its venues.

Toronto 2015 bid president Jagoda Pike said a permanent velodrome is "pretty much" off the table, but allowed that a bargain facility with an air-supported roof might get consideration.

Other than a permanent aquatic centre, likely shared by Mississauga, Milton and Oakville, 50-metre pools like the one Hamilton eyes could be temporary.

Temporary pools have been used at several international events and are "good, inexpensive options," Pike said.

She pointed out the $1.8-billion budget cited when the bid process began was pegged high.

"There's lots of changes in the world and that original budget was generous. As we've gone through the process we have found savings in the budget."

The $300-million axing comes a month after bid chair David Peterson argued the Games projects fit perfectly into provincial and federal infrastructure plans.

Meantime on the stadium front, businessman Ron Foxcroft said the city shouldn't be diverted from the prime goal by changing criteria.

"We have lots of capable people on council. Let them make a decision on a stadium site and then let's get on with winning the bid for Canada."

[jim jones]

Well Apple I don't know if it is a new found confidence that Toronto 2015 may have a take or leave proposal as potentially the last man standing or if actually having common sense to the scale the Pan Am Games deserves. If lets say Hamilton was to get a 20000 seat stadium out of this for the athletics competition and then have the Ti Cats come into add 5000 to 10000 seats it would be worth it for Hamilton . On the other hand with no purpose built Athletes village and both Track Cycling and Aquatics with temporary venues they could save the amount of money to build a 30000 seater for athletics just on those three elements alone. The ADT Center Velodrome in Carson California is a 100000 sq foot building and it cost 15 million to build in 2004. an Aquatics Venue and an athletes village can both be the real big ticket items depending on how far you want to go with it . Outdoor Temporary cycling is what the Pan Am Games has had until Rio 2007. If the Toronto bid keeps that in mind and knows Lima or Bogota is not going to go indoors and expensive with that venue then why bust the budget on that one venue?

jim jones

[Apple]

Local businessman David Braley will likely donate money to build a permanent pool instead of a temporary one. I personally don't mind having a BC Place version for a Velodrome. Plus majority of council supports spending even more money to increase the stadium size to 27,000.

The city could get naming rights, sell the land Ivor Wynne currently resides to a home builder, take a loan and/or tap into the Future Fund (Hamilton has about $75 million of fund sitting). Plus I wouldn't be surprised to have more donaters like Ron Foxcroft and Ron Joyce (there's a Ron Joyce stadium at McMaster build last year).

[Ruling Czar]

Finally!...............There is hope for common sense in Canada! It is only logical that Toronto should be at the forefront of this bid. Ya see? Now thinking logically wasn't so hard was it?

[Apple]

Nothing changed though, track and field and cycling at Hamilton with a practice pool. It's just a question of permanent or temporary venues to save money.

[jim jones]

Nothing changed though, track and field and cycling at Hamilton with a practice pool. It's just a question of permanent or temporary venues to save money.

If they were to go outdoor temporary from the company in Penn State that did Atlanta 1996 and Doha 2006 Velodromes then you could always have an inflatable roof post games with the stands gone but track cycling having a legacy effect from the Pan Ams.

They could also think of using that track again relocated to Hamilton for a Commonwealth Games or Toronto for an Olympics.

The sooner Bid cities start taking bold dramatic moves like this the better. A 40 to 50 million dollar velodrome for 3500 persons to watch indoors does not make much sense when these events are in the Summer. The Days of Architectural statements for Games while a host nation is burdened with white elephants should be over.

Jim jones

[Apple]

We're likely looking at something like this for the velodrome

[jim jones]

We're likely looking at something like this for the velodrome

But lets face it that Burnaby concept could be done with the roof going on Post Games for Legacy and storing a Velodrome for future games. 3500 to 7000 seats in a velodrome is really a waste in many places . You put down the temporary track , put down leyher scaffolding grandstands and remove them post games . you then install the Dome . If it was winter you would hosting a track cycling event as part of the Pan Am Games then a roof would of course be required. really there is little venue money outside of sports Festivals to justify having 3500 empty seats for years on end.

Moncton, New Brunswick is actually doing much of the same with the IAAF World Juniors in regards to having a 8000 seat grandstand and buying the Leyher Scaffolding to increase the capacity to 20000. Post Games they store the Scaffolding in case they have a Large outdoor concert , a CFL Exhibition Game and a perhaps the Francophone Games which Moncton can bid on as a city within one of the Francophone games territory Teams. Moncton post 2010 will have the venues for those small games.

jim jones