2010watch would like to bring to your attention the numerous "side" projects that are related to the 2010 Olympics. These are...
1. The Gateway Project - a multi-billion dollar plan to "update" the transportation infrastructure of the Lower Mainland. This includes the expansion of the Trans Canada Hwy between East 1st Ave in Vancouver and 200th Street in Langley, plus the twinning of the Port Mann bridge
2. The RAV line down Cambie Street and its effects on local residents and business'
3. The Eagle Ridge Bluffs - cut or tunnel project, the decision of which will be a major environmental loss to the North shore and Horseshoe Bay communities.
The Greeks incurred massive debt due to their committment to these "side" projects, can we learn from this ? See more
2010watch believes these "side" projects are a direct result of hosting the Olympics and that if we had not hosted the Olympics these projects would be implemented in a more "sustainable" manner if at all.
FEATURED MEDIA
Auditor General and Liberals disagree - againarticle20/9/06
FEATURED WEB SITE WRITERS
Phil Le Good poses the hard questions for Vancouver City Council and has a bridge for sale too !!! Read Phil's article from The TyeeRead Phil's Open Letter to Vancouver City council 25/09/06
Many people have asked why do we link the 2010 Olympics to the "other" developments such as the Delta Port Expansion, Sea to Sky Highway "Improvements" and the RAV line - here's why
See the major players involved with the 2010 Olympics
An Olympic veil of secrecy
What's the deal with city's $100-million real-estate gamble? Miro Cernetig, Vancouver Sun Published: Friday, November 07, 2008
Could the Olympics bankrupt the City of Vancouver, or put it in a financial straitjacket for decades to come?
I've never even considered that as a remote possibility. Until now.
If one starts probing into the city's deal -- let's call it what it is, a $1-billion real-estate gamble -- for the Olympic athletes' village, the alarm bells start ringing in full force. Vancouverites -- that means us, fellow taxpayers -- have been heavily exposed by our political leaders and public servants. Full Article
The 2010 Watch "Boycott The Lot" Campaign
Your chance to make a statement to the sponsors of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver
The first thing to note about the newest VANOC media release and financial report is that the latter is unaudited (as was the one before). Given this, there is no reason for anyone to take at face value any of the material contained therein, especially with VANOC's track record of unaccountability.
Next: where is the business plan promised in July 2003 when the Games were awarded? VANOC now claims that the plan will be forthcoming in the Spring of 2007. Why should it take 4 years? Only VANOC CEO John Furlong knows.
Back to the unaudited report, the following are some highlights:
1. Overall revenues since 2003 were $86.7 million. Expendatures in the same period: $92.8.
2. In the 3 month period ending on Oct. 31, 2006, the expenditures over "deferred" revenues was a negative $34.1 million. In the period ending July 31, 2006, it was a negative $4.5 million. In other words, whatever is happening in the good ship VANOC, it is getting worse.
3. The contingency fund, once well over $100 million is now down to $66.8 million. Three years to go and a large fraction is gone. Goodbye legacies, goodbye arts funding...
4. Keep in mind that this same sad crew has already had another fiscal booster shot of $110 million from the Federal and Provincial governments and $19 million more from the IOC.
Summary:
On time? Well, lets see:
1. They've logged much of the Callaghan;
2. Eagleridge is gone;
3. They and the City of Vancouver gave the Athletes' Village contract to a mysterious company (Millennium Southeast False Creek Properties Ltd) that was not registered to do business in BC at the time the contract was announced.
On Budget:
1. See above;
2. Projected costs of all venues have increased by up to 40% (with 3 years to go).
At least, we have to give VANOC one thing: They are in keeping with past Games organizers: Torino (at least $3 billion over budget); Athens (total cost approx. $20 billion)...now there is London with costs more than doubled in the first year after winning the Games in 2012.
Expect it all to get worse...
Vancouver Courier August 26, 2006
The New Face of the 2010 Olympics Protestors face off with RCMP in order to protect Eagleridge Bluffs
Feb. 3, 2006 --- With front page headlines like these should we expect the true cost of the 2010 Olympics to be made public ? IOC policy says NO, however John Furlong says YES. What makes Vancouver's 2010 Games different from any other past Olympic event ?
In what can only be called the most bizarre court case in BC's history, the organising committee for the 2010 Olympics has taken a Prince George based Eco Toursim company to court over the use of the number "2010"
West Vancouver residents protest Rogge's visit on the streets of Vancouver
West Vancouver residents made their voices heard as IOC president Jacques Rogge made his first visit to a balmy Vancouver.
Residents are protesting the building of a four-lane freeway through ecologically senstive areas at Eagle Ridge Bluffs near Horseshoe Bay.
The residents have mounted a mass campaign, including a web site and a "buff in the bluffs calendar" to bring attention to the environmental destruction about to take place.
The Coalition to save Eagleridge Bluffs web site can be found here.
Feb 1st, 2005
STILL NO PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY FOR 2010 GAMES
To date there has been no amount of public accountability in regard to the games. We, the taxpayers and voting public have no clue on how much money is being spent, who is winning construction contracts and what environmental damage is taking place. In fact the BC Liberals have taken steps to prevent the Auditor General of BC from ever making public the account books for the 2010 Games. Already we have seen millions of your Canadian Tax dollars dissapear into the fiscal black hole of the bid committee.
This site is an attempt to address the lack of public accountability surrounding the 2010 Winter Olympics.
We need your help to make it successful - we need your insight, we need your knowledge and we need your support.
Who are we ? We are the same people who opposed the games in the first place. We are also the people who wanted the games but are now shocked at the lack of public accountability for the games. We are the people who believe such large amounts tax dollars should be spent in consultation with the tax paying public. We are people from all over the political spectrum, ethnic backgrounds, income levels and education.
If you fit in to one of these categories then this site will be of great benefit to you.
Stay tuned - updates are starting to arrive.
What Gordon Campbell Has Promised Us in 2002
Olympics Reality Check
[The Olympics] will have a $10 billion economic impact, create 220,000 new jobs, and bring $2.5 billion in revenues to the government. But say we’re wrong, say it’s only half that, why would we turn our backs on this opportunity??
Premier Gordon Campbell, October 26, 2002
Number of person-years of employment created by the Olympics from 2001-2020, in the best-case scenario, according to the report “Economic Impact of the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games” prepared by the BC Ministry of Competition, Science and Enterprise: 83,000
Number of total jobs this represents: 4,150
Number of person-years of employment created in worst-case scenario: 37,000
Number of jobs this represents: 1,850
Net economic impact of the Olympics, according to the government’s study, in best-case scenario: $3.5 billion over 20 years
Net economic impact in worst-case scenario: $1.6 billion over 20 years
Total value of BC’s GDP over this period, assuming no economic growth whatsoever: $2,500 billion.
Increase in BC’s GDP represented by the Games: range from 0.06% to 0.14%.
Increase in BC government revenues, best-case scenario: $426 million over 20 years
Increase in BC government revenues, worst-case scenario: $164 million over 20 years
Total amount of BC government revenues over 20 years, at current levels, assuming no revenue growth: $440 billion
Increase in provincial government revenues due to the Olympics: range from 0.04% to 0.1%
