The Toronto Star reports that an announcement by the federal government to commit funds to revitalize Toronto’s waterfront could come as early as Friday and is considered crucial for Toronto’s 2008 Olympic bid. All five bid finalists must submit detailed Olympic plans to the IOC in January.
Toronto Olympic bid officials say they need proof of support for the port lands plan if they are to have any chance of winning the bid. They say that an announcement this week would give them fresh ammunition to lob at their rivals during a meeting of international sports federations in Monaco later this month.
TO-Bid vice president Karen Pitre said “we need clean, serviced land. We need a solid remediation strategy and we need pipes and roads and water and sewers, so we can use the land”. The athletes’ village, the main track and field stadium, a new swimming/diving centre and other facilities are to be built on the city’s port lands if Toronto wins the bid.
Of the impending announcement, TO-Bid CEO John Bitove said “it’s very big for us. It shows the commitment of all three levels of government and I don’t think anything of this magniture has ever been done by a bid city”.
Transport Minister David Collenette said “I would hope we’ll have something to say before the end of the month. What I’ve said publicly is that I hope the federal government will be there in a substantial way to help drive the waterfront vision. Right now, we’re focusing on items crucial to the Olympic bid” he said. “The bid has crucial deadlines to meet and we want to demonstrate that, from all three levels of government, there will be financial support and logistical support”.
Pitre said “the minister (Collenette) has been working very, very hard on this. There are a lot of complicated issues”.
Although details have yet to be hammered out, according to the Star sources say cleanup costs are to be divided more or less equally between the city, province and Ottawa.
