The province of British Columbia (B.C.) has fast-tracked $235 million over the next three years for the construction of Olympic venues, medical and security planning, and First Nations and municipal legacies.
Games’ organizers will be receiving $51 million this year to start building the venues.
Budget documents show that by 2007 the B.C. government will have spent $132 million on Olympic venues, $55 million on an endowment fund to run the venues, $3 million on medical and security and $15 million on First Nation and municipal Olympic legacies.
Jack Poole, chairman of the Vancouver 2010 Board of Directors said, “we’ve already got the commitment from both governments to fast-track the process with the understanding that the funding would be there as quickly as we could utilize it”.
However Poole added that because the organizing team is still searching for a new chief executive, the money wouldn’t be spent for some time.
“The government has said all along it wants to fast-track the construction of the venues and its financial obligations. We can’t use the money that fast, but we expected it would come. We’ll place it in secure, interest-bearing accounts”.
