Pique News Magazine reports that Vancouver 2010 organizers are putting together an outline of their accommodation proposal to get more property owners interested in renting out their property during the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games so it can reach its target for accommodation in Whistler, where many of the venues will be located.
The document, which reportedly will be ready in early July, will be sent out and updated over the next six months.
At the moment VANOC has about 1,000 of the 3,500 rooms it needs in Whistler. All the single owner hotels are on board, reports Pique, and the organizing committee hopes to have the rest arranged by the time the Turin 2006 Winter Games are over.
Their biggest stumbling block appears to be the difficulty in reaching all the individual resort property owners since many live overseas leaving their property managers or strata councils without the power to act for them.
Terry Wright, senior vice president of Olympic planning for VANOC, said their greatest fear is that if people “don’t support us in this program, not only will we have to accommodate the people in Vancouver…it will have a negative impact on Whistler’s reputation. A lot of these users are very influential, very powerful people with strong media contacts and they will complain”.
VANOC’s formula has been adopted by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), said Pique, and is now mandatory for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, reports Pique.
To date 11,000 rooms have been secured in Vancouver with all the major properties in the downtown area on board and organizers need 15,000 rooms in the city.
Most of the regular media will stay in all levels of hotels in Vancouver. Whistler will put up a temporary media village.
Meanwhile, a Spirit of 2010 Committee will likely be formed in Whistler to coordinate the delivery of Olympic benefits, legacies and facilities. An information session for non-profit organizations was hosted Monday by a representative from 2010 LegaciesNow and the Community Foundation of Whistler, which provides funding for dozens of non-profit groups in the Sea to Sky corridor, helped coordinate the event.
A Spirit of 2012 Committee would represent non-profit groups from the community, including sports organizations, arts organizations, and social services presenting a united front for the community when it comes to Olympic legacies.
There was no timeline set for establishing the committee, but the process should begin as soon as possible.
