Mayor Bill de Blasio gave lengthier explanation of why his administration decided not to pursue a bid for the 2024 Olympic games today, slapping down what had been a dream of the prior administration.
While delivering a speech at NYU’s International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference, he expanded on anti-Olympics arguments made last week at another press conference.
“New York City is already at such an extraordinary point, because thanks to some of you in this room our tourism industry couldn’t be stronger, our international reputation couldn’t be better, our brand couldn’t be more well respected all over the world,” Mr. de Blasio said at the university, his alma mater. “So we thought, in a classic New York phrase, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.”
Mr. de Blasio came prepared with a notebook full of statistics. He said that last year the city had welcomed 54 million visitors, received 39 billion dollars in direct spending and that the tourism industry had been responsible for 350,000 jobs. This year, hotel room night occupation is up 6.9 percent in comparison to last year and Broadway theaters reported their highest grosses for a Memorial Day weekend in recorded history, according to the mayor.
All of this means, in the eyes of Mr. de Blasio, that the revenue the Olympics could potentially bring to New York City isn’t necessary.
15 comments:
It's amazing to hear just how clueless this guy is!
Tourists are very disappointed in NYC!
I hear over and over that they think it's filthy, overpriced and full of chain stores.
And what exactly is NYC's brand? It's more like McDonald's and Rite Aid's brand. NYC is so generic these days. So much of the beautiful old architecture has been replaced by cheap crap.
Tourists are also shocked to walk into stores where no one speaks English.
But perhaps this just refers to when they visit our "vibrant and diverse" shithole neighborhoods in Queens!
Anon No. 1:
I think the word "clueless" best describes you. If tourists were so disappointed in this city, they wouldn't keep coming here in such numbers. No one, aside from a few people wanted the Olympics here. The financial cost of organizing it would be borne by all of us, with benefits in the end.
Just about every city that hosted the Olympics lost $ billions.
There woud be no room for an Olympics here once DiBashy builds all of his low income housing.
Just about every city that hosted the Olympics lost $ billions.
-----------------------
Because most cities had to build 90% of the venues from scratch.
Between Barclays, MSG, Citi, Yankee Stadium, Redbull Arena, and Giants Stadium, all less than a few years old, we wouldnt need to build any venues.
That was the heart of the 2012 bid. We're basically ready as-is.
They were planning to build a lot of venues:
Two of the biggest projects proposed as part of the bid were the revival of the East River waterfront, including the construction of an Olympic Village across the river from the United Nations Headquarters and an aquatics center in Brooklyn, and the construction of West Side Stadium, which was supposed to have led to the comprehensive redevelopment of the Far West Side of Manhattan. Other projects that were part of the bid included a rowing course in Queens, a velodrome in the South Bronx, a marina along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, an equestrian center on Staten Island, and the refurbishment of the historic 369th Regiment Armory in Harlem.
To anon #1. If you don't like it here, leave.
I spent most of my life (62 years) in Queens and I'm going to be buried here. Hopefully not for 38 more years. I like it here. No place is perfect but I spent 6 months on the upper east side and 6 months in Park Slope. I was happy to be back in Queens both times.
if the stabbings,shootings,auto street deaths continue upward, say goodbye to the "tourist industry".
the child elevator stabbing in Bklyn. suspect ,was reportedly just paroled after attempting to kill his relative.
I question a communist mayor's statistics. COMMUNISTS LIE,LIE,LIE.
warren wilhelm sr. ,alledgedly, lost his "Classified "rating and left the fed. bureau of the budget position ,after being deemed a security risk by the Truman administration loyalty board.before WWII
his mother ,Maria, was fired from the U.S.Office of War Information, as fellow workers alledgedly claimed she was rewriting data to favor the soviets.
they both were employed by TIME INC.,in the editorial staff,before the war.
one wonders if Communist Editor ,Whitticare Chambers was their boss. ?
Anon no. 8:
Oh.
Now how does that relate to what Crapper posted?
Sounds like someone's off their meds again.
An idiot claims that: "Just about every city that hosted the Olympics lost $ billions". Can we see the statistics? Certainly, no, your claim is delusional in a delusional city run by a delusional mayor voted by delusional people ..
"I question a communist mayor's statistics. COMMUNISTS LIE,LIE,LIE."
Uh-Oh. Gramps woke up again. get him some warm milk and another pillow.
Check this out.
...experts say the money is unlikely to be recovered. In fact, no Olympic Games in history have made it into the black, according to Robert Barney, founding director of the International Centre for Olympic Studies at Western University in London, Ontario.
"Most of the games don't count the funds used by governments and taxpayers to subsidize them. When you do that, not one game has made money," he said.
Thanks Crapper, I guess anonymous #3 isn't an idiot after all.
search the winter Olympics, In Lillehammer. Norway. they built the village to inhabit Norwegian citizens after the games.
they may have profited or broke even.
Anon No. 14:
If true, that's one out of how many Olympics?
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