The community of Canmore and its residents don’t need the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Games, but the Olympics and those pursuing a bid to host it definitely need Canmore.
In sport, there’s a well-known situation where a team needs to take advantage of a ‘window of opportunity’ in relation to winning a championship.
The window may be opened due to high draft picks coming through with elite efforts, the signing of an all-star, or team chemistry combining in a winning formula. The window stays open for a definitive period of time; but it can close quickly.
When it comes to the possibility of a win in relation to Canmore and the Nordic Centre playing a large role in a possible 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics bid, that window of opportunity seems wide open right now.
While it seems a no-brainer that Canmore should be included in a bid for the 2026 Games, what seems to be missing most at this point is a bottom line dollar figure.
Canmorites will likely have an opportunity to present their input on a bid at a possible upcoming public hearing and council is slated to vote on whether to be part of the bid or not on Nov. 6.
But in the end, for most people, the bottom line for their support will be the bottom line. Even the most enthusiastic pro-Olympics citizens could have their spirits dampened if said bid will result in tax increases to pay for part of the mega sporting event.
What’s needed is a clearly defined dollar figure that citizens and elected officials can weigh in their decision making. In the meantime, Canmore as a municipality seems ideally situated to throw some demands on the table.
Resort municipality status, for one. Banff and Canmore officials, along with those in Jasper, have stated for more than a decade that our towns should have this status as a means of generating revenue to provide the services needed to be the heart of this province’s tourist industry. These three small communities generate more than $3 billion a year in GDP for the province and don’t get us started on how the vast majority of tourism related tax revenues leave our communities and go to provincial and federal coffers.
As local mayors are fond of pointing out, “we flush toilets for 25,000 people per day on a tax base of 9,000.”
Banff and Canmore are extremely popular as tourist destinations, yes, but that popularity also stretches the limits of what our municipalities are able to provide when it comes to services and infrastructure.
Then there is the possibility of a $116 million Olympic athlete’s village being created for the Games before being handed over to Canmore as an affordable housing project.
However, unless there is a definitive plan of what said housing would look like, can anyone say with certainty it would suffice? An athlete’s village with rooms full of bunk beds, open public spaces and shared kitchen and eating areas is one thing. But could that be considered affordable housing for our community in the long term? BidCo officials assure us the design philosophy will take that into account, but like buying a new car, we need to look under the hood first.
If, as BidCo’s Mary Moran has said, Canmore is an equal and respected partner in the process of ensuring a successful bid, then ensuring positive benefit for the town and its citizens should be at the forefront of any decision making.
On Sept. 11, Calgary Ward 7 Councillor Druh Farrell was clear that in her opinion the taxpayers of Calgary should not be paying for legacies that will be for the Town of Canmore.
But it is clear to us that Canmore’s taxpayers are already paying for Calgarians to come out here into their cherished backyard to flush our toilets and use our infrastructure every single day. It is time for other levels of government, and perhaps even our neighbours to the east, to recognize that and be part of the solution.
