Exclusive: Canada Place worker death was preventable

This time last year, Canada Place was closed because it was the Main Press Centre for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. I was among the first few journalists to begin working in the vast hall when it opened to the media on Jan. 12, 2010. It remained my office away from the office until March 1, 2010, the day after the Games closed. I have covered Turin 2006, Rio de Janeiro 2007, Beijing 2008 and Delhi 2010 and none of those Games' main press centres matched Canada Place's quality work environment and convenience.

Before the Games, Heritage Minister James Moore announced a $21 million post-Games replacement of the fabric roof under the federal infrastructure stimulus program. Canada Place was built as the Canada Pavilion for Expo 86 and then converted into the Vancouver Convention Centre.

On Dec. 2, 2010, two construction workers suffered fatal injuries at sites in the same area of downtown Vancouver, within mere minutes of each other. One happened at Canada Place where a man fell 14 metres, but was on life support until his death two days later. Was the construction worker wearing fall-protection gear? That was my key question that went unanswered by construction manager Ledcor, employer Birdair and subcontractor RBG USA, who did eventually tell me the man who died was Diego Herrera.

Because WorkSafeBC released to me its inspection report, I have confirmed that Herrera was not using fall-protection gear. That would include a safety harness and lanyard. The investigation continues into an incident that should never have happened.

Read the inspection reports below.

WorkSafeBC on Canada Place construction worker's fatal fall

Exclusive: Bonus Cash Place Stadium

Bill Bennett's Bubble. Gordon Campbell's Convertible. Gordon Campbell's Crown.

For the purposes of this blog entry, Vancouver's 2010 Olympic Stadium is Bonus Cash Place.

The stadium undergoing a $563 million renovation, including a pioneering retrofit of a retractable roof, doled out nearly $95,000 in bonuses to executives and others who worked there before and during the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. That's in addition to the $482,000 for bonuses given to 85 people at taxpayer-owned B.C. Pavilion Corporation during the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2010.

See the payout register below and let me know what you think: bob.mackin@sunmedia.ca

B.C. Pavilion Corporation 2009-2010 staff bonuses

On spirit, freedom and legacy

Remember 2003 when the United States invaded Iraq? The French said "non, non" and did not join the "coalition of the willing". Americans retaliated by pouring French wine down sewers and renaming French fries as "Freedom fries".

The silliness even came north. I had a plate of Freedom fries on a trip to Calgary. I remarked to the waitress that the price wasn't very free. She didn't laugh.

In British Columbia, the official hackneyed word is Spirit. There is a Spirit Trail in North and West Vancouver. Vancouver's westside has Pacific Spirit Regional Park. Several ferries are part of the Spirit class, like the Spirit of British Columbia. There are Spirit of B.C. committees in 95 communities, meant to boost the Olympic torch relay and the Olympics, which came and went last February.

There is no money left over from the Olympics (VANOC needed $187.8 million from taxpayers to avoid registering a deficit), but the provincial government is spending $60 million through 2013 on a 2010 Sports and Arts Legacy fund. Community Spirit Festivals will peak every February to commemorate the anniversary of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

The next provincial election just so happens to be May 14, 2013.

That may be the real reason why the government refused to give me any documents about the budgeting and planning of the costly project. Click here for the Jan. 4, 2011 response to my Freedom of Information request. Through other sources, I was able to get some communications drafts, but not what I wanted. Perhaps the government is embarrassed after I found out its Olympic ad campaign was intended to prop-up the sagging popularity of Premier Gordon Campbell. The domestic target audience of its $36.7 million marketing was "voting age" British Columbians.

NDP critic Spencer Chandra Herbert says that the Liberal government's 2010 Sports and Arts Legacy is creating the illusion of an Olympic legacy while returning money cut before the Olympics to community arts and amateur sports organizations. The Liberals' goal is to win the next election. First, the Liberals will replace Campbell on Feb. 26 -- two days shy of the first anniversary of the closing ceremony.

Think of it. Yet another pool of dough that can be drawn upon for grip and grin spending announcements in communities large and small for the next three years. By 2013, the media will be analyzing where the money went and don't be surprised if more went to Liberal ridings than those held by NDPers. Every government since the 1980s Social Credit has used community grant programs in this fashion.

It's really just vote-buying.

But this time, it has five-rings and red mittens attached.

Let the Olympic TV sweepstakes begin

The International Olympic Committee's executive board meets Jan. 12 and 13 at the five-ring headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland, so it's no surprise that talk about future TV contracts has heated up.

The most important source of TV revenue is the United States market. NBC bought a $2.2 billion package for Vancouver 2010 and London 2012. Negotiations for renewal were delayed for a year because of the Great Recession. ESPN and Fox are kicking tires. CBS and Turner may also join the mix. The broadcasters are interested, however, in buying "bulk" four-Games packages. That would include the 2018 Winter Games, which will happen in South Korea or Europe, and the 2010 Summer Games, even though bidding has yet to begin.

A key sticking point is whether National Hockey League players will be released from their clubs for the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia. Broadcasters are preparing two sets of bids, one with a pro hockey tournament, the other without. One source told me that NBC Olympics boss Dick Ebersol is already bearish on Sochi -- regardless of the hockey tournament's composition and despite the fact there are peacocks there. Asked in a meeting what he thought Sochi was worth to NBC, Ebersol picked up a pen and scribbled on a pad of paper. He then held it up to reveal a big "0".

NBC lost $233 million on the Vancouver Games because of the recessionary advertising slump. The outcome of CTV-Rogers' sales in Canada remains a closely guarded secret. Spokeswoman Andrea Goldstein said it wouldn't be known until after London 2012. (Andrea's department is one of the most prolific press release producers anywhere in Canada and I know that if the numbers were favorable, she would have issued a news release far and wide by now.)

In February 2005, the Canadian consortium offered the IOC $90 million for Vancouver 2010 and $63 million for London 2012. Runner-up CBC paid $73 million for Turin 2006 and Beijing 2008 combined. CTV Olympics president Keith Pelley, now the boss of Rogers Media, said before the Vancouver Games that the goal was to break-even.

Rene Fasel, the president of the International Ice Hockey Federation and perhaps the most powerful IOC member on the winter sports side, met in Buffalo on Jan. 4 at the World Junior Hockey Championship with Donald Fehr, the former Major League Baseball Players Union boss who now runs the NHL Players Association.

Pros have participated since Nagano 1998 and Fasel wants to keep it that way. Fasel told media in Buffalo that he is against an under-20 tournament at the Olympics. Olympic soccer tournaments are an under-23 format with a quota of over-age players to add star power.

* * * * *
The 2010 Winter Olympics were one of the most-covered topics on U.S. nightly newscasts in 2010, mainly because of NBC.

The Tyndall Report Year in Review 2010 said the Vancouver Winter Olympics got 119 minutes on nightly newscasts for the big three networks, ABC, CBS and NBC. That made it the 13th biggest story of the year.

It got more minutes than Christmas holiday season (114), tax cuts from Bush era extended (108), Times Square car bomb (104) and illegal immigration crackdown (100). NYSE-NASDAQ market action got just one more minute of play, while the 2010 House races (127) and Chile copper mine rescue (142) were next up the list.

The big reason was NBC's 84 minutes devoted to Vancouver, making it the Peacock network's fifth most covered story. It got three minutes more than Healthcare reform legislation and 25 minutes more than unemployment stuck near 10%.

"For the first time since 2001, the Islamic World was not the focus of foreign coverage. Instead, attention turned to the Americas--the Port-au-Prince earthquake, the Chile mine rescue, NBC’s usual shameless shilling for the Olympics in Vancouver," said the Tyndall Report. "The narco-violence in Mexico should have made hemisphere coverage even heavier but ABC (8 min v NBC 33, CBS 21) fell down on the job."

Interesting how NBC reporter Dawna Friesen is now back in Canada anchoring Global News. Brian Williams is the NBC anchor, not to be confused with Brian Williams the CTV Olympics anchor. But of course, many will remember ex-NBC anchor Tom Brokaw's video essay on Canada.

Where were you when the dome went down?

Where were you on Jan. 5, 2007?

It was a cold day with occasional drizzle, even wet snow. I was watching the World Junior Hockey Championship final broadcast when a friend frantically called and told me to turn on CKNW, because the B.C. Place Stadium roof collapsed. (This is how it all went down.)

I did, then hastily called a source who might know what really happened. What an embarrassment for the 2010 Olympic stadium! I was told the roof had numerous patches and that management cut back on use of the snow melting system. For the next week, B.C. Place management denied snow was a factor, despite the evidence I was supplied.

Reporters allowed into the east airlock of the dome were speechless at the downed roof, damaged equipment, puddles of water and piles of snow. Here is my report from Jan. 5, 2007.

A year later, a Geiger Engineers report (dated Oct. 12, 2007) was issued that confirmed it was preventable. Snow had accumulated and five snow alarms ignored. Finally the air pressure was frantically increased, the snow avalanched and ripped the roof. PavCo called it a controlled deflation but my sources told me that chaos reigned while the big top came down. There is even more in this report by the B.C. Place joint health and safety committee.

On Jan. 19, 2007, the patched roof was reinflated. A major renovation, including the new roof, was announced by Premier Gordon Campbell on May 18, 2008. A heavy-duty roof heating system by Genivar was installed before the 2010 Winter Olympics. If you went to B.C. Lions' games in 2009, you may have spotted those big, white bent finger pipes in each of the corners. The roof barely made it through the Olympics. The weight of lights and speakers caused it to flatten. Crews were stationed atop the roof around the clock to prevent big puddles that could have ripped the roof. That almost happened on Jan. 14, 2010.

The roof was finally deflated for good on May 4, 2010. 24 Hours' videographer Mark Yuen shot the definitive time-lapse video of the historic morning. Some of the material was shipped to Celista, a community near Kamloops, where it is now a liner for an outdoor hockey rink. The rest went to Minnesota for repurposing. Some of the material was kept for a B.C. Sports Hall of Fame fundraiser.

A German-engineered retractable system is being installed. Fall and winter winds have not been kind to the construction schedule. All 36 cable-support towers were supposed to be installed by the end of 2010, but the last three may not be done until Jan. 9. B.C. Pavilion Corporation is sticking to its "early fall" completion and subsequent opening. Chairman David Podmore said in November he'd have a better idea in March. An Aug. 20 construction committee document, however, says Nov. 1, 2011 is the estimate for "substantial completion." The Vanier Cup (Nov. 25) and Grey Cup (Nov. 27) are the only confirmed events.

The B.C. Lions and Vancouver Whitecaps are at the mercy of PavCo, which is ultimately at the mercy of construction-safe weather conditions. The Caps and Leos will both start their seasons at Empire Field but are selling tickets based on moving into B.C. Place in September.

Watch this space for updates. There will be many in the months to come.

WikiLeak shows Chinese pride and sticker shock over 2008 Games

Chinese were proud of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, but shocked and embarrassed by the $40 billion cost. Of course, there was little they could do about the cost. Even talking about it was a risky proposition.

The United States' embassy in Beijing was listening and issued this confidential cable on Sept. 2, 2008, just over two weeks after the dazzling closing ceremony at the Bird's Nest. The cable was published by WikiLeaks on Dec. 28, 2010 and explores how the Chinese Communist Party used the Games to increase its profile. The cable concludes: "It was clear to everyone that Hu Jintao was the real host of the Olympics."

British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell was in Beijing and watching closely. You could say he tried to be the host of the 2010 Winter Games in Vancouver.

VZCZCXRO3005
OO RUEHCN RUEHGH RUEHVC
DE RUEHBJ #3385/01 2461030
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 021030Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY BEIJING
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9664
INFO RUEHOO/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 003385

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/02/2033
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL KOLY CH
SUBJECT: PARTY ENJOYS BOOST THANKS TO OLYMPICS, BUT SOME
ANGER OVER COSTS

Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Aubrey Carlson
for reasons 1.4 (B/D).

Summary
-------

¶1. (C) China's top leadership and a sizeable majority
of the Chinese public view the recent Beijing-hosted
Olympic Games as a great success, according to Embassy
contacts. Most academics and journalists we spoke
with in the week following the August 24 closing
ceremony told us the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is
enjoying an increase in legitimacy as a result.
However, several of the contacts warned that these
gains are tempered by widespread resentment of the
"excessive" costs of hosting the Games. Some
interlocutors believe Politburo Standing Committee
members Xi Jinping, who was in charge of overall
Olympic preparations, and Zhou Yongkang, responsible
for internal security, have benefited politically from
pulling off an Olympics free of serious disruption.
Others feel President Hu Jintao is the biggest winner
from the Games. End summary.

Boost to Party Legitimacy...
----------------------------

¶2. (C) The central leadership views the recent
Beijing-hosted Olympics as a great success that has
given the regime a boost in legitimacy, according to
numerous contacts we spoke with in the days following
the August 24 closing ceremony. Dong Lisheng
(protect), a political scientist at the Chinese
Academy of Social Sciences, told PolOff the Games "far
exceeded" the expectations of top-level Party leaders,
who welcomed the public's nationalistic response as a
boost for Party legitimacy. Freelance journalist Chen
Jieren (protect), who is the nephew of Politburo
Standing Committee member He Guoqiang, said "70
percent" of the public supported the Games. For most
Chinese, Chen said, the Olympics were about "standing
up" and winning the world's respect and were thus
successful. Chen Hao (protect), Executive Editor-in-
Chief of the International Herald Leader, a newspaper
run by the Xinhua News Agency, said the Olympics
represent a clear "political achievement" (zheng ji)
for the Party that will make it easier for the central
leadership to implement its policies in the coming
months. Professor Su Hao (protect), of China Foreign
Affairs University (CFAU), offered a similar
assessment, saying that the success of the Games
resulted in a "large boost in legitimacy" for the
government and a surge of national pride.

...but Resentment over Costs
----------------------------

¶3. (C) While contacts generally agreed the Olympics
will boost public support for the Communist Party,
many of our interlocutors cautioned that any
legitimacy gains are diluted by wide-spread criticism
over the excessive expense of hosting (which was
announced as over USD 40 billion, including
infrastructure investment). Wu Yin (protect), Vice
President of the public opinion polling firm Horizon,
told PolOff August 28 that many Beijingers believe
hosting the Olympics has accelerated the rise in fuel
and food prices. Strict security, Wu continued,
dampened public enthusiasm during the Games and there
is lingering disappointment that the much-anticipated
economic benefits to Beijing's service industry failed
to materialize. In the end, Wu argued, gains in
public support for the Party will be minimal, at best.
Guan Renfeng (protect), a graduate student at Xinjiang
University who visited Beijing during the final
weekend of the Games, told PolOff August 25 that he is
proud of his country's Olympics effort but he gives
the government an "A minus" rather than an A "because
they spent too much money." Guangming Ribao editor
Dong Yuyu (protect) commented that while the majority
of Chinese "reflexively" support the Olympics and feel
proud, the public feels uneasy about excessive
government spending. Dong said many Chinese, had they
been given a choice, would have supported spending
these resources on education and health care rather
than hosting the Olympics. Niu Xinchun (protect), a
scholar at the Ministry of State Security-affiliated
Chinese Institutes of Contemporary International
Relations (CICIR), told PolOff August 25 that a
"significant portion" of the Chinese public resents

BEIJING 00003385 002 OF 002


the enormous costs of hosting the Games. CFAU's Su,
however, felt such concerns over spending are
overblown, noting that the cost of the Olympics was
just a small percentage of China's total GDP.

Central Dissatisfaction with BOCOG
-----------------------------------

¶4. (C) Ding Kuisong (protect), Vice Chairman of the
CCP Party School-affiliated think tank China Reform
Forum, said Politburo Standing Committee (PBSC) Member
and Vice President Xi Jinping was placed in charge of
the overall Olympics effort due, in part, to high-
level dissatisfaction with missteps by the Beijing
Organizing Committee for the Games of the 29th
Olympiad (BOCOG). BOCOG's alleged mistakes included
agreeing "without sufficient coordination" to global
torch relay routes that were "inappropriate." Ding
said Xi, and even CCP General Secretary Hu Jintao,
personally made many Olympics-related decisions,
including logistical arrangements for President Bush's
attendance at the opening ceremony. Dissident scholar
Liu Junning (protect), told PolOff September 2 that
he, too, had heard of tension between BOCOG and the
central leadership over the torch relay fiasco, but
Liu said it was always the plan to have the Central
Government take the lead role in the final weeks.

Olympic Victory for Xi Jinping, Zhou Yongkang
---------------------------------------------

¶5. (C) Chen Jieren told PolOff that both Xi Jinping
and fellow PBSC member Zhou Yongkang, who is in charge
of China's security apparatus, benefited politically
from the Games. Overseeing the Olympics was the first
major assignment for Xi since being promoted to the
PBSC in October 2007. While Chen said that some of
Xi's rivals at the top may have secretly hoped that Xi
would stumble, the success of the Games has, in fact,
burnished Xi's image. Zhou Yongkang, meanwhile, is
now "exceptionally powerful," Chen said. Zhou had
already received a great deal of praise following the
Sichuan earthquake due to the quick response of
security forces, Chen explained, and the lack of a
major security incident at the Olympics further
strengthened Zhou's standing. Dong Lisheng, of CASS,
largely echoed Chen's comments, saying Xi passed his
first major test as a top-level leader.

Hu Jintao and Collective Leadership the Real Winners
--------------------------------------------- -------

¶6. (C) Guangming Ribao editor Dong Yuyu concurred that
Zhou is very powerful and his stock is rising because
of his performance over the last year and during the
Olympics. However, Dong did not agree that Xi
Jinping's political stature had risen as a result of
his Olympics assignment. According to Dong, the
Party's Central Secretariat assumed overall management
of the Games and it was "natural" for Xi, as head of
the Secretariat, to take the leading role. Moreover,
Xi still coordinated all Olympic decisions with the
rest of the Politburo Standing Committee. If
anything, Dong argued, the Olympics was a "collective"
triumph for the entire Party leadership, not just Xi.
Liu Junning agreed, saying Hu Jintao, not Xi Jinping,
is the main beneficiary of the Olympics given Hu's
prominence during the Games. (Note: In addition to
hosting world leaders and presiding over the opening
ceremony, Hu made high-profile appearances at several
events.) "It was clear to everyone that Hu Jintao was
the real host of the Olympics," Liu said.
RANDT

Vancouver 2010: more to come

This has been an extraordinary year for Canadian sport.

But the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics were not just about sport. That is what I have sought to convey in this blog and will continue to do so as long as there are readers like you interested in the stories I have to tell.

Canada's Games. The Sea-to-Sky Games. The Games of the Great Recession. The Bailout Games. Whatever you call it, Vancouver 2010 will continue to have ripple effects from coast-to-coast-to-coast in 2011 and beyond. The costs, the legacies, the behind-the-scenes secrets. Three words: More to come. The first anniversary is rapidly approaching on Feb. 12, 2011.

The biggest, most-expensive event in Canadian history was also about politics, economics, security and culture. Will Canadian athletes remain a force to be reckoned with in winter sports or become contenders in summer sports? Is Vancouver a better place, after having held the Games? Will the city's poverty and homelessness ever be solved? What were the real costs to taxpayers? Was it all worth it?

The event ended when the cauldron was extinguished, but not the questions. Thanks again for reading and interacting.

May 2011 be a year of less fear, less greed, more peace and more fair play.

Happy New Year.

* * * * *
On the last day of 2010, I am dedicating my posts on this blog this year to Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili, Minnesota bus driver Dale Roberge and my family dog, Lucky.

Kumaritashvili, 21, lost his life on Feb. 12, 2010, the opening day of the Games, during a luge training run at the Whistler Sliding Centre. Roberge, 71, died Feb. 22, 2010 while working in the Vancouver Olympic Bus Network. Lucky succumbed to liver failure Dec. 20, 2010. It was a difficult Christmas without her, but I am thankful for the kind words of friends. She was called Lucky, but I was among the lucky ones who shared 14 years with the world's friendliest dog. Consider donating to the SPCA.

Twenty questions for Vancouver 2010

An open letter to the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games:

As you fade away, after claiming a balanced $1.884 billion budget, I thought I would mark the occasion with 20 questions. This is not a game, but a last-ditch attempt to get answers. You see, the more you've tried to stonewall me and lead me astray over the years, the more determined I get. VANOC has proven time and again that its priority is to protect information, rather than share it. It doesn't have to be this way and it's not too late to be informative.

So, I have 20 more questions after the Dec. 17, 2010 news conference at the BC Hydro Customer Centre (right). Please answer to the best of your ability (and I know you are able):

1 - Why did it take so long to publish this 28-page financial report? Salt Lake 2002 organizers did their first report two months after their Games ($40 million profit). Expo 86 finances were released just over a month after the Fair ended ($349 million deficit).

2 - Why were no quarterly reports issued between Dec. 21, 2009 and Dec 17, 2010, after the organization dutifully adhered to the pledge of quarterly disclosures in the 2002 Multiparty Agreement and the May 2007 promise to citizens that the organization would be transparent?

3 - Why all the shoddy editing? Sponsor Millennium Development is referred to as "Millenium." B.C. Lottery Corporation is called "B.C. Lotteries Corporation." Jet Set Sports is called “JetSet Sports.” Certainly the correct spellings of those companies would have been boldly printed on the cheques they sent you for their sponsorship fees and ticket purchases. Assuming, of course, Millennium sent cheques and they were honoured.

4 - Why are the names of directors and senior managers missing from the report? It’s standard for an annual report to include at least the names of the board chairman and chief executive. The VANOC report doesn’t even mention Rusty Goepel or John Furlong.

Your sponsors make sure their shareholders know who is making the decisions. For example: Teck, who provided the metal for the Olympic and Paralympic medals, has a group photo of its directors on page 26 of its 2009 report, followed by brief bios.

Bombardier, who made the Olympic and Paralympic torches, lists directors, committee rosters and senior management on page 207 of its 2009-2010 annual report. The directors’ photos and short bios are on pages 20 and 21. Vancouver International Airport Authority’s board roster is on page 66 of its 2009 report, but it also does a Governance Report. Hey, there’s a certain director-at-large named Ruston Goepel whose term expires in 2010.

Those are just three examples. By not listing your names, you only breed suspicion. But if the Olympics were as successful as you’d like us to believe, they’d have certainly been there, right?



5 - Before noon on April 4, 2010, there was a paper-shredding truck number 533 from Shred-It in your parking lot, next to the low-rise building's entrance. Click the photo to the right to enlarge. What records were being picked up for shredding? VANOC, we know, was not subject to Freedom of Information or Document Retention statutes.

6 - After the B.C. Place Stadium opening and closing ceremonies, the attendance provided reporters who asked was 55,000 to 60,000. Why then only 87,769 total tickets sold for the shows?

7 - You sold 642,223 hockey tickets for $111.9 million. You scored! How many of those were in luxury suites? Because of the recession, you had a hard time selling what you thought would be an easy sell and there were bargains. A box that holds 20 people was going for $2,800 and up. You even published the price list.

8 - Salt Lake 2002 organizers disclosed the full attendance sport-by-sport. The grand total was 1,525,118 tickets sold. Will you kindly tell us how many tickets were sold for each sport or at each venue? We know hockey, but you haven’t told us about figure skating, short-track speedskating, long-track speedskating, curling, snowboarding, freestyle skiing, alpine skiing, ski jumping, cross-country skiing, nordic combined, bobsled, skeleton and luge.

9 - The British Columbia and federal governments gave $187.8 million to VANOC operations. When the business plan was published May 8, 2007, John Furlong said clearly: "The $1.63 billion Games operating budget is funded entirely by the private sector, it is not funded by the taxpayers... and although we're projecting a balanced budget I think we all hope that we will leave a positive financial legacy." Relive the moments Furlong said that in the video below.

There is no "positive financial legacy" - aka "profit - but do tell us when the government bailout began. You really did need it because the May 2007 business plan incorrectly assumed "the Canadian economy will remain relatively strong, with no recession, through Games time."

What is the full and complete tally for all payments made by all government partners, including tickets, advertising, etc.? There were five municipal, nine provincial and three territorial partners.

10 - The $50 million increase in the transportation budget to $173.5 million was poorly blamed on changes in accounting. Yet I see the same language in the May 2007 business plan that I see now in the final report. Bus systems cost $92.6 million after a lengthy dispute with Gameday Management Group was finally resolved in mediation in early November. Was the cost of transportation underestimated in 2007?

11 - The Sustainability Report tells us that the posting of the ethics commissioner's final report to the VANOC website didn't happen because the website is no longer being updated. Could you send a news release via Canada Newswire, post one on 2010 Legacies Now or inform the media on your list about this report?

12 - The Sustainability Report says on page 33: “VANOC required that all directors file, at least annually, a Declaration of Interest by Directors. Senior managers were also required to file such documentation, only once, in 2008, though with a requirement that they proactively update their original filing if their circumstances changed.”

On page 35 it says: “Survey of senior management regarding compliance completed in Q4 2009 for report to audit committee on December 14, 2009. On May 31, 2010, final survey completed with remaining senior managers for report to audit committee at its meeting in early June 2010.

"Declarations of Interest by Directors completed in 2009; exceptions included two directors, whose declarations were received in 2010. VANOC’s procurement team was provided with updates about entities in which directors declared an interest.”

Could you please tell us about the directors, management and the entities in which they have interest? The London 2012 Olympic Delivery Authority, which fulfills a function similar to VANOC, posts what's called a "register of interests" on its website below the biography of each director.

13 - The Sustainability Report stops at April 30, 2010, yet major environmental works were continuing at venues into the summer. The Paralympics, you must remember, ended on March 21. Remediation at Hillcrest, UBC, Cypress, Creekside and the Callaghan Valley was still active. Giant piles of straw existed at Cypress in late May. Biologists you hired to trap mice seen escaping from delivery trucks in February were applying to the provincial government for permits in June. Why, if work was not finished, is this Sustainability Report the last? The previous sustainability report spanned Aug. 1, 2008 to July 31, 2009.

14 - Previous Sustainability Reports included information (though never enough to be satisfactory) from Intertek Group regarding the offshore manufacture of souvenir goods. Page 93 of the previous report even shows 79 factories -- including 57 in China -- were used to make Vancouver 2010 items. You even mentioned on a few occasions that factories had not been in compliance, but were given a second chance. Why, then, is the final report missing this information?

15 - The Sustainability Report is 138 pages. The Games final financial report -- which covers Sept. 30, 2003 to July 31, 2010 -- is just 28 pages. Why is one so fat and the other so thin? By comparison, the report for the fiscal year that ended July 31, 2009 was 31 pages.

16 - There was a $2 million loss because criminals used stolen credit card numbers to buy thousands of tickets on the Fan-to-Fan Marketplace. VANOC was the first organizing committee-to sanction a ticket scalping website. Each transaction was subject to a 20 percent fee (10 percent charged the buyer and 10 percent charged the seller). What was the total net revenue for this site and how many tickets were sold via this channel?

17 - These Games were supposed to be a step forward for Canadian aboriginals. The Four Host First Nations were instrumental in the success. You paid $3.5 million for their pavilion, yet the number of aboriginals on staff seems rather low. The report says only 1 percent of people on staff "self-identified" as being aboriginal. Could you convert that percentage to a number? We already know there was no full-blooded aboriginal athlete competing for Team Canada.

18 - The Olympic Truce was a delicate issue for VANOC, because the Canadian government is spending billions to put our men and women in harm's way in Afghanistan. There have been 154 deaths, including 24-year-old Cpl. Joshua Caleb Baker of Edmonton, who died at a weapons training range near Kandahar on Feb. 12, 2010, opening day of the Games. When VANOC did its part for the Olympic truce, it decided to send sports equipment in so-called spirit boxes to communities in the Canadian Arctic. What became of that program? That information is not reflected in the report.

19 - Certain expensive works were undertaken at B.C. Place Stadium that were never contemplated in the bid stage. The Sustainability Report laughingly claims there were “limited modifications to an existing facility.” In fact, the bid book said no extra money would be spent on capital upgrades there. Things changed when the roof ripped and collapsed on Jan. 5, 2007.

A new roof-heating system by Genivar was installed and in the weeks before the Games, technicians from Riggit were situated on top of the roof around the clock. Oh, there was that time less than a month before the Games when they went for a coffee break and the roof nearly collapsed under rain because the lighting and sound equipment pulled the roof. Then, after the Games, the roof was taken off for replacement. The material isn't biodegradable. Another roof replacement took place at Canada Place. Same material.

Certainly those weren't VANOC construction projects, but VANOC was the most important tenant in both buildings since 1986. Why do those not warrant mention in the Sustainability Report?

20 - Two words: Executive compensation. Four words: Who made how much? I also wonder how many people were working for each executive and how many were given extended leaves for illness or pregnancy.

I kindly look forward to a reply with complete answers to the above questions at the earliest convenience. Do take some time and enjoy the egg nog and yule logs while you ponder the answers. Of course, I do gladly accept plain, brown envelopes without return addresses (Mine is 554 E. 15th Ave., Vancouver, B.C. V5T 2R5).

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

--Bob Mackin

WikiLeaks rewinds to the 1-year countdown to Vancouver 2010

Just 25 minutes after the precise moment the one-year countdown to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics passed, a memo was sent from the United States Consulate in Vancouver providing an overview of preparations for the Games. The Guardian published the memo on Dec. 21.

The key passage in Consul General Phillip Chicola's memo deals with information that the RCMP was struggling to balance its Olympic security duties with the responsibility of enforcing drug laws. The memo specifically mentions marijuana investigations, but Metro Vancouver is the setting for a battle among gangs to control cocaine and crystal meth trafficking. Late 2008 and early 2009 was an especially deadly period.

The RCMP denies the Olympics compromised drug investigations, but it isn't denying that officers were seconded to the Vancouver 2010 Integrated Security Unit.

Thursday, 12 February 2009, 18:25
C O N F I D E N T I A L VANCOUVER 000031
STATE FOR DS/P/MECU, DS/DSS/DO, DS/IP/WHA
STATE FOR WHA/CAN
EO 12958 DECL: 2/11/2019
TAGS CA, PGOV, KOLY, ASEC, ECON
SUBJECT: VANCOUVER 2010 OLYMPICS FEELING THE ECONOMIC PINCH IN
PREPARATIONS, SECURITY
CLASSIFIED BY: G. Kathleen Hill, Political/Economic Chief, US Consulate Vancouver, State. REASON: 1.4 (b), (d)

Summary
US diplomats discuss the financial strain the 2010 Winter Olympics put on its host city. It says there are signs the Vancouver security strategy is feeling the pinch of "economic and personnel shortages", but the Canadians are "sensitive to the issues of sovereignty".

Read related story
1. (U) Summary: The global economic crisis and modern demands of post 9/11 security are proving to be huge challenges for the organizers of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. The competition and special events venues are complete and already hosting test events, but the financial crisis surrounding the Olympic Village has consumed local politicians and media (and was probably the determining factor in the recent Vancouver Mayoral election). Finances are also looming large over the Games' security. Original estimates of C$175 million have now ballooned to a figure somewhere between C$400 million and C$1 billion. While the Province and the Government of Canada (GOC) continue to negotiate who pays what, other costs, in the form of police and military resources, are beginning to be born across the region. The impact may reach far beyond the Games, with significant reductions in policing activity and investigations nationwide. Because of the economic downturn, the Vancouver Olympics Committee (VANOC) has already announced modest changes to save money, but is still promising to stage spectacular Games - within available financial resources. End Summary.

Ready to Compete, But Not to Sleep

2. (U) Vancouver is set to host the Winter Olympics in February 2010. Optimism over the event remains strong, as evidenced by the recent phase one ticket sales for Canadians only, which sold out completely in just a few hours and left many subscribers with only a small portion of requested tickets. However the global economic crisis is creating headaches not envisioned when the city bid and won the right to host the Games. Controversies abound over the "true" costs of the Games. The Olympics were used by Vancouver and British Columbia to jump start planned but expensive infrastructure projects such as the C$600 million upgrade of the Sea-to-Sky Highway between Vancouver and Whistler and the new C$2 billion Canada Line rapid transit system. Critics like to lump these costs in with the more direct Olympics costs, emphasizing an overwhelming burden placed on the BC">BC and Canadian taxpayer.

3. (U) Amidst the criticism, VANOC has shown remarkable financial astuteness, beginning serious revisions of the Games' operating budget in spring 2008, well before the serious specter of a global financial crisis became evident. All competition venues, one of the main areas of responsibility for VANOC, are completed or will be completed on time and within budget. VANOC recently announced a revision to the budget, increasing the final price tag on operating the Games by C$127 million to a total of C$1.76 billion. According to VANOC's Executive Vice President, David Guscott, the Organizing Committee has obtained enough corporate sponsorship and ticket and souvenir sales to bring it within sight of this budget, lacking only about C$30 million to reach its goal. But it has had to make sacrifices to keep on target, such as decreasing hiring and making changes in operational plans, including eliminating a nightly medal awards ceremony in downtown Whistler that has that community's residents feeling betrayed. Despite the financial challenges, VANOC's revenue from ticket sales and corporate sponsorship remains on target and the organization appears weQ placed to meet its obligations.

4. (U) The same cannot be said for the C$700 million-plus Olympic Village, a key element of the Games and a major responsibility of the City of Vancouver. The Village is being developed by a private corporation on prime waterfront land provided by the city. It's slated to become a mixed use residential/commercial area after the Games with high, middle and low-income housing. The developer ran into problems in September, when more than C$100 million in cost overruns threatened to stop the project. Then Mayor Sam Sullivan and the City Council held a series of closed door meetings where they developed a plan for the city to provide guarantees so a loan could be obtained to cover the increases. The secretiveness of the financial arrangements became a major factor in the December city elections, which saw Sullivan's coalition lose the mayoral seat and all but one city council position. In addition, the controversy caused the city manager, a senior deputy and the chief financial officer to lose their jobs. In December, just after the elections, the primary financial backer of the project, U.S. company Fortress Investment Group, announced it would not deliver the final C$458 million in capital to complete the project due to financial losses from the sub-prime mortgage crisis. The new mayor, Gregor Robertson, found himself in the same hot seat, dealing with the possible collapse of the project. In the end, he sought, and was granted, special provincial legislative authority for the city to seek loans to cover completion of the project. Olympic critics have had a field day with the problems, promoting stories of taxpayer losses in the billions, and a combination of substantive factors led Moody's and Standard & Poor to place the City of Vancouver on credit-watch status. Real estate analysts have been more optimistic, asserting that the city could make a considerable profit on the deal down the road and highlighting the fact that it is the last undeveloped piece of waterfront property in downtown and very desirable. The city paid only C$50 million for the land through its Property Endowment Fund, a longterm investment fund estimated to be worth almost C$3 billion. Even if the development makes only half of the originally estimated profit, the fund could cover the immediate loss without affecting the city operation's budget and, as a longterm investment, it could still be a win for the city. VANOC's Guscott was confident the city would meet its part of the deal, presenting a completed, functioning Village on time. In VANOC's view the project has been caught in an unfortunate cross between municipal elections and the downturn in the economy, with the financial problems severely overblown.

Security - But at What Price?

5. (U) Perhaps the biggest loss will be taken by the province of British Columbia and the Government of Canada (GOC) which will bear the brunt of cost overruns in the security of the games. The Integrated Security Unit (ISU) was set up to manage the Games' security. It is headed by the RCMP, with representative from all major police, intelligence and defense entities. Original estimates on Olympics security were in the C$175 million range. But now no one is willing to give a number. The provincial Finance Minister, Colin Hansen, will only say it's somewhere between C$400 million and C$1 billion. Hansen admits he was surprised at the estimates coming out of Ottawa for overall security. A special committee was established early on to determine B.C.'s and the GOC's shares of incremental costs above basic policing. The ballooning nature of the security structure and programs has left the committee bogged down in "endless line-by-line micro-analysis," according to Hansen. Consequently the Province offered up a final, comprehensive plan on who pays what which is in Ottawa for approval. Realistically, as the ISU tests and refines its plans, the costs continue to be fluid and the final numbers will not be known until after the Games are completed. BC">BC originally estimated its overall Games' costs, including infrastructure, venues and security, at approximately C$600 million. Minister Hansen announced on February 9 that the new security numbers will force the province well over that mark. With 2009 a provincial election year in BC">BC, the cost of Games' security is becoming a major issue for the ruling BC">BC Liberals, who are hoping a reasonable agreement with the GOC will soften the financial blow.

6. (C) Beyond monetary costs, the Olympics are beginning to create critical resource costs. Law enforcement representatives working at the U.S. Consulate in Vancouver are reporting that more and more of their contacts are being pulled to work on Olympics security issues. A DEA agent was told by one of his RCMP counterparts that by September all regional drug agents could be working on Olympics, with no investigations ongoing until March 2010. Already the RCMP has all but stopped marijuana-related investigations. RCMP is also undergoing severe belt tightening with new, stricter enforcement of overtime rules. To highlight the Canadian constraints, an RCMP officer told us that the Italians put 30,000 Carabinieri in Turin for the 2006 Winter Games and the RCMP has less than 30,000 officers in all of Canada.

Big Business, But no Room at the Inn

7. (U) The 2010 Olympics are presenting significant financial opportunities for area residents and businesses. In addition to the massive infrastructure and construction projects, VANOC is procuring millions of dollars in services and support for the Games. And Canadians are not the only recipients of these contracts. U.S. firms have managed to win several major contracts thus far to provide everything from tents and portable toilets to tickeQprinting, dining services and flags for the games.

8. (U) One big concern for many in the tourist industry, and for those of us working the Games for the USG, is the question of accommodations. The International Olympics Committee requires a host city to provide between 20,000 and 25,000 rooms for just the Olympic "family" alone (sponsors, officials, etc). This leaves little room for the spectators who come to watch the Games and the visiting dignitaries. IOC rules give only five rooms to the National Olympic Committees (NOCs) for official delegations from participating countries. If delegations, and their support and security, are more than five people, it is incumbent on the delegation to find its own additional accommodations. Consulate General Vancouver has already secured accommodations for the agencies participating in the Olympics Coordination Office and the Joint Operations Center but would like to make an urgent plea for notification as soon as possible of the composition of the official delegations to the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the Olympic Games. (The Paralympics are much smaller and accommodations will be more readily available.) Accommodations are scarce to non-existent now and the sooner we know the make-up of delegations, the more likely we will be able to provide suitable rooms within reasonable distance of the major venues.

9. (SBU) Comment: It should be noted that in every meeting we have with Olympics officials the first question is "Who is heading your Opening Ceremonies delegation?" Although the official invitation comes from the NOC, in this case the U.S. Olympic Committee, to the VIP, most Canadians involved are hoping that President Obama and his family will attend the Games. The President is immensely popular in Canada and given the Games' proximity to the U.S. there are high expectations that the President and his family will make an appearance.

10. (C) Proximity is also on our minds as we look at overall Olympic security. With the Olympics being held within 30 miles of the U.S. border there are already numerous areas where security is a shared responsibility, such as our pre-existing shared responsibilities over airspace through Northcom. The Canadians are doing an excellent job in developing their security strategy, but we are starting to see some small signs that they are feeling the pinch of economic and personnel shortages. They are sensitive to the issues of sovereignty and we have been reminded repeatedly that they are responsible for the overall security of the Games. Our Olympics Coordination Office and Olympics Security Coordinator are working very closely with VANOC and the ISU and closely monitoring developments with an eye toward any possible further assistance we can provide should the needs arise. End Comment.

CHICOLA

Another chapter in VANOC history about to close

One step closer to the end of the secretive, government-funded agency that organized the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Here's the official media invitation:

Media Advisory – VANOC Board to review final financial and sustainability reports on Friday, Dec. 17

VANCOUVER, Dec 13 /CNW/ - The Board of Directors for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) will meet in downtown Vancouver on Friday, Dec. 17th. The meeting will include a review of the final financial report for the Games and receipt of the final sustainability report. Following the meeting, and assuming their approval, VANOC will hold a media briefing to release the two reports, provide comment and answer questions.
Media are welcome to participate in the media briefing in person or by teleconference. If attending in person, please advise VANOC by Wednesday, Dec. 15th at vanoc.media@gmail.com to help organizers ensure adequate space and technical preparations are in place.

When: Friday, December 17, 2010
Approximately 11:30 am (Pacific Time)

Timing note: (Please note that the media briefing might start at this time or possibly later based on the duration of the meeting.)

Where: BC Hydro offices
333 Dunsmuir Street
Vancouver, BC
Media registration will be in the lobby at street level

By phone: 866-226-1792 or 416-340-2216

Who: Rusty Goepel, VANOC Board Chair
John Furlong, VANOC CEO
John McLaughlin, VANOC Chief Financial Officer
Terry Wright, VANOC Executive VP Services and Games Operations
Ann Duffy, VANOC Corporate Sustainability Officer


VANOC would like to thank BC Hydro for providing office space for the Board meeting and news conference as part of its sponsorship for the 2010 Winter Games.

Previous reports:
Past reports that include a comparable level of details to the reports expected to be issued on Friday are available at the following links: Financial (January 2009): http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/about-vanoc/business-plan-and-games-budget/ Sustainability (2008-09): http://www.vancouver2010.com/more-2010-information/sustainability/reports-and-resources/sustainability-report/

BC Hydro and VANOC share an interesting relationship. VANOC's executive vice-president of construction, Dan Doyle, became the Crown corporation's chairman last year. In May 2010, VANOC deputy CEO Dave Cobb became the BC Hydro CEO. One of his first hires was Renee Smith-Valade, the VANOC vice-president of communications. Smith-Valade, in turn, hired ex-VANOC communications staffers Chris Brumwell, Greg Alexis and Jennifer Young.

VANOC has made Canadians wait until the last Friday before Christmas -- when shopping and holidays are top-of-mind -- to make its first financial disclosure since Dec. 21, 2009. The Games operating budget is expected to break-even, but with a great deal of unforeseen help from taxpayers.

By comparison, the B.C. government released the post-Expo 86 financial report just over a month after the world's fair ended. On Nov. 17, 1986, Finance minister Mel Couvelier said the fair’s deficit was $349 million. On Oct. 9, 1987, the final deficit was reported as $336.7 million.

Other arms of the government were carrying the debt load. In March 1987, the Social Credit government disclosed that B.C. Place Corp. had a $194 million debt while B.C. Development Corp. owed $190 million. B.C. Place Corp. built B.C. Place Stadium and the Expo 86 site and was in charge of the legacy buildings the Roundhouse, Expo Centre and Plaza of Nations. BCDC backed the Whistler ski resort development.

More recently, the organizers of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics issued their post-Games financial report on April 24, 2002 -- only two months after the Olympic flame was extinguished.

They showed a $40 million profit on a $1.39 billion operating budget.

The Vancouver Winter Games festival ended when the Paralympics closed March 21 in Whistler. The decision to withhold financial reports for so long must be rooted in VANOC's notorious fear of embarrassment. No corporation, no government, nobody waits so long to convey good news.

Except when it comes to the Bailout Games.