Vancouver View -- Olympic Economics in a "Pressure Cooker Environment"

VANOC chair Jack Poole says no sponsor has defaulted on a sponsorship agreement but wouldn't commit on status of outstanding funds. (ATR/B. Mackin)(ATR) VANOC chair Jack Poole says organizers are monitoring sponsorship guarantees with their eyes trained to the bottom line.

VANOC will be operating in a “pressure cooker environment” through next March Vancouver 2010 chairman Jack Poole said after a closed door board of directors' meeting Wednesday.

He added they monitor daily the “domestic and international sponsorship funds committed but not yet received,” but the amount owed was not released. VANOC claims it has contracts for $658.48 million, which is 1 percent shy of its sponsorship revenue target.

Officials say no sponsor has defaulted on supplying cash, goods or services.

However, network communications provider Nortel is in bankruptcy and auto sponsor General Motors is expected to seek protection from creditors this spring. No modern Olympic Games’ organizer has wrestled with such a global recession.

“While the activity planned by the sponsors is compelling, it’s fairly clear also that our sponsors and our partners are all having to deal with these new challenges that all of us are confronting for the first time in our lifetime,” conceded VANOC CEO John Furlong.

Organizers hope to raise $34.9 to $43.7 million when more than 150,000 tickets go on sale June 6 to Canadian residents.

VANOC Executive Vice President of Revenue, Marketing and Communications Dave Cobb stated that the online ticket sale will be first-come, first-serve and would include "hundreds" of tickets to the gold medal hockey final.

Tickets will be available for all events and are from a contingency pool withheld from last fall’s first phase when $82.78 million was raised. The inventory includes returns from sponsors. Cobb, the new deputy CEO of VANOC, said the Olympic family is allowed to refund up to 5 percent of tickets. He would not say how many tickets were returned by budget-conscious sponsors. Despite safety concerns at B.C. Place Stadium, organizers expect all venues to be delivered on schedule and in the expected condition. (B.C. Place)

Meanwhile, Poole noted that Vancouver Olympic Village construction “is very close to VANOC’s schedule.” Commercial space outfitting at the $961 million complex begins in August. VANOC occupancy is scheduled for Nov. 1.

An April 9 WorkSafeBC inspection report found roof control workers at ceremonies venue B.C. Place Stadium were not properly trained to ensure a safe workplace, in contravention of provincial law. Neither Poole nor Furlong would say whether VANOC has discussed the safety troubles with B.C. Pavilion Corporation, the operator of the taxpayer-owned stadium.

“We believe every (partner) will meet their obligation to us and deliver us the venue we want in the condition we want,” Furlong said.

The post-board meeting news conference was held for the first time in the VANOC boardroom, but the only board member present, Poole, left five minutes before it ended and was not available for one-on-one interviews.

GM Dealership Closings Won't Impact VANOC Deputy CEO of VANOC Dave Cobb says GM's announcement that they will close 245 dealerships shouldn't be detrimental to VANOC. (ATR/B. Mackin)

Cobb said Wednesday that the announcement by sponsor GM that 245 of its 709 Canadian dealerships would close is not detrimental to VANOC.

“Not sure we were expecting that much promotional activity at a dealer level, the sponsorship is with the corporate entity and not the dealerships themselves,” Cobb added. “Had they been a sponsor of the torch relay that probably would have been a bigger issue. If it does reduce their activity, that’s life today.”

GM is in talks to sell its Saturn division. That would mean VANOC has a second “lame duck” brand in its fleet. The company announced April 27 that it would discontinue Pontiac in 2010.

VANOC claimed it had just one Pontiac in its fleet two years ago, but at least five were parked in the fleet compound across the street from VANOC headquarters on Wednesday.

In 2005, GM pledged $58.56 million in cars and cash to VANOC.

Briefs…

…Architect Arthur Erickson, the acclaimed designer of the Vancouver Olympic Village'sflagship waterfront buildings, died Wednesday afternoon. He was 84. The University of British Columbia and McGill University graduate designed the Law Courts and Robson Square in 1973. That complex is undergoing renovations so it can be used as the GE-sponsored provincial government hospitality site and non-accredited media centre in 2010. Erickson was an early booster of Vancouver's 2010 bid.

…Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is beefing up snow removal and deicing in time for next winter. Operations Vice President Don Ehrenholz said that a centralized deicing facility would be built and eight deicing trucks and seven snow ploughs would be bought. YVR pledged $2.6 million in goods and services in 2008 to become VANOC’s official airport.

… Vancouver plans to have two downtown live sites during the games: Larwill Park and David Lam Park. The David Lam Park site will host all sponsor activation, though only Coca-Cola and the province of Manitoba have been announced as tenants. A privately owned site at the northeast corner of False Creek will host Hockey Canada, and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan, Quebec and Ontario.

… Vancouver will spend almost $432,000 to light the Cambie and Granville bridges across False Creek, Library Square and a building that overlooks the Larwill Park live site.

… Port Moody, an eastern suburb with 30,000 residents, will allow two parking lots with 500 spots near the West Coast Express commuter train to become park and rides during the Games.

… Simon Fraser University is providing 2,400 parking spots on SFU’s Burnaby Mountain campus for a park and ride bus lot. They are also contributing use of the Segal Graduate School of Business, Harbour Centre campus and Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue. SFU joins BC Institute of Technology, Capilano University, Douglas College, Kwantlen Polytechnic, Langara College and Educacentre.

With reporting from Bob Mackin.

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