Morgan:News:2010:Bronze Edition: March 2007

Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2227

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANCOUVER PARKS BOARD MULLS BOOSTING CAPTIAL BUDGET FOR OLYMPIC VENUES

The Vancouver Parks Board continues to scrounge money from various sources to deal with the rising costs of some of the VANOC venue developments it agreed to take on so it could expand upon them. VANOC, for instance, contributed a grant of C$5 million to help the Board redevelop two ice arenas that were old -- from VANOC's point of view, they just needed to be refurbished. However, the Parks Board has decided to tear down the Trout Lake and Killarney arenas and build new ones, using the C$5 million as seed money. The pair are now budgeted at C$14.5 million. Then there's the Hillcrest curling complex and adjacent swimming pool, budgeted at C$38 million. The latest draft of the Parks Board's capital plan, to be discussed at the Board's next meeting, April 2, is asking for approval of additional funds for those three projects. Parks staff want to spend money on landscaping the park areas around the new buildings, " to redevelop the surrounding park to high aesthetic and usage standards." The landscaping and site services associated with this are estimated to cost C$170,000 for Killarney Park, C$330,000 for John Hendry Park, which is where the Trout Lake arena is located, and C$862,000 for Hillcrest Park, for a total of C$1,362,000. The funds would come from additional drawings on the city-wide development cost levies. Both new DCL amounts will be added to the 2007 Capital Budget. Last September, the Parks Board also approved transferring C$100,000 from the 2003-2005 Capital Plan from Stanley Park Forest funds, to add to the capital plan as well for the Trout Lake and KIllarney venues. We've already reported recently that the Trout Lake arena is coming inabout C$1.5 million over budget, and staff are looking at a range of ideas to fund the extra.

VANOC'S FURLONG TO SPEAK AT SPORTACCORD

VANOC CEO John Furlong is expected to be among the group of Olympic executives gathering at the Shangri-La Hotel in Beijing, China the week of April 23 for SportAccord, the annual international sports convention for international sports federations, the Olympic executive and all their sponsors. He's expected to be involved in a segment entitled "Sport and the City." In addition to the representatives from the London and Beijing Olympic Games, other industry leaders participating include Peter Ueberroth, the chairman of the US Olympic Committee; John Barton, head of sport, Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union and Tom Shepard, executive vice president of global marketing who looks after partnership & sponsorship for Visa International. Furlong is also expected to be one of the keynote speakers at the event.

ANARCHISTS ISSUE ANOTHER THREAT TO VANOC

The ad-hoc group of Vancouver anarchists touting themselves as the Anti-Poverty Committee has been phoning around to newsrooms in Vancouver, threatening they'll disrupt the development of the 2010 Games unless VANOC opens its board of director meetings. The next such meeting one is scheduled for May 16. The noisy, fractious, and occasionally incoherent group, which has been involved in sufficient protest at some VANOC events in the last two months for some of its members to be led away in handcuffs, has been complaining about different social ills while using the VANOC events as publicity springboards. Some days it's about social housing. Some days it's about aboriginal issues. This is the first one that has been aimed at something VANOC is actually has responsiblity for. Unfortunately, the APC's arresting reputation makes a pretty good argument for keeping the doors closed. They're also a bit late to the party. Morgan:News:2010 asked VANOC CEO John Furlong, politely, if he would open the board meetings to the public at Furlong's first news conference, back in 2004. He said, politely, that he'd think about it. We asked at various other news conferences over the next six months, including whether he'd release the meetings minutes, and VANOC's regular status reports that are sent to the IOC. He said he'd consider the possibility of summaries of those reports, citing concerns about proprietary information, but the summaries never happened either. He also said he would ask the Board, at some unspecified date in the future, if it wanted reporters to be in attendance, but he never said whether that request was ever made. Eventually, we, and other reports, got bored of asking, since the answer was increasingly obvious. On the other hand, Furlong and his senior executive have always been patiently generous with their time around reporters, usually answering questions until even we run out of them. Still the APC's latest squawks on the subject have had some effect. The Board meetings, which have never been open, have been held every one or two months since the board was formed in 2004. Even so, in an article describe the APC's "demands", one the newsrooms, a free tabloid called '24 Hours' and which didn't exist in 2004, is now noting that the last VANOC board meeting was held in "secret", and that its reporter had been "refused" entrance.

RESOURCES

Sport Accord:

www.sportaccord.com/

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 28, 2007

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2226

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC IN SECOND TIER OF DEMAND FOR STANLEY PARK WINDFALL WOOD

The manager for the Vancouver Parks Board who is in charge of Stanley Park says VANOC is in the second tier of three levels of demand being considered by the Parks Board for use of the wood from an estimated 3,000 windfall trees toppled by storms this past winter. Jim Lowden, director of Special Projects, says the first level of demand is for wood that is needed for the park biological requirements, the second tier is for social uses -- carvers, aboriginals, artists, VANOC -- and the third level, once the first two are satisfied, is commercial sale of the wood. Many of the trees that were blown over, however, are deciduous and have little commercial value. The Parks Board is currently contemplating using about C$50,000 worth of the wood for construction of the Trout Lake arena, a VANOC venue.

IOC CONSIDERS ONLY ALLOWING ANTI-DOPING TREATY COUNTRIES TO PLAY

The International Olympic Committee has suggested that countries that have not ratified the UN anti-doping treaty sponsored by the World Anti-Doping Agency based in Montreal be ineligible to host Olympic Games. Canada, which is hosting the 2010 Olympics, has ratified the treaty, as has England, which is hosting the 2012 Games, and China, which is hosting the 2008 Summer Olympics. The treaty, the first binding and universal legal instrument aimed at eliminating doping in sport, came into force last month after receiving its 30th national ratification; to date, 48 countries have ratified it. It imposes uniform rules, tests and sanctions worldwide, and promotes athlete testing without warning as well as testing both inside and outside of competition. The head of WADA, Dick Pound, is a member of VANOC's Board of Directors.

CHINA PUBLICITY BURST MARKS 500-DAYS OUT FOR BEIJING GAMES

China launched a huge publicity campaign to get out the word the country's Summer Olympics were only 500 days away yesterday, and the wall-to-wall media coverage even included video of Vancouver's 2010 countdown ceremonies. People were lined up at Beijing's countdown clock to get their photo taken with it saying "500". Meanwhile, thousands of people turned out for walking race in a city park and a run through the city starting from central Tiananmen square, which is near where BC House is expected to be located during next year's Games. Games officials also used the date to unveil during a national broadcast ceremony the design for the medals that will be given out to Olympians. A ring of Chinese jade is embedded on the back of each medal, whether gold, silver or bronze, while interlocking dragons form the loop for the medal ribbon. The front of the medals follows a standard design set by the International Olympic Committee. The design was implemented by the China Central Academy of Fine Arts and the China Banknote Printing and Minting Corporation, but it was picked from 179 entries that the organizing committee received in a world-wide competition.

RESOURCES

Obverse side of the Beijing medals:

www.chinadaily.com.cn/2008/2007-03/27/xin_31030427150390323889106.jpg

Reverse side and ribbon:

www.chinadaily.com.cn/2008/2007-03/27/xin_3203042715033714706107.jpg

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 27, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |General| #2225

CANADA CAN'T CATCH GERMANY, BUT IT REMAINS SECOND IN WORLD CUP MEDALS, AND VANOC GETS SOME OF THE CREDIT

Canada's winter athletes are closing in on the end of the 2006-2007 World Cup season on Sunday in second place overall in total medals with 135, well behind Germany's 215. Overall, a total of 77 Canadian athletes reached the podium in World Cup and World Championship events during the 2006-2007 winter season.

Chris Rudge, the Canadian Olympic Committee's CEO was pleased, saying that the success was due to a number of supporting organization, including the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Own the Podium 2010, to which VANOC's sponsors contribute, the federal government's Sport Canada department, the national sport federations that supervise high-performance winter athletes and corporate sponsors of the organizations, as well as the COC: "The Canadian Olympic Committee will continue to help provide Canada's athletes with as much support as possible in order to achieve our ambitious goal of finishing first overall at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games."

The United States was third with 134, followed by Austria with 128 and South Korea with 103 podium performances respectively.

In 2007 World Championship events, Germany currently leads all nations with 39 medals, followed by Canada with 28. Norway is third with 25, five ahead of the United States which sits fourth. Switzerland rounds out the top five with 15 podium finishes.

"Canada's World Cup and World Championship success this past season demonstrates that as a nation, we remain on target to achieve our goal of finishing first overall in Vancouver in 2010," said Dr. Roger Jackson, the Chief Executive Officer, Own the Podium 2010. "Through Own The Podium 2010's targeted high-performance programming, many of Canada's winter athletes saw marked improvement in their performances this past season. Over the next three years, our challenge will be to continue to effectively develop and target our resources in order to keep Canada's winter athletes on an upward trajectory during the lead-up to 2010."

The 2007 winter World Championship season will officially conclude with the completion of next month's men's and women's hockey tournaments, and the men's curling event.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 27, 2007

Monday, March 26, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Business| #2224

RICHMOND'S OVAL COMPLEX LANDS TO BE SOLD TO ASPAC DEVELOPMENTS FOR C$141 MILLION

The City of Richmond says it has agreed to sell most and lease some of the 7.5-hecatre (18.6-acre) lands adjacent to the sports complex that will house the 2010 speedskating oval to Aspac Developments of Vancouver for a total of C$141 million.

The amount is substantially more than C$43 million the city needed to contribute to the cost of building the oval. It's the second major housing development connected with the 2010 Winter Games to command substantial development proceeds. The city of Vancouver has agreed to sell the land actually occupied by the 2010 Vancouver Athlete's Village to Millennium Development for $193 million. The Richmond deal does not include the land on which the sports complex sits.

The Oval Riverfront Lands, as they're called, will become the site of an urban waterfront development surrounding the oval complex.

The oval lands development, as envisioned by Aspac, is expected to include between 12 and 14 mid-rise residential towers. It will be the largest master planned neighbourhood in Richmond, and will include commercial residential, recreational and open park space along the banks of the Fraser River's Middle Arm.

ASPAC will buy five of seven parcels contained within the overall area, and sign a 60-year lease on the remaining two parcels. Four of the parcels at the west end of the site are designated for high-density residential, while the remaining three, adjoining the Richmond Oval, are designated for commercial- or mixed-use development. The two parcels being leased are relatively small triangle-shaped pieces that are right next to the oval property and were created by the fact the sports complex is at a slight angle to neighbouring property lines.

ASPAC was selected through a Request For Proposal process begun a year ago. In addition to its financial commitment, ASPAC's proposal met or exceeded the RFP requirements by:

Ensuring no net loss of public open space

Extending the waterfront through "green fingers" from the dyke to the new River Road

Increasing the publicly accessible open space within the privately-owned development area

Improving and maximizing river views within and through the site

Creating additional pedestrian-friendly commercial activities along the entire west side of the Oval Lands

Committing to achieve LEED Silver standard for environmentally sustainable building design

ASPAC will begin work immediately on detailed site planning. ASPAC's design team will be led by architect James Cheng. An initial parcel at the northeast corner is expected to be developed by 2009. While marketing and some construction is expected to be launched over the next two years, most site development will occur after 2010.

The City has retained a 2,000-square-metre (half acre) site adjoining the Oval Riverfront Lands, which has been designated for a future affordable housing development.

Mayor Malcolm Brodie says, "This agreement will provide untold benefits for countless generations of Richmond residents as it will allow us to reinvest in our community's future. We look forward to working with ASPAC to create a highly livable new neighbourhood. It will be a showcase for outstanding and sustainable design and become a destination of choice for visitors from around the world."

Established in 1993, ASPAC is best known as the developer of the Coal Harbour area of downtown Vancouver, transforming a former industrial site into an internationally-recognized waterfront neighbourhood popular with both residents and visitors. It's currently constructing a 34-floor tower in downtown Vancouver called Harbour Green, to be completed next year. The company is owned by Raymond and Thomas Kwok.

"Working with Richmond, we will create a world class legacy that is worthy of this unique riverfront site," said Raymond Li, Senior Vice President of ASPAC. "The Oval Riverfront Lands will be a high-quality, sustainable, residential neighbourhood, with diverse commercial amenities, extensive open space, and enhanced public access to the area's most prominent assets, the Fraser River and the recreational facilities created by the Richmond Oval."

Council is considering options investing the remaining proceeds from the agreement. It is considering a proposal that the bulk of the funds be invested in a series of Community Legacy Funds, which will preserve the principal and use investment proceeds to fund a variety of initiatives.

"The Oval Riverfront Lands are the last remaining portion of the Brighouse Estates, which was purchased by the City more than 40 years ago," noted Mayor Brodie. "That wise investment provided for many of the civic amenities we enjoy today, and helped guide the development of our City Centre. The legacy of the Brighouse Estates gave us the opportunity we have today and we need to make a new investment in our community that will also pay dividends for future generations."

RESOURCES

Raymond Li,

Senior Vice President

Aspac Developments Ltd,

#1830 1055 West Hastings,

Vancouver, BC

Phone: (+1) 604.669.9328

Fax: (+1) 604-669-9382

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 26, 2007

Friday, March 23, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Business| #2223

SURVEY FIRM SAYS STUDY OF CANADIANS' TICKETING RELATIONSHIP TO THE 2010 GAMES MUCH MORE DETAILED THAN DISCUSSED

The president of the company that conducted the detailed survey of Canadian's interest in attending the 2010 Winter Games and buying tickets, says there's a lot more to the survey, but he can't talk about it.

Ironically, it was the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) which suggested we talk to the polling firm about additional questions we had about the survey, saying it would be in a better position to discuss the details.

"We've been approved to talk about certain things," says Gord Hendren, president of Charlton Strategic Research of Toronto, "but at this point in time, I can't really talk about the details." Hendren said he expected that once VANOC had a chance to go through the data in more detail, it would likely talk more about the survey and what it revealed about Canadian's relationship with the Games and ticketing. "They're going to have to digest the learning for a while before they're ready to talk about the fine details."

Hendren said however that the questions to an Internet panel of 2,750 Canadian adults that were 18 and over, a number that gives more-accurate result than most surveys, was that large in order to ensure reliable data on the province-by-province level. The survey was taken in January.

"We tested a battery of statements," Hendren says, "which is where the three-of-four Canadians indication came from that attending the Games would be the experience of a lifetime. We also benchmarked the Winter Games to a number of other events on a five-point scale, with five being the 'once in a lifetime' being our top box score, and "awful" being the worst. The Winter Olympic Games scored 47 on the 'once in a lifetime', then the Stanley Cup finals was 37, 10 points lower, next was the Superbowl at 29, and with World Series and the Gray Cup, it drops off significantly, another 10 points lower. We were trying to benchmark the Olympic Games as a once-in-a-lifetime experience, compared with these other events, it came out well on top. In fact, it was even better than we expected."

Hendren, under questioning, however, says he had no information from similar studies done by the International Olympic Committee and other organizing committees before Games in other countries of how Canada's interest compared with that of residents in other countries to their Games. It's known, for instance, that the Olympic brand has significant acceptance in countries wherever such polling occurs.

His firm also tested respondent purchase intentions against various methods of buying tickets, including over the Internet, through a ticket seller or via retail stores. "There's no question that there's interest in purchasing tickets over the Internet, and that area's obviously growing with each set of Games, as a way of accessing any event," he says. "We tested various aspects of ways in which people could access tickets, yes," he said, but declined to go further into identifying those filters.

The company also filtered respondent answers to questions about interest levels to control for variables such as distance the respondent would have to travel to see the Games, for example.

But their answers were not specifically tested against various ticket price levels, which would reduce the strength of attendance and purchase intentions.

Hendren says no further surveys of this magnitude have been scheduled with his firm over the next couple of years by VANOC, "but that doesn't mean it won't be done." He said VANOC wanted to see the results of this benchmark study before determining whether to go further. However, he said it was unlikely it would need to be repeated within the next year. "You have to ask yourself, 'What's the benefit.' At this stage, this far out, this is the key study that's being done to set up [VANOC's] planning process." He said, though, additional studies would probably be done, but he has no information on the timing.

Hendren said there was some thought given to the selection of the lower age cut-off of survey adults 18 and over. "Typically in sports, we survey 12+, but because were talking specifically about purchasing tickets, we did 18+ because it's the legal age of majority in many Canadian provinces." Hendren says the data was captured during the polling to analyze purchase and attendance intentions for other age breaks in groups above 18, but that analysis has not yet been done. "That's a process that will take place over the next year or so, analyzing it by age, gender and so on." Data for the level of interest dependent on the type of travel method for getting to the Games was also captured, but has not yet been analyzed.

Although Charlton Strategic Research does surveys outside of Canada, this survey only took place within Canada. He says that an on-line panel poll for this particular topic was the best method to use to collect data, even though there is a lot of industry discussion these days about the differences in results between on-line polling versus telephone surveys. He says there are some differences between the two approaches in the details, but the overall result appears to be quite similar. "In this case, for this study, an on-line study is absolutely credible and a solid methodology to use."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 23, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2222

CANADIAN OLYMPIC COMMITTEE, WHISTLER SIGN MOU FOR 2010 GAMES AND ATHLETE PREP

The Canadian Olympic Committee and Whistler have signed a memorandum of understanding that outlines how the two organizations are expected to collaborate.

The idea behind the MOU is expected to develop programs that a COC spokesman says "encourage and support Canadian athletes in reaching the podium at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games and beyond."

The MOU is said to contain the principles that govern the relationship between the two partners. Both the COC and the RMOW both work with the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC). It takes effect immediately and runs until March 31, 2011, with an option for renewal. The agreement itself has not yet been made public.

A working group of representatives from both organizations is expected to be set up under the MOU, to set objectives and oversee implementation of specific programs. Potentially, such programs would cover aspects before, during and after the Games. Examples of initiatives before the Games include finding accommodation for families of Canadian athletes as guests of Whistler families during test events, supporting emerging Whistler athletes, holding a coaching development summit in Whistler, and helping the COC with finding a location for Canada Olympic House, a COC pavilion, in Whistler, which would be open during the Games.

Post-Games programs include working with the Whistler Legacy Society, which will included representatives of Whistler and other governments, to oversee operations of the Whistler Sliding Centre and the Whistler Nordic Centre, among other VANOC venues that will be turned over to the Society after the Games are complete. Among other things, the COC MOU deals with ensuring ongoing access by COC athletes to the Sliding Centre and Nordic Centre in Whistler after the Games.

The catalyst for the MOU between the COC and the Resort Municipality of Whistler, according to the COC, was an orientation session in February during which the COC had a look at Whistler's concepts for developing athletes for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.

"It was an energetic and team building session," said John Rae, Manager of Strategic Alliances & Marketing, noting that "the COC was already knowledgeable about Whistler's sustainability goals."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 23, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2221

Here are two moguls we ran into today:

WASHINGTON STATE "ENHANCED" DRIVERS' LICENSES AVAILABLE NEXT YEAR

Washington State Governor Christine Gregoire has signed the law creating an "enhanced" driver's license that Washington drivers will be able to use to cross the border with British Columbia, instead of a passport. This afternoon in Seattle she also signed an agreement with Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff that makes Washington the first state to test the border program. Gregoire says Washington drivers can start getting the enhanced license next year. She says it will contain a bar code and a computer chip with information about the driver that can be scanned at the Canadian border. By June, 2009, drivers will be required to show passports or the license when returning from visits to Canada. Passports are already required for American air travelers arriving in the US from Canada, even if they're returning. Gregoire says she worked on the driver's license with British Columbia premier Gordon Campbell specifically to speed up border traffic, especially in light of the 2010 winter Olympics in Vancouver.

RICHMOND DRAFT FIVE-YEAR BUDGET FORECASTS GAMBLING MILLIONS FOR OVAL

Some financial numbers from the City of Richmond in connection with its sports complex that will be housing the 2010 Olympics speedskating oval: Its draft five-year financial plan for 2007 indicates roughly half of the estimated C$11 million per year in gambling revenues generated by casinos and other gambling havens in its jurisdiction will be allocated to the sports complex between now and 2011. The plan projects C$5 million per year through to 2011. Under the financing scheme developed a couple of years ago, a total of C$50 million over 10 years in gambling revenue was to be devoted to replenishing Richmond's reserve funds, which are actually being used for the cash flow of constructing the complex. The complex is due to finish construction in September, 2008, which means that Richmond will still be carrying the construction debt of the complex at least until 2015 as the gambling funds accrue. It also appears that some aspects of the building's retrofit, originally scheduled to begin once the 2010 Games have left the building, may be done while contractors are still on site; details are not yet available about what that work might be. Meanwhile, 13% (C$242,485) of a C$1.8 million budget assigned for the public art aspects of the oval complex has been spent to the end of 2006. The full amount was budgeted to be spent over three years ending December 31, 2008. And there's word that Richmond and the Vancouver Board of Trade are in the really early stages of figuring out how they might work toghether to boost business in the two jurisdictions connected with the 2010 Winter Games.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 23, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #2220

VANOC SURVEY INDICATES MILLIONS OF CANADIANS INTERESTED IN ATTENDING GAMES, AND BUYING TICKETS

A survey conducted by a Toronto firm for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) shows that two-thirds of Canadians adults are interested in attending the Games.

According to the survey, conducted by Charlton Strategic Research and accurate to within 1.9%, 19 times out of 20, 37% of Canadians aged 18 and over say they are "very interested" in attending the Games. Another 29% are "somewhat interested." The combination of those totals works out to be about 15 million people who are interested. A sample of 2,750 Canadians of that age group completed the survey which the survey firm is representative of the Canadian population across key demographics.

At least three in ten residents of all provinces across Canada are very interested in attending, with the highest interest coming from BC residents, where 48% say they are "very interested." That's about 1.5 million adults in BC.

BC residents were most likely to buy tickets; 31% (about 1 million) of the respondents from BC said they were "very likely" to make the purchase, while the next highest were those from Alberta (11%, 250,000) and Ontario (9%, 800,000) also say they are "very likely" to purchase tickets. In other regions of Canada, those saying they are "very likely" to purchase tickets ranges from 5-7% (about 5.5 million) in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Quebec, and the Atlantic provinces. That makes a total of roughly 7.5 million "most likely" to buy.

VANOC expects to have 1.8 million tickets for Olympic and Paralympic sport events and Opening and Closing Ceremonies, plus about 800,000 tickets to the nightly medal-award ceremonies in Vancouver and Whistler.

The questions were a small section of a large survey VANOC commissioned Chartlon to conduct as part of VANOC's preparation for offering ticketing services starting next year. Respondents were also asked the question about interest in the absence of ticket-price information, as prices have not yet been set by VANOC.

Ticket prices for the 2010 Games are still under development, according to VANOC's Caley Denton, the vice president of Ticketing and Consumer Marketing. VANOC, says Denton, is planning to offer a range of ticket prices. VANOC spokesman Chris Brumwell indicates VANOC's pricing strategy is driven by much more than recouping the cost of a particular event. It "will take into consideration factors that include the prevailing prices for major events in Canada and worldwide, and the goal to extend the opportunity to enjoy the Games to a wide cross-section of the public."

"Knowing the level of intense Canada-wide interest in attending the 2010 Games, we want to get the system right," said Denton, adding, "The purchase of a ticket is often the first and most important encounter that the public has with the Games Organizing Committee. We're committed to ensuring that experience is a positive one."

VANOC says it intends use the Internet "and other technology" -- an apparent reference to mobile and cell-phone technology among others types -- to deliver its ticket sales program while also maintaining traditional delivery systems.

Meanwhile, 75% of respondents across Canada agree that that "attending the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games would be the experience of a lifetime."

Gord Hendren, president of Charlton Strategic Research Inc., notes that, "The 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver are perceived to be the premier event ticket for Canadians, scoring the highest of all major sport and entertainment events tested, including the Stanley Cup Finals and the SuperBowl in terms of overall experience."

"We expected encouraging results from this study," concludes Denton, "but this data is stronger than even we anticipated."

The survey information was summarized by VANOC's communications department, which declined to release the survey. VANOC spokesman Chris Brumwell, says the document is "designed largely for internal use right now as we work on the ticketing program, and we will certainly consider providing it further down the road, or when we're in a position to announce, or provide more info on the ticketing program. I'm not sure that our team has even had a chance yet to absorb the entire study yet."

In January, VANOC issued an expression of interest for a ticketing service provider; the selection process is still underway, with the company expected to be confirmed in three or four months. The agency, once selected, will work with VANOC to figure out the ticket sales, service and distribution plan, as well as policies and procedures to manage ticket inventory.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 23, 2007

Thursday, March 22, 2007

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Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2219

Here are two more moguls we ran into today:

VANCOUVER PARKS BOARD WRESTLES WITH OVERBUDGET VANOC VENUE

Vancouver's new Trout Lake arena, one of the venues VANOC plans on using for skating practice during the 2010 Winter Games, is still in the planning stage but C$1.4 million over budget and the Vancouver Parks Board staff and the architect are mulling over various ideas for getting it back to the current forecast of C$12.5 million. VANOC isn't building the structure, a free-standing rink with an Olympic-sized ice sheet; Parks Board is, with a contribution of C$2.5 million from VANOC which isn't likely to be increased. However, Walter Francl Architect Limited, which designed the structure, reports that even after the $1 million budget contingency is used, more money still is needed to deal with higher-than-expected costs of building it to LEED Gold environmental levels and some unexpected changes to electrical and water services. Some of the ways to get the cost back into line that are being considered: shrinking the building by 7% and reducing the square-foot construction cost by 4%, save C$50,000 by using lumber from storm-damaged Stanley Park trees for the glulam beams required by the design, and seeing if they can get some "value-in-kind contributions from Winter Games sponsors" for some of the materials needed. The Parks Board, to help answer strong objections from users of the existing rink and a neighboring one about impacts on ice time, agreed earlier this year to delay the start of construction of the rink to December, but bringing it back to a late-summer start would save about $200,000 in construction costs, so the start date is back on the negotiating table. "believe that a workable solution to the reallocation of ice time required to deal with the potential simultaneous shutdown of the Killarney and Trout Lake rinks may be achievable." A development permit is expected to be issued in June.

SHORTENED 2010 HOCKEY SCHEDULE REVENUE, AUDIENCE NEUTRAL

VANOC's executive vice president of Revenue, Dave Cobb, says the shortened series of hockey games to be played during the 2010 Winter Olympics, the outcome of a deal reached between the National Hockey League, the International Ice Hockey Federation and VANOC, are expected to be revenue neutral. "The main reason for that," says Cobb, "is that although there are fewer games, there are many more that will be played at General Motors Place, so from an overall attendance standpoint, the number of people who will be able to see the games is almost the same as it was under the previous schedule. Meanwhile, VANOC's executive vice president of Service Operations says the organization has leased a distribution warehouse in the Greater Vancouver suburb of Delta for two years leading up to the Games. VANOC has yet to release further details about the size of the space or its location. The real estate firm of Colliers was asked about six months ago to look for four different-sized parcels of logistics or warehouse space for VANOC, and it appears from the details so far released that the Delta deal may correspond to one of the requests: the main logistics area of 270,000 square feet of warehouse space on 12.9 acres of land that was said to be needed from May 1, 2009 to December 31, 2010.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 22, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2218

RICHMOND TO USE C$181,000 BC GRRANT TO ORGANIZE 2010-RELATED SPORTS TOURISM

A City of Richmond committee has decided to recommend council use a C$181,000 BC government grant to prepare its first tourism-sector strategic study. The study would focus on improving the sports tourism expected to be generated by the 2010 Olympic speedskating oval sports complex its constructing.

Richmond Economic Development manager Lee Malleau reports, "With the advent of the Olympic Games, there are distinct opportunities to be captured." She notes the City's role as a venue partner in the 2010 Games, "is launching Richmond into the global realm of sport tourism, the Oval being central to this in many ways, especially after the 2010 Games. It is an opportune time for the development of a more formal sport tourism strategy as a primary component of the more comprehensive approach being recommended."

Another aspect of the strategic study funded by the money: positioning what Richmond calls the Oval Gateway, among other things, to "develop a destination marketing program for the Oval Gateway area and the surrounding waterfront, as well as the city as a whole."

Malleau suggests the funding would be used to hire a tourism consultant in the first phase of a two-step process to help Richmond do the strategic report, and to have a look at whether Tourism Richmond's structure needs to be adjusted to improve sport-tourism marketing. The second phase, which would use any funds remaining to help implement the strategy.

The grant to Richmond was part of C$20 million the BC government gave to the Union of BC Municipalities to deliver to help pay for tourism projects throughout the province. Malleau estimates tourism in Richmond generates about C$600 million in economic activity annually.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 22, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2217

Here are three more moguls we ran into today:

BC, ENGLAND TALKING ABOUT 2012 PAVILLION AT 2010 GAMES

The government minister in charge of British Columbia's Olympic responsibilities, Colin Hansen, indicates the province is talking to the London Olympic Organizing Committee about the possibility of a pavilion at the 2010 Winter Games to help promote the 2012 Summer Olympics. British Columbia is currently deep in the planning stages for a promotional pavilion at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. So far, the Canadian government has not indicated whether it would help fund the BC pavilion in China, as it did for a similar, popular building, in Torino during the 2006 Winter Olympics.

OLYMPIC MINISTERIAL TRAVEL -- CHEAP AT TWICE THE PRICE

David Emerson, the Minister in charge of the Canadian government's 2010 Olympic responsibilities, spent absolutely no money on travel or hospitality expenses connected with 2010 Games work during 2006, according to federal government expense reports. Neither did any of his dozen staff, including James Moore, Parliamentary Secretary the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics; Helena Guergis, his secretary of state for Sport, or Alanna Heath, the department's special assistant for the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics. Emerson, however, reported C$23,386.15, mostly in air-fare expenses on issues dealing with his major responsibility, international trade. Intriguingly, Emerson, who is based in Ottawa and whose department also runs the federal Olympic Secretariat that co-ordinates federal activities connected with the Games, attended a ground-breaking ceremony in early April, 2006, for the 2010 Olympic Village in Vancouver, was reported in May to be "meeting regularly" with BC's Olympics Minister, Colin Hanson, was in Winnipeg in July, 2006 in connection with the Canadian Mint's initial production of a C$1 coin commemorating the Olympics, and was in Vancouver in August with Prime Minister Harper in connection with a federal decision to provide additional funding to VANOC for venue construction. Guegris reported C$7,802.93 on airfare for other responsibilities, Heath reported C$3,491.38 on expenses connected with accompanying her boss to Vancouver for ministerial meetings or taking part in a BC economic forum, while Moore reported no airfare or hospitality expenses during the year at all. In addition, the minister of Canadian Heritage, which is responsible for handing out several million dollars in grants each year to various national sports federation which are preparing for the 2010 Games, also spent no money in travel or hospitality expenses in connection with that portion of her duties, although Oda spent more than C$37,000 on such expenses on other duties. Her senior staff also reported no such Olympic-related expenses during the year.

1988 OLYMPIC PARK STILL POPULAR AFTER ALL THESE YEARS

Officials report that Canada Olympic Park remains popular 20 years after Calgary in 1988 closed what was then the most profitable Winter Games in history. Today the 245-hectare site, just 15 minutes from downtown on the Trans-Canada Highway, remains a premier training ground for 2010-bound athletes -– and a popular stop for tourists. The park now gets more than one million visitors a year, making it the biggest attraction in Alberta next to the Rocky Mountains, says Deb Alsen, tourism specialist with Canada Olympic Park. "It's really exceeded the expectations of everyone. Who knew that it was going to be this popular and growing after all these years?" The University of Calgary's Olympic Oval -- the first indoor venue for speed skating -- also continues to draw crowds, from Olympic-calibre athletes training on the fast ice, or fans renting speed skates. An estimated 300,000 skiers and snowboarders use the park's 1,200-metre ski hill each year. At the end of a good workout, they can stand on the gold, silver or bronze-medal podiums in the Olympic Hall of Fame, and have their picture taken with one of the real Olympic torches.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 22, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2216

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

NO TIME TO BUILD NEW MUSEUM IN WHISTLER FOR 2010

• A report on the status of a new museum for Whistler indicates it is now too late to build a new facility in time for the expected crowds coming to the area for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Documents prepared by Martin Pardoe, the manager of Parks Planning, and Kerry Chalmers, the project manager for the museum master plan, say, "it is unlikely that a new facility as described within the Master Plan will be functional prior to 2010, and special efforts should be undertaken to tell the stories of Whistler to the world during the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games." The master plan shows the proposed new museum would cost nearly C$15 million to build, about C$700,000 a year to run while revenues would only cover about half of the expenses, requiring an annaul supporting grant from City Council to cover the difference. The documents were prepared in connection with the creation of the museum master plan, which in turn was based on a 2005 market analysis. That study was funded by Whistler and a grant from the Arts Now Creative Communities program of 2010 Legacies Now. The 2010 Games was one of the four key reasons for redeveloping the museum, according to its master plan, which said, "The world is coming and will want to know Whistler's story -- this is a big event and we want to be well prepared. The Museum will need to be in a position to provide stories and historic information and be able to document this exciting chapter of Whistler's history."

HBC EXPANDS ANNUAL ATHLETE FUND-RAISING RUN

HBC, VANOC's major retailing sponsor intends to expand its annual "HBC Run for Canada" to 13 cities across the country this year. The annual event, which raised more than C$1.5 million for athletes and high performance training centres in 2006, usually takes place in Vancouver, Victoria, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Algonquin Park in Ontario, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary. This year St. John's, Newfoundland; Windsor, Ontario and Red Deer, Alberta will be added to the list. The 10-kilometre run, three-kilometre family walk, and one-kilometre "fun run" takes place each year on July 1st, Canada's national holiday. Organizers say the goal this year is to raise C$2 million.

BC OLYMPIC LIVE SITES WORK "NO SUBSTITUTE" FOR TOURISM PROMOTION

Quote without comment: "As successful as it will likely be, if you're living in northern Vancouver Island or in the Kootenays, the 2010 Olympics is going to do for your local economy what Expo 86 did. Which is to say, doodley squat. And the sooner the B.C. Liberals admit that, the better off the 'heartlands' will be. I recall the run-up to Expo 86, when those big earthen berms were constructed outside of towns and decorated with welcome signs. I called them Billyboards, in honour of then-premier Bill Bennett, and they did indeed create a few days work for local catskinners and landscapers. The Olympic equivalent of the Billyboard is the Spirit Square and the Olympic Live Site, basically downtown decoration and recreation grants for smaller towns. These are fine, but they are no substitute for the kind of tourism promotion that used to take place across Canada and internationally. Stan Hagen, the latest tourism minister shuffled into what used to be considered an important job, seems preoccupied with Vancouver's over-budget convention centre and, of course, the Olympics." -- Tom Fletcher, BC legislative reporter, Black Newspaper Group.

RESOURCES

HBC details about its Run For Canada:

www.hbcrunforcanada.com

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 22, 2007

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2215

WHISTLER ASKS BC FOR GRANT UP TO $200,000 IN CONNECTION WITH 2010 ATHLETES VILLAGE HOUSING

The Resort Municipality of Whistler has applied to the BC government for a grant of up to C$200,000 to help with the environmental administrative support of the housing to be constructed at the 2010 Whistler Athletes Village.

The application, under the Community Action on Energy Efficiency (CAEE) program of the Alternative Energy Policy Branch of the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, was filed Monday. The program, however, says only five communities that apply will receive grants ranging from C$50,000 to $200,000.

Whistler's planning department, which submitted the application, says the municipality is in the process of developing environmentally friendly construction guidelines for multi-family dwellings, such as apartments and condominiums. It would put the money, if it receives any, toward paying a consultant to have a look at the guidelines for technical accuracy and how program points could be attributed to various aspects of them, work with local developers to create a certification and incentive program for implementing the guidelines and help pay for work with municipal lawyers to review regulations or create new ones that would require the buildings to meet Whistler's project guidelines.

The application says hopes to achieve an EnerGuide for New Houses rating of 80 for all new detached, single-family and row housing by 2010, and achieve energy performance that's 25% better than the model National Energy Code for all new multi-family buildings, also by 2010.

There are a number of companies and organizations involved in supporting the project besides the Energy ministry: Natural Resources Canada, the Ministry of Environment, the Ministry of Community Services, the Fraser Basin Council, the Community Energy Association, BC Hydro, Terasen Gas, FortisBC and the Union of

BC Municipalities. The program is administered by the Fraser Basin Council.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 21, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2214

WASHINGTON STATE LEGISLATORS APPROVE "ENHANCED" LICENCE FOR CROSSING BORDER WITH BC; NATIONAL APPROVAL EXPECTED FRIDAY

Washington legislators on Wednesday almost unanimously approved a new US$40 enhanced driver's license aimed at easing border crossings into British Columbia, possibly in lieu of a passport.

The decision is expected to help improve American attendance at the 2010 Winter Games if it can be ratified by the US Department of Homeland Security soon.

The state Senate voted 43-3 to authorize the new license, which will be loaded with electronic proof of citizenship and other information that can be easily scanned at the border, and which should be half the price of a passport. The pricing is a key component of the effect on the attendance to the Games, since at US$97 per passport, it could add nearly US$400 to a family of four considering the decision to attend the Games.

The swift action was at the request of governor Christine Gregoire, who says she hopes to get sign papers Friday with Michael Chertoff, secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, for a pilot project to test the new approach at the state's border with British Columbia.

Passport-like documents are expected to be required for land and sea travel between the US and Canada no later than June 2009; they are already required for air travel between the two countries.

The optional new license will incorporate proof of citizenship and Washington residency and allow search of federal databanks, including criminal records. The licenses would have to be picked up in person at a driver's license office, starting in January. The state House has also approved them.

Michael Chertoff, secretary of homeland security, and Gregoire are expected to sign papers in Seattle on Friday to allow the state to use the enhanced licenses as the country's first pilot project to test a cheaper, secure alternative to passports, Gregoire spokeswoman Holly Armstrong said after the Senate vote.

"The state of Washington has put forward a very innovative proposal and Homeland Security has been excited about this from the get-go," said Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke. "We appreciate the balancing of security with efficiency and we think this proposal has a lot of merit." He said other states may follow Washington's lead.

"The governor proposed the pilot project because with all the talk of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, there was a concern about the impact on tourism and economic ties, particularly with the [2010 Winter] Olympics coming up" in Vancouver and Whistler, Armstrong said. "She understands the need to look at security issues and to address those, but she and BC Premier (Gordon) Campbell believe there is a better way to do this, an alternative to the burdensome and expensive requirement for passports."

British Columbia is expected to develop a similar license to expedite crossings into Washington state. Together, the state and province have 10 million people.

Three legislators voted against the plan, but only Sen. Pam Roach, (R-Auburn), spoke during the debate. "I guess I don't feel so warm and fuzzy about this bill," she said. "This is a different world today and we are dealing with national security issues. If you want to go from one country to another, you get a passport."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 21, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2212

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

BC TOUR BUS FIRM GETS VANOC DEAL FOR AD-HOC SERVICES

Gray Line West of Vancouver, one of the companies owned by the Armstrong Hospitality Group, has won a standing-order contract to provide to provide it with motor coaches and drivers as and when needed. VANOC wants the firm to provide a wide range of modern coaches, from those that hold 56 passengers to 20-passenger mini-buses, including coaches that hold 30-48 passengers, depending on VANOC's needs at any given time. The vehicles are to be used to provide occasional transportation for employees, media and the like as needed up to Games time in February 2010. The drivers have to know the Greater Vancouver Regional District area, Whistler, Squamish and Pemberton. The company split away from Gray Line Canada some years ago to provide support services to the Armstrong Hospitality Group's flagship service, the Rocky Mountaineer, a high-class tourist passenger train service that goes from Vancouver through various parts of British Columbia.

VANCOUVER FIRM TO HELP VANOC TRACK ASSETS

A 14-year-old Vancouver-based company, Tech Track Solutions, was awarded a deal to provide VANOC with the necessary software, hardware and implementation methods, using asset tags and barcode readers, to keep track of all of VANOC's assets. VANOC wanted the barcode tags, which look like the kind of thing found on supermarket items, in two colours so it can distinguish visually between something it owns and something it leases. It wanted the portable readers have to be rugged enough that they can survive being dropped from about chest height, and they have to be able to talk to VANOC's asset-tracking database, which is a module of Microsoft's Navision. The agreement is good until the end of 2010.

WASHINGTON STATE FIRM CONTRACTED BY VANOC FOR OVERFLOW TRANSLATION

Olga Lafayette, president of Language Fusion, a small company in Washington state's Vancouver City, was awarded a contract by VANOC this week for translation services for the Vancouver Olympics over the next three years. VANOC's Editorial Services department was looking for the contractor to provide help with overflow translation work until the end of 2010. Mostly, the work is translating English to French as needed, with a small portion going in the reverse direction, with some call for translating other languages, particularly Chinese and Punjabi. The type of translation includes newsletters, feature stories, backgrounders, fact sheets, biographies, technical reports, information books, brochures, sport-specific documents and the VANOC website.

RESOURCES

Paul Tilbury

Managing Director

Gray Line West

604.879.3363

www.GrayLineWest.com

Kevin McGrew,

President and CEO

Tech Track Solutions

Suite 600-1200 West Pender St

Vancouver, BC V6E 2S9

Phone: 604.684.5002

Toll-Free: 1.888.257.7735

www.techtrack.com

Olga Lafayette, President

Language Fusion, LLC

Suite 203, 400 East Evergreen Blvd.

Vancouver WA 98660 USA

Toll-Free: +1.888.750.1112

Phone: +1.360.750.1112 ·

Fax: +1.360.750.1125

Website: www.languagefusion.us

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 21, 2007

Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2211

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

BROADCAST DEAL FOR 2010 FIGURE-SKATING PRELUDE TROUBLES FEDERATION

Ottavio Cinquanta, who is the president of the International Skating Union and is also a member of the commission that oversees the 2010 Winter Games, has told Associated Press in Tokyo that he's getting worried about Los Angeles' ability to host the 2009 World Figure Skating Championships. The 2009 championships determine the number of spots each competing country has for the 2010 Winter Olympics. The championships were provisionally awarded to Los Angeles last September by the ISU, after competing with bids from Helsinki in Finland and Budapest in Hungary. However, Cinquanta says the Worlds are dependent on the ISU resolving a broadcasting-rights deal that covers Canada and the United States. Talks are underway, but Cinquanta says time is running out. "At this very moment we are indeed concerned, as it is not clear whether there will be adequate TV coverage," Cinquanta told AP's reporter. Both the United States and Canada have TV contracts with the ISU that run out before 2009. The contract with ESPN, which holds the rights to broadcast ISU events for the United States, ends in 2008 and negotiations are underway. "With both countries we are encountering difficulties for TV," Cinquanta is reported to have said. "No television in the United States and Canada for figure skating? This is something I do not want to think about. We signed an agreement worldwide with other television rights holders containing the fact we have to provide a TV signal, therefore we have to organize the championships where there is TV coverage; otherwise we are in breach of an agreement." David Raith, the executive director of US Figure Skating notes that interest in figure skating has been declining because of stars leaving the competitive ranks recently.

IOC EXECUTIVE WONDERS ALOUD ABOUT TEENAGE OLYMPICS

International Olympic Committee's president Jacques Rogge has told a French newspaper he is considering the concept of launching an Olympics specifically for teenagers. The French sports daily L'Equipe reported him as saying, "They would be dedicated, according to the disciplines, to athletes from 14 to 18." Rogge said the youth Games could start from 2010, but in a city to be determined.

IOC TO HEAR 2010 REPORT IN LATE APRIL IN BEIJING

The IOC's next Executive Board meeting will be held from April 25 to 27 in Beijing, China. The Executive Board meeting will be held at the same time as SportAccord, the annual international sports convention hosted by the General Association of International Sports Federations, the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations and the Association of the International Olympic Winter Sports Federations. The Executive Board will be getting a report about the current status of the 2010 Winter Games, among others, during its session

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 20, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2209

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC STARTS PROCESS FOR LICENSCES TO SELL BRANDED CHOCOLATES, FRUIT AND SALMON

VANOC's licensing department is asking firms who want to be considered for making, distributing and selling Olympic, Paralympic and 2010-branded boxed chocolates, smoked salmon, maple syrup, breath mints, dried and packaged fruit and similar consumables within Canada to contact it by April 17, so it can create a short list of about 10 firms that will be asked for detailed proposals. The licenses are also expected to allow the firms chosen to manufacture premiums for VANOC, its corporate sponsors and governments sponsors, but not for the Torch Relay, which is run and branded separately. They won't be able to use Canadian Olympic Committee or Canadian Olympic Team marks, either. VANOC has built its social requirements -- sustainability, inner-city inclusiveness and aboriginal participation -- right into the call for those interested so they know up front some of the things that interest VANOC when it comes time to do the proposal phase. This current call specifically excludes candy or chocolate bars. It also specifically excludes packaged nuts, candies and cookies. The license being offered is good until December 31, 2010. Also still to come, and expected later this year, will be similar calls for branded household goods, office and school supplies and sporting equipment.

"ACCELERATED" FUNDING MYSTERY FOR OTP STARTING TO CLEAR

We're still trying to get to the bottom of the implications of an intriguing statement in yesterday's federal budget, which said the federal government was planning to, as it put it, "accelerate" its funding to the Own the Podium program. The OTP initiative, designed to funnel funds to high-performance Canadian athletes and their teams that were planning to be in the 2010 Games, is budgeted at C$110 million over five government fiscal years ending in 2010; $55 million of that was pledged by Ottawa, C$50 million pledged from the private sector via VANOC and C$5 million from the BC government. The budget documents didn't give any details about what Finance minister Jim Flaherty meant by the word "accelerate", and officials of both the government and OTP aren't yet providing us with clarity, either. However, the Canadian Olympic Committee, which originally spawned the program that now operates on its own out of Calgary, notes that the original funding scheme was that Ottawa and the BC government would provide start-up funding of C$5 million each for the program's first fiscal year. VANOC would do the best it could to raise up to C$50 million through negotiations with its private sponsors, and that the federal government would match private-sector funding on a cash-flow basis to a maximum of $50 million. Late last August, we were told that VANOC was about C$10 million short of its goal. This morning, we learned it is now C$14 million short, but still confident it can make the total. The acceleration concept comes from the fact that the federal government has decided that it will abandon the concept of matching cashflow dollar for dollar, and instead ensure the OTP program receives a fifth of the federal pledge each year -- C$11 million -- in hopes that by the end of 2010 fiscal year, the total private sector amount raised will equal or surpass its pledge. The bottom line: the federal government's acceleration decision simply means the OTP's projected budget of C$11 million for the coming fiscal year, which starts April 1, is assured, and so is athlete, team and project funding. As to why the C$4 million discrepancy between amounts last fall and this spring, we're not sure but we think it may have to do with who's counting what, and when.

THREE US STATES NEARING DEAL ON CHEAPER BORDER SECURITY DOCUMENTS BEFORE 2010

The San Francisco Chronicle newspaper is reporting this morning that officials in three northern states bordering Canada appear to be having some success in persuading the US Department of Homeland Security that a US$40 "enhanced drivers licence" could take the place of requiring US$97 passports when returning to the US from Canada. Washington State, New York state and Michigan are all said to be working on similar versions of a pilot project. British Columbia and Washington State have been particularly strong in pushing the negotiations, to ensure the traffic flow of Americans to the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver is not as heavily affected as a passport would require. Homeland Security is still working on a deadline of next January to require those entering or returning to the United States from Canada by land to have a secure identity document, but it has the discretion to push that implementation date to June, 2009. Washington state officials are expected to announce soon a pilot program to give Washington residents who are US citizens the option to apply for the new license.

RESOURCES

Here's the link for VANOC's PDF file that explains the application process:

tinyurl.com/25h4lj

This the link for an accompanying Word corporate questionnaire which VANOC also wants you to fill out:

tinyurl.com/yvk655

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 20, 2007

Monday, March 19, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2208

VANCOUVER CALLS FOR TENDERS TO WORK ON OLYMPIC VILLAGE SHORELINE AND LANDSCAPING WORK

The City of Vancouver is asking for tenders from firms to do a batch of shoreline and landscaping work for the 2010 Olympic Village in southeast False Creek.

The work involves building an eight-metre pedestrian footbridge, along with its lighting and supports, a timber boardwalk with 10 viewing platforms -- seven made of timber and three of pavers. There will also be construction of temporary and permanent pedestrian walkways and bikeways, but this will take place in two phases. The first phase is to be completed this year, while the second phase is to be completed in 2009, when a lot of the building construction of the village is nearing completion.

The work also involves installing granite blocks and associated quarried stone riprap, which the city will supply, along with 37 metres of riprap shoreline protection as part of the phase-2 work in 2009. Another part of the work is to make, construct and install handrail, stainless steel wire rope rails, bull rails and posts.

Yet another part of the contract is calling for supply and installation of trees, plant materials and lawn in the same two phases; design, supply and installation of a design-build irrigation system and the two phases worth of supplying and installing pavers. There is also a need to supply and install architectural features such as logs, boulder clusters, snags and site furnishings.

There's a pre-tender meeting on Thursday afternoon.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 19, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2207

BC OLYMPIC SECRETARIAT ASKING FOR PR FIRMS TO HELP WITH 2010 BUZZ AT 2008 GAMES AND BEYOND

The BC government's Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Secretariat has begun asking for public-relations companies to contact it, so they can become one of three firms that will receive a detailed request for proposals on promoting the 2010 Winter Olympics during and after the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

The closing date for firms to submit their resumes according to instructions found on BC Bid is April 11. The response can only be electronic through BC Bid, which means that firms have to be registered with BC Bid to submit a response. The three will be notified by April 18, and there's to be a briefing of the top three firms the week of April 23, The request for proposals is expected to be issued by the end of April, with the contract awarded by the week of April 18.

The Secretariat says it will be promoting the Province of BC internationally "in the core areas of business development, business investment and tourism." The starting place for these activities, it notes, is by using the BC-Canada Pavilion, located near Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. The PR firm that gets the job will be asked to develop strategic communication and media relations plans to promote 2010-related programs and projects for domestic and international editorial media, and to do media monitoring and media hosting. The project includes coming up with the milestones, deadlines and budget to ensure the media are aware of activities and events. There's to be a specific focus on the Chinese market. The firm won't be involved in media buying nor paid advertising.

Secretariat documents note, "The 2008-2010 Olympic connection is an opportunity to present the diversity of BC and Canadian business, art, culture and sport to the world. After the 2008 Games are complete, the world will focus on BC as the next host. As a result, the 2008 Games are an invaluable occasion for BC to leverage knowledge about Canadian and BC products and services, to increase international trade and investment, to raise awareness of tourism and culture, and to build awareness of BC as host of the 2010 Winter Games."

The BC-Canada Pavilion at the 2008 Games will be open for about six months, from May through September 24, 2008. This Pavilion, says the Secretariat, "should showcase BC and Canada in ways that create new relationships with foreign media and provide a unique conduit to tell our stories. [It] will host Canadian athletes, dignitaries, businesses and media, and be open to the general public." The project, it notes, will require the PR firm to deal with language barriers, foreign rules and regulations; cultural sensitivities and, as usual, tight timelines.

Once in operation, the PR firm will also be keeping the BC government's Public Affairs Bureau up to speed on what it's doing, through the Ministry of Economic Development.

RESOURCES

BC Bid's website, for the application documentation:

www.bcbid.gov.bc.ca

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 19, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #2206

VANOC RECOMMITS TO RAISING C$50 MILLION FROM PRIVATE SPONSORS FOR OWN THE PODIUM

The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) said today that it is "committed" to securing C$50 million of the C$110 million funding for Own the Podium 2010 through corporate partnerships.

The Province of British Columbia has already contributed its C$5 million. The other half of the C$55 million funding for OTP is coming from the Government of Canada, and today's budget says that the federal government will accelerate Ottawa's share "in order to ensure that Canadian athletes will have the security of uninterrupted training." No numbers or time frames were provided, however.

VANOC, in a prepared statement, says, "the early advancement of the government's $55 million contribution is necessary as a significant portion of the privately raised funds will come closer to the Games," but neither it nor the federal government have defined the word "accelerate."

VANOC CEO John Furlong, in the same statement, interprets the word to mean the federal funding is now confirmed -- assuming the budget, provided by the Conservative government, which is in a minority situation, is approved by Parliament. Its defeat by the combined opposition parties would force a federal election.

Furlong says that, "In the eyes of Canadians, a large part of our success in 2010 will be defined by the achievements of our Canadian winter athletes. The additional support is a great reminder of how the Government of Canada and Canadian companies, along with the Province of British Columbia, are working together to guarantee Canadian athletes the support they need to train and prepare for the Games in 2010. With the funding now guaranteed by the Government of Canada, we look forward to building on the tremendous support we have already received from our corporate partners."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 19, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2205

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

FEDERAL BUDGET SPEEDS UP OTP FUNDING

The federal government, in today's budget, has agreed to "accelerate" its contributions to the "Own the Podium" program because it's taking longer than expected for VANOC to arrange private-sector support for the plan. In 2005, the Government announced that it would contribute C$11 million per year for five years to support the Own the Podium program to help Canada become the number one nation in terms of medals won at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and to place in the top three at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. This federal funding, to be matched by contributions from the private sector primarily arranged through VANOC and C$5 million from the Government of British Columbia, provides money to the OTP program, which then distributes it to Canada's elite winter athletes as they prepare for the 2010 Games. The Canadian budget, tabled in Parliament today, proposes accelerates the federal contribution "in order to ensure that these athletes will have the security of uninterrupted training until the private sector comes on board with its support." However, the budget documents don't give any details about just what the word "accelerate" means. OTP officials were in meetings this afternoon, and not immediately available to comment.

FOREGONE REVENUE IN 2010 TAX RELIEF NOT YET AVAILABLE

In our earlier story today about the federal government's plans to offer tax relief to various aspects of the 2010 Winter Olympics, we weren't able to immediately find how much the government expects this relief to cost it in foregone revenue. We finally found the tables that list the costs of various tax measures contained in the budget list the 2010 tax relief measure -- it's on page 374 of the 408 page document -- but cells that list the costs to the treasury under each year of the program, from this coming fiscal year, which starts April 1, to March 31, 2009, are blank. By the way, that same story noted various people who are given income-tax exempt status, under a section called paragraph 20. We found on page 451 of the tax documents a bit of additional interesting fine print: "That every person who makes a payment to a non-resident of Canada described in paragraph (20) in respect of the income described in that paragraph be exempted from the withholding obligations..." of the Income Tax Act.

FUNDING FOR ABORIGINAL JOBS PROGRAM DOUBLED

The new federal budget also pumps more money into a program that's been of some supportive use to construction of the 2010 Winter Games. The Aboriginal Skills and Employment Partnership is specifically designed to help aboriginal Canadians receive skills and employment training, and that's primarily been here in BC. The government says it will add C$105 million over five years to the current budget of C$85 million over six years (including the current fiscal year that's just ending). And it will plug C$35 million of that additional money into the program in the first two years. The 2010 Vancouver ASEP Construction Careers Project is one of nine projects the program supports, but it's not clear from the budget documentation so far just how much of the additional money will be funneled through that component of the p;rogram. Organizations involved in this initiative include the First Nations Employment Society; the Aboriginal Community Career Employment Services Society; the Métis Provincial Council of British Columbia; the Tsawwassen First Nation; the Spo7ez Society -- which represents the tow of VANOC's host aboriginal tribes, the Squamish Nation and Lil'wat Nation, which have been involved through construction subsidiaries in building 2010 venues in the Whistler area; the BC Construction Association; the Vancouver Regional Construction Association; the Vancouver Port Authority; PCL Construction Ltd.; Houle Electric Co.; Lockerbie & Hole; Peter Keiwit & Sons; and the Province of British Columbia.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 19, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2204

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT BUDGET OFFERS TAX-RELIEF PACKAGE FOR 2010 WINTER GAMES

The Canadian government's 2007/2008 Budget, tabled today in Parliament, has provided a package of tax relief for people involved with the 2010 Winter Olympics, which the government says recognizes the "unique" nature of the Olympics and will make it easier for Canada to help host them.

According to Budget documents, the package has three components. First, which follows from pledges the Canadian government made during the Bid Phase of obtaining the Games, the Conservative government of prime minister Stephen Harper proposes to waive any non-resident withholding tax liability of the IOC and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

In 2006, the IOC and IPC began receiving payments, such as royalties, from the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) connected with the use of intellectual property, such as the Olympic and Paralympic logos. Under Canada’s tax system, these payments would normally be taxed as Canadian-source property income. The budget is proposing measures that will make the IOC and IPC payments tax-free if they were made after 2005 and before 2011.

The budget's tax measures, proposed by federal Finance minister Jim Flaherty, are also designed to ensure that non-resident athletes and others connected to the operations of the 2010 Games are not taxed as a direct result of their participation in the Games. For example, the documents say, "Canadian-source income might arise if a non-resident athlete were paid by a commercial sponsor based on his or her 2010 Games performance. Or a foreign journalist who filed a story from the 2010 Games might be considered to be employed in Canada."

The third part of the 2010 Games tax-relief package deals with imported goods. As expected, there will be tax changes that are designed to return all or a portion of the customs duties, excise taxes and Canada's value-added taxes, the GST/HST, on specific types of goods -- such as personal effects, gifts, awards, display goods and equipment -- that are imported into Canada in connection with the 2010 Games. In these cases, the taxes will be paid as usual, but they can be claimed back through various application methods, depending on the type of goods and charges involved.

BACKGROUND

Thee two groups of tax measures connected with the 2010 Games will be implemented through amendments to the Canadian Income Tax Act. Specifically, they will provide a non-resident withholding tax exemption for the IOC and the IPC, and an exemption from ordinary income tax for Canadian-source income earned in the context of the 2010 Games by these types following non-residents:

The IOC and the IPC and their members, officers, employees and contract workers;

Athletes representing countries other than Canada;

Officially registered support staff associated with teams from countries other than Canada, such as coaches, trainers;

People serving as games officials; and

Accredited foreign media organizations and their employees and contract workers.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 19, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |General| #2203

E-COMMERCE PROFESSOR CONCERNED ABOUT PROPOSED LAW TO PROTECT OLYMPIC TRADE MARKS

Michael Geist, the Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, says the Canadian government's proposed legislation, the Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act, "is better characterized as the Olympic Corporate Sponsor Protection Act, since its primary purpose is to protect the multi-million dollar investments of corporate sponsors such as Bell, Rona, and the Royal Bank of Canada."

The government introduced the legislation earlier this month, which had been expected for about a year, as part of its obligations under agreements it pledged to the International Olympic Committee and the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) during the Bid Phase of acquiring the 2010 Winter Games. The law is designed to give VANOC tools to deal with ambush marketing, and is similar to laws approved by governments, such as Australia, for the 2000 Summer Games. The British Parliament has already approved a stiffer, more wide-ranging law for the 2012 Summer Olympics.

As Geist says about the Canadian law, "The bill raises fundamental concerns about legislative fairness. Special-interest legislation, particularly legislation blatantly designed to protect a select group of corporate interests at the expense of free speech, should have no place in a government focused on trust and accountability."

Geist notes that the bill guards against ambush marketing in two ways. It grants broad protection to a wide range of Olympic marks including the word Olympics, the Olympic five-ring symbol, and the Olympic slogan "Higher, Faster, Stronger." The bill also lists about 20 expressions that, when used together, also garner protection. They include generic words such as "games", "2010", "medals", "gold", "silver", "bronze", "Vancouver" and "winter". It contains an exceptions clause that designed to allow criticism, publication or news reports relating to the Olympic Games, so it would not be challenged on the constitutional issue of freedom of speech. Geist, says, "The exception needs tinkering, however, since its narrow drafting potentially excludes parodies of the Olympics and non-conventional news reporting from bloggers or podcasters."

VANOC has said the law will be applied in a "disciplined, sensitive, fair and transparent manner," but Geist says "the experience in other countries suggests that the legislation will create a chill for artists, bloggers, and social commentators who fear that their legitimate expression may lead to a date in court."

Geist also notes that the bill gives VANOC the power to get an injunction to stop the distribution of goods that might violate the law. "This provision," he says, "remarkably eliminates the traditional requirement to demonstrate irreparable harm in order to obtain an injunction. Canadian courts have set a high threshold for irreparable harm, typically requiring evidence that monetary damages alone will not fully compensate the injured party. In the case of ambush marketing, it is likely that VANOC would rarely meet that standard since the opposite is true - the damage likely could be quantified and appropriately compensated."

RESOURCES

Michael Geist:

E-mail: <mgeist@uottawa.ca

Blog: www.michaelgeist.ca

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 19, 2007

Friday, March 16, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2202

RICHNOND CITY WORKING ON PLANS TO BE HEAVILY INVOLVED IN THE LEAD-UP AND DELIVERY OF EVENTS AROUND THE 2010 GAMES

The City of Richmond has begun work on a major report designed to help its city council decide how much it wants the community to be involved in the lead-up to and celebration of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

George Duncan, the City's Chief Administrative Officer, reports that the City has already approved a venue agreement with the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC), which talks about it City's delivery of the sports complex that will house VANOC's long-track speedskating oval, and the issues around its use before and during the Games.

But he notes that Richmond is also officially recognized as a Venue City, and that means it will have a direct role "in delivering the 2010 Games in partnership with VANOC, Vancouver, and Whistler." And, he reports, Richmond now has observer status on VANOC's 20-member Board of Directors, full membership on VANOC's Partners Senior Management Committee, and a seat on the 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games Operating Trust Board, which determines funding for some of VANOC's venues after the Games.

He also says that Richmond expects to sign a 2010 Games Operating Agreement with VANOC, and sign "other various multi-party agreements covering various aspects of the delivery of the Games event." These, he says, will "document the level of involvement and overall extent to which Richmond will serve as a host through three key periods - the pre-Games lead up, the Games period, the Post-Games period."

Duncan indicates the Major Events Plan, on which staff are now working, is to help council understand the "City's overall capacity to vision, plan and deliver complementary events during the pre-Games lead up and for the main event, and to help Council determine its preference regarding the overall level of Richmond's participation during the main event in February 2010."

He notes that the three-year-out ceremonies held last month in Richmond, Vancouver and another Greater Vancouver suburb, Surrey, show that planning and execution are important. "Success is never a certainty; they highlighted the importance of opportunities to rehearse for 2010. Richmond's event attracted 15,000 participants and was extremely successful. Vancouver's, however, which was held in a venue having a spectator capacity of approximately 15,000 to 18,000 and is reported to have attracted only approximately 1,000 people. Surrey's event also attracted only a small number of participants from the community." (Whistler also held a similar event, but it was part of a month-long winter festival.)

Duncan says what Council decides will have a considerable impact on Richmond, including whether it does nothing. As he puts it, "The breadth of scope of the hosting role the City will play will likely influence the level of tourism, economic impact and the overall community benefit that the City will derive from the 2010 Games. It will also dictate the extent of the role that VANOC will play in managing the event, and its impact on our community during both pre-Games test events and during the 2010 Games, because it is clear the Games Organizing Committee will have to fill any leadership void and management role it feels the City has not adequately addressed."

As he sees it, councillors essentially have two choices: They can get fully involved and control what happens over the next three years, or they can stand back and let VANOC do it. It's clear he prefers the first option. "The alternative," he says, "would have the City adopt a passive role and defer to VANOC to take the lead role on transportation, traffic and the overall logistics of the Games operations."

Here's what he feels Richmond has to do:

Attract spectators and other visitors beyond those who will come to Richmond specifically to

attend long-track speed skating competitions;

Provide activities "that will entice" long-track speed skating spectators and other visitors to

dedicate time to explore Richmond before and after competitions in the Oval;

Promote and preview Richmond to potential 2010 visitors through a series of special community events to be held during the lead up to the Games, ideally starting with the official opening of the Oval in August, 2008;

Build community volunteer experience and capacity to support special events;

Host a series of major events, after the close of the 2010 Games, that will continue to promote Richmond and the oval;

Ensure Richmond businesses receive "the most positive economic impact possible" from the Games, that they are positions to "receive full benefit" from the Games being held in Richmond.

The Major Events Plan, he suggests, should ensure there's good accounting standards established to ensure costs and benefits are properly reported, and that staff should start talking with Tourism Richmond about what it might do "within the City's overall strategy and investment in leveraging the 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games to attract tourism and investment to Richmond prior to, during, and beyond 2010."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 16, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2201

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

OTP-2010 HIRES LEFEBRE TO SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM

Own the Podium 2010 has hired Daniel Lefebvre as High Performance Advisor, part of its expanding senior-management team. Lefebvre will report directly to OTP's CEO Dr. Roger Jackson. Lefebvre is responsible for providing technical help to a specific group of winter sports. Lefebvre comes from the Quebec sport system and is fluent in both French and English. He was National Team coach of Biathlon Canada, taking junior athletes to seven international medals, including Canada's first junior World Champion. "I am very committed to seeing Canada succeed on the world stage, and in particular at the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in 2010," said Lefebvre. "Own the Podium 2010 is being recognized around the winter sport world as a unique and model program... I look forward to assisting the winter sports so that their athletes achieve extraordinary success at the 2010 Games." Own the Podium 2010 is a technical sport initiative, based in Calgary, designed to help Canada become the number one nation in terms of medals won at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver and Whistler, and to place the country in the top three at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. It provides additional resources and high performance programming to Canadian athletes, coaches and support personnel. Half of its C$110 million in funding to 2010 comes from from the Government of Canada through its Sport Canada department, some is from the BC government. The rest is being raised by some of VANOC's sponsors: Bell Canada, General Motors of Canada, HBC, McDonald's, Petro-Canada, Rona and the RBC Financial Group. The Canadian Olympic Committee, Canadian Paralympic Committee, and VANOC also provide professional services and resources to the OTP.

CPC LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS TO MANAGE CANADIAN TEAM FOR 2010

The Canadian Paralympic Committee, working from its office at VANOC's headquarters in Vancouver, is looking for people to take on the jobs of Chef de Mission and Assistant Chef de Mission for the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. The job is the general leader of the Canadian Paralympic Team. These are both volunteer positions with responsibilities that are expected to start in May of this year, and going through to providing a final report in April, 2010. The Paralympic Games are scheduled to start March 12 of 2010. The call will close on Friday, April 20. They expect to be doing shortlisting and interviews in May. Once the Chef de Mission is chosen, they'll take part in the selection for the assistant. Even though they're volunteers, they have to be available full-time for the job, and there's a lot to it [See RESOURCES, below]. A document discussing the positions notes, "These positions impart a significant level of responsibility and will require a considerable commitment of time, energy and effort. The successful candidates are expected to provide overall leadership to the 2010 Canadian Paralympic Team Mission." The main responsibilities include: attending a one week Chef de Mission Seminar in Vancouver, which will likely take place in March 2009, as well as other site visits as required; taking part in regular conference calls and/or mission staff meetings; going to about a dozen weekend meetings, national events, training sessions and selection trials; and, attending a four-day mission staff orientation seminar in late 2009. The CPC says it will cover the traveling expenses to meetings, seminars and the Games, as well as accommodation and meal costs incurred on the job.

VANOC REPORTEDLY OFFERS HELP TO RIGHT TO PLAY ORGANIZATON

Vancouver Sun reporter Jeff Lee says VANOC's executive vice-president for Sport, Cathy Priestner, has offered some office space and potentially other assistance at VANOC's headquarters to the Right to Play organization. RTP is a Toronto-based, international aid agency that uses sport and play to benefit disadvantaged children. The offer, Lee reports, was made during a meeting earlier this week between Priestner and fellow Olympic speed-skating champion Johann Koss, who is RTP's president and CEO. Right To Play has been involved with the International Olympic Committe since 1994.

RESOURCES

The PDF file that describes the Paralympic Chef de Mission job:

tinyurl.com/3a794n

Right to Play

www.righttoplay.com

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 16, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #2200

IOC, BRAZIL REACH C$70 MILLION DEAL ON BROADCAST RIGHTS FOR 2010 AND 2012 OLYMPIC GAMES

The International Olympic Committee has awarded the broadcast rights for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games and the Summer Olympic Games in London 2012 to Rádio e Televisão Record S/A (TV Record) in Brazil for an estimated C$70 million.

An IOC spokesman says, "The agreement marks a significant revenue increase on the agreement negotiated for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and will include coverage of both the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the London 2012 Olympic Summer Games.

"About half of the amount will be retained by the IOC, while the other half will be split roughly two-thirds for London and one-third for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC). The IOC also keeps 5% of VANOC's share as a holdback, which is settled up at the end of the Games. However, the IOC and VANOC recently settled on a specific forumla for sharing broadcast and international sponsorship revenues, but is not expected to release that information until it reveals its business plan, later this year.

Morgan:News:2010 estimates the deal is worth roughly C$11.8 million to VANOC and, coupled with previous deals with the US, Canada, Europe, the Arab States and South Korea, brings VANOC's total broadcast earnings to roughly C$240 million. The holdback account is roughly C$13 million so far.

The two-game package deals the IOC auctions have held in the last few years has raised about 40% more than the previous set of Games, which included Torino in 2006 and the Beijing Summer Games in 2008. The IOC has says its new system of selling the rights -- to a single gatekeeper per territory who then sub-licences to traditional and new media -- is helping to boost revenues.

The IOC negotiated directly with TV Record and not through the Organización de Televisión Iberoamericana pool. That's the group that deals with Spanish and Portuguese-speaking countries, and which handled Brazilian broadcast negotiations for the Torino Winter Games.

TV Record, a privately owned, free-to-air channel in Brazil, will offer increased coverage of the Olympic Games across a number of TV channels. The organization has also acquired the rights to air the Games across all media platforms, including cable, satellite, internet and mobile telephones.

IOC President Jacques Rogge said "Free-to-air coverage is a very important principle for the IOC, as set out in our Olympic Charter. By reaching this important new agreement with TV Record, the IOC will ensure that as many people as possible are able to enjoy the Olympic Games and the Olympic experience in Brazil."

IOC Executive Board member Richard Carrión, who led the negotiations, added, "Brazil is a key market for the Olympic Movement in South America, and this agreement signifies an exciting new period both in exposure and revenue for the Olympic Movement as a whole."

Honorilton Gonçalves, CEO of Rede Record De Televisão, said "We are committed to providing exciting comprehensive coverage of both the Vancouver 2010 and London 2012 Games in Brazil across all platforms."

The IOC still has to negotiate deals in Japan, Italy, Africa, Australia and New Zealand and large parts of Asia.

RESOURCES

Eduardo Zebini, Director of Sport

Rádio e Televisão Record S/A

Telephone: +55(11) 2184 54 59

E-mail: ezebini@sp.rederecord.com.br>

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 16, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2199

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC CALLS FOR CONTRACTORS TO DO COLISEUM WORK

VANOC has begun asking general contractors to drop of their resumes by March 29 if they'd like to be shortlisted for a batch of work at the Pacific Coliseum venue, starting in May. The Coliseum will host figure skating and short-track speed skating competitions for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. The job should take until December, in part because the work will have to be done between events at the Coliseum, or while they are on, depending on the Coliseum's schedules. The work involves extensive renovations to the building's washroom facilities, change-room showers and concessions. It includes new plumbing, fixtures, tiling and counters. They'll also be installing new dehumidification units, new field-of-play lighting that will come with a steel catwalk system, and new improved viewing areas to accommodate people in wheelchairs. The construction of a new elevator to service all floors within the building has also been included. Once the window of opportunity closes, a VANOC panel that includes representatives from the Pacific National Exhibition, which owns the Coliseum, and the City of Vancouver, which supervises the PNE, will do the shortlisting, and then issue formal Requests for Proposals to them. There's some documentation contractors need to fill out to go with their resumes, and it can be picked up at VANOC's headquarters in east Vancouver, or downloaded from its website [see RESOURCES, below].

ALPINE CANADA FIRMLY IN FAVOUR OF SUPER G AT 2010

Over the last week or so, there's been some controversy in the skiing world over a suggestion that one of the sport events listed in the 2010 Olympics calendar, Super G, be removed from the list of things that the FIS, the international skiing federation, support worldwide. There's been no suggestion, at all, that it be removed from the 2010 Games. VANOC has made no comment about it, and the debate has been essentially confined to the federation's politics. And, for that matter, the federation itself hasn't decided the event be removed from its support. Eliminating the Super G was initially suggested by a special committee of the FIS Council as a way of reducing the clutter of the high-performance athlete calendar, and was discussed at the FIS Alpine Ski World Championships in Are, Sweden in February. There have been some suggestions it will be proposed to the International Ski Federation's Council in Slovenia in May. Well, Alpine Canada president Ken Read has now weighed in with the comment that he is "shocked and disappointed" with the concept. "Canada will host World Cup Super G events in 2007-08 at Whistler, in preparation for the alpine ski events of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and we are 100% committed to hosting world-class events. We have invested enormous time and resources into the development of the venue, safety, officials, volunteers," Read added. "We fully expect the Super G event to be run in February 2008 and in the Olympic Winter Games in 2010."

CANADIAN WINTER ATHLETES SECOND -- BUT IT'S A DISTANT SECOND

There are only a few days left to go in the World Cup winter sports season, and the Canadian Olympic Committee is pretty pleased with progress under the Own the Podium program, with which VANOC is involved. From the start of the season through last weekend's competitions, Canadian winter athletes ranked second overall in total World Cup medals with 132, but it's still a long way behind Germany, with 203 medals. Right behind Canada is the US with 131 and Austria with 110. South Korea rounds out the top five with 103 podium finishes. "Following our third-place finish at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Torino," says Chris Rudge, COC's CEO, "Canada's winter athletes have continued to raise the bar with respect to their performance on the international stage. Through the enhanced funding and technical support provided to Canada's winter athletes, we have seen significant improvement this year in alpine skiing and biathlon as well as continued progression from our long and short-track speed skating, bobsleigh, freestyle skiing, skeleton and snowboard athletes." The 2006-2007 winter World Cup season concludes on March 25.

BACKGROUND

Super G is unique in that it is conducted over one run, like Downhill, but racers are not permitted to train the course at full speed before the race. As in giant slalom and slalom, they are allowed only a one hour visual inspection of the course on the morning of the race. This distinction adds to the unpredictable nature of the event and requires ski racing abilities that are different from the other three disciplines.

RESOURCES

VANOC documentation -- it's a PDF file -- regarding the Coliseum project for contractors:

tinyurl.com/2gyawr

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 16, 2007

Thursday, March 15, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2198

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC BOARD MEETING SET FOR MAY

The next meeting of the VANOC Board of Directors is on May 16th.

ALL BUT TWO OF 2010'S SPORT DISCIPLINES CAN START TRAINING BY THIS WINTER

VANOC says venues for 13 of the 15 sport disciplines it will be hosting in 2010 are expected to be ready for training and competition by the end of this year. They include all of the Whistler venues, such as the Sliding Centre (bobsleigh, luge, skeleton); the Nordic Centre (biathlon, ski jump and cross country, Nordic combined) and the Alpine Centre (alpine skiing). They also include West Vancouver's Cypress Mountain (snowboard and freestyle); and General Motors Place (hockey) and Hastings Park (figure skating and short track), both in Vancouver. VANOC's venue-development spending for the three months ending January 31 were C$59.5 million and now total C$242 million since venue construction started. The capital budget is C$580 million.

VANCOUVER POLICE TO GET ARMOURED VEHICLE FOR 2010 PATROL

Vancouver's Georgia Straight newspaper is reporting that the Vancouver Police Foundation Board intends to purchase an armoured vehicle for the City's police force. The paper quoted Vancouver Chief Constable Jamie Graham as telling the Vancouver Police Board that it is part of preparations for the 2010 Olympics. "This is an extremely valuable tool," he is purported to have said. The vehicle -- said to weigh three tons, capable of carrying 10 officers and its armour to be proof against the type of bullets used in Vancouver and against small explosives, is expected to be used by the department's Emergency Response Team. It's reportedly the first police department in Canada to have such a vehicle. There was no word on cost, but the Foundation is a registered Canadian charity. The foundation's website says, "Awards are granted for projects that comply with the Foundation's charter and promote programs of research and education relating to law enforcement, encourage public participation in law enforcement, emphasize the role of the police in the community, and encourage community awareness of the problems of crime and crime prevention."

RESOURCES

A list of the executive and board of the Vancouver Police Foundation:

city.vancouver.bc.ca/police/vancouverPoliceFoundation/executive.htm

Here's the latest annual information return, for 2006, given to the Canada Revenue Agency for the VPF:

tinyurl.com/3bfrdj

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 15, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #2197

VANOC QUARTERLY REPORT--MORE PROFIT, HIGHER CONSTRUCTION COSTS

The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) released its latest quarterly report this morning, for the three months ending January 31. Here are the highlights:

REVENUE: VANOC recorded its second consecutive quarter with a small operational profit of C$6.8 million on revenues of C$35.2 million. Both figures are down quite a bit from the previous quarter due to an unusual pulse of revenue in the previous quarter. Almost all of the revenue during January 31 quarter, C$34.8 million, came from the marketing department, and almost all of it was cash from previously arranged sponsorship payments. VANOC now has 17 corporate sponsorships, with more in the pipeline that it expects to announce before April. It sold C$566,381 in licensed goods during the quarter, more than double the revenue from that source in the previous quarter, and its expecting the current quarter will be even rosier when it makes its next report in mid-June. That's because the seven additional licensees, which it appointed late last year, are already beginning to sell branded products with a lot more products expected to begin showing up in a lot more stores across Canada between now and the summer tourist season.

CAPITAL CONSTRUCTION: VANOC still expects to complete its venue construction program within its C$580 million capital budget, the funds for which are split 50/50 between the BC and Canadian governments and which are separated from VANOC's operational budget. All of the venues are under construction now, with many of them due to be completed by the end of this year, and almost all of them due to be finished in late 2008. However, VANOC has begun eating into its contingency of C$66 million. It currently projects it will need about C$10 million of that contingency, with the largest portions of it going to the Whistler Sliding Centre, which is now projected to cost almost C$105 million. It was originally budgeted at about half that cost, then revamped to C$99 million 18 months ago. As well, an extra C$3 million is expected to be needed by the Whistler Nordic Centre in the Callaghan Valley, which was originally budgeted at about C$100 million, and three months ago, it was forecast to cost C$115.7 million. It is now expected to cost C$119.7 million. All told, VANOC at the moment expects it will spend about C$11.5 million of its contingency by the time the venues are completed, but officials note that could still increase, depending on how final tendering goes. VANOC only accounts for the money that it has agreed to spend on various venues, not the actual cost of them when they are being built for others. For example, VANOC expects its contribution to the C$178 million budget of the Richmond sports complex that will house the speedskating oval will be capped at C$62 million, which the City of Richmond, which has other plans for the complex, is contributing the balance of the full cost.

VANOC does not expect to use the Agrodome, next to the Coliseum at Hastings Park, for competition. It's applied to the IOC to change its use from the bid book position to that of logistics to support the Coliseum, but has not yet received approval, as it means changes to the training and events it had scheduled there have to be approved by the international sports federations involved, and there is some resistance to doing that.

VANOC spent C$59.9 million on construction venues during the quarter, compared with C$46.8 million in the previous quarter. Just over C$34.3 million of that, however, involved advances to the University of British Columbia for construction of the ice hockey venues there. Spending was quite a bit reduced from previous quarters because of the seasonal winter lull. We report the status of each venue in a table under "BACKGROUND", below, and the table lists the kind of work that VANOC expects to do at each venue this construction year.

Government contributions to VANOC during the quarter totaled C$56.5 million, with C$36 million coming in from the BC government and C$20.5 million coming in from the Canadian government. The funds are added to the construction budget and VANOC has different arrangements with each government that account for the amounts of the cash flow. To date, the two governments have contributed C$246.4 million of the budgeted C$580 million for venue construction, with Canada ahead to the tune of C$129.4 million and BC at C$117 million at the moment (in earlier years, BC was ahead for various reasons). Management says it has not yet had discussions with the governments about whether it will get to keep any of the contingency that's left, if any, at the end of the construction program.

EXPENSES: VANOC registered a total of C$28.4 million on the operational expenses side of the ledger, compared with C$16.1 million in the previous quarter, but VANOC notes that about half of that amount involved paper losses on foreign-exchange contracts that it uses to protect its revenues, large parts of which will be flowing in over the next few years in US dollars, Swiss Francs and Euros from international sponsorships and broadcasting rights sales arranged by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Management expects the forex revenues and expenses, which will stay on paper until 2010, to net out to zero. The actual amount of the bills and such paid during the quarter totaled C$15.5 million, compared with C$18.3 million.

VANOC has met on time during the quarter its first of four annual previously contracted payments to the International Paralympic Committee for marketing rights. It is to pay a total of US$4 million under the agreement by 2010. The first payment totaled C$1.2 million (US$1 million).

The executive vice president of Service Operations and Ceremonies, Terry Wright, says that VANOC has arranged to lease a "distribution centre" in the Greater Vancouver suburb of Delta for two years out from the Games. We know that VANOC last fall felt it needed four specific centres, including a main distribution centre of 36,700 square metres (395,000 square feet), but we're not yet sure if this is the one mentioned as there wasn't time immediately for follow-up questions.

VANOC's had good liquidity as of the end of January, and management now "believes it has secured sufficient credit facilities to finance its operations" through to the end of the Games in 2010. It had cash and restricted cash (which relates to construction issues) on January 31 of C$23.6 million, and was able to pay down about C$6.3 million of its operating line of credit during the quarter. Last October, VANOC reorganized its lines of credit into one that covers operations and a second that deals with capital construction. The C$75 million operating line involves a number of instruments: prime rate loans, U.S. dollar base-rate loans, bankers’acceptances, Libor-based loans, letters of credit and letters of guarantee. The capital line totals C$20 million is similar. Both have to be fully paid out by March 31, 2010, unless VANOC gets its final payment from the IOC before that, in which case it has to pay out the lines when that arrives. VANOC is only into its credit lines, at the moment, by about C$2.7 million on the operational side, and by C$10.4 on its capital line. Both are costing it 10 basis points below prime, which was 6% on January 31.

STAFFING: VANOC's not as big as you think. As of the end of January, it had the equivalent of 303 full time employees, and had hired 21 of them during the quarter. Management says that almost all of its 53 line functions now have management in them (that function count is down from the last time we heard it, about eight months ago, from 61).

BACKGROUND

VENUE COMPLETION SCHEDULE:

Fall 2007: 6 of 15 venues expected to be complete

Spring 2008: 7 of 15 venues expected to be complete

Winter 2008: 13 of 15 venues expected to be complete

September 2009: All venues expected to be complete

VANOC VENUES THAT OTHERS ARE BUILDING (VANOC BUDGET TOTAL: C$179.5 MILLION):

UBC ice hockey arena (UBC Winter Sports Centre), by University of BC

-- Used for: Ice hockey; Paralympic sledge hockey

-- Current VANOC Contribution Budget: C$38.5 million

-- Work done: Practice rink building structure finished; Foundations for main arena constructed

-- Work to be done this year: Complete structure for main arena, complete both practice rinks

-- Completion expected: Summer 2008

Richmond Speed Skating Oval, by the City of Richmond

-- Used for: Long Track Speed Skating

-- Total Budget: C$178 million

-- Current VANOC Contribution Budget: C$63.1 million

-- Work done: Foundations; 91% of trade contracts awarded

-- Work to be done this year: Finish building structure and roof

-- Completion expected: October, 2008

Whistler Olympic and Paralympic Athletes Village, by Resort Municipality of Whistler

Whistler Athlete Centre

-- Current VANOC Contribution Budget: C$37.5 million

-- Work done: On Athlete Centre: Schematic design completed; Development Permit application was submitted this month; construction expected to start this summer; On Village: Design, site clearing; Site preparation work completed last November (ahead of schedule); Engineering design substantially completed for site servicing and road building this spring; Architectural design concepts for town homes developed;

-- Work to be done this year: Site servicing to start this spring; start of residential construction this fall;

Construction beginning on the Whistler Athlete Centre in July; decommissioning of adjacent municipal landfill complete this summer

-- Completion expected: Fall 2009

Vancouver Olympic and Paralympic Athletes Village, by the City of Vancouver

-- Current VANOC Contribution Budget: C$30.0 million

-- Work done: City of Vancouver site servicing, road building and waterfront restoration work is now 90% complete; Development Permit Applications accepted for three of eight parcels; construction of these parcels has started with foundation work; all development permits expected to be finalized by this summer; Heritage Salt Building foundation restoration work underway

-- Work to be done: This year: Developer's Olympic Village Master Plan is due by April 15; VANOC will be monitoring developer's construction schedule

-- Completion expected: Fall 2009

Training venues/other grants (Trout Lake, Killarney arenas), by the City of Vancouver and Parks Board

-- Used for: Short track speed skating and training

-- Total Budget:

-- Current VANOC Contribution Budget: C$10.4 million

-- Work done: Schematic design

-- Work to be done: Approval of design; Training venues construction to start late this year

-- Completion expected: late 2008

VANOC VENUES THAT VANOC IS BUILDING (VANOC BUDGET TOTAL: C$352 MILLION):

Hillcrest curling venue:

-- Used for: Curling; Paralympic wheelchair curling

-- Total Budget: C$38 Million

-- Work done: Design substantially complete; Utility diversion & site preparation; Construction Manager retained

-- Work to be done: Award all trade contracts, complete building shell this year

-- Completion expected: Fall 2008

Whistler Athlete Centre

-- Total Budget: C$16 million

-- Work to be done: Design, site prep. Construction to start in late 2008

-- Completion expected: Fall 2008

Whistler Sliding Centre

-- Used for: Bobsleigh; skeleton; luge

-- Total Budget: C$104.9 million

-- Work done: 10 of 23 track sections; All building foundations; Refrigeration building structure; BC Hydro connection

-- Work to be done this year: Complete the track, buildings and commission the project.

-- Completion expected: December 2007

Whistler Nordic competition venue

-- Used for: Ski jumping; Olympic and Paralympic cross-country skiing and biathlon

-- Total Budget: C$119.7 million

-- Work done: Biathlon course substantially complete; 70% of cross country course complete; Ski Jump landing area complete; Building foundations complete

-- Work to be done: Finish the venue, roads and sport buildings

-- Completion expected: Fall 2007

Cypress freestyle and snowboard venue

-- Used for: Freestyle skiing and snowboarding

-- Total Budget: C$15.8 million

-- Work done: Freestyle course-work; Upper half of PGS course; Snowmaking pipework installed on freestyle venue

-- Work to be done: Finish the snowboard venue and snowmaking system; Upgrade BC Hydro electrical feed

-- Completion expected: Fall 2007

Whistler alpine (Whistler Creekside)

-- Used for: Olympic and Paralympic alpine skiing

-- Total Budget: C$27.6 million

-- Work done: 90% of course work; High voltage power distribution substantially complete; 50% of snowmaking pipework installed; Main pump station commissioned

-- Work to be done: Complete snowmaking system; Complete course grading; Construct skier underpasses

-- Completion expected: Fall 2007

Hastings Park skating venue (Pacific Coliseum)

-- Used for: Figure skating; short-track speed skating

-- Total Budget: C$23.7 million

-- Work done: New seats installed; Ice slab enlarged to international size; Design complete

-- Work to be done: Install refrigeration plant; undertake renovations; Upgrade BC Hydro electrical feed

-- Completion expected: Fall 2007

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 15, 2007

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2196

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

LLOYDS BANKS ON BRITISH GAMES, BUT VANOC RECORD HOLDS

VANOC continues to hold the modern-day record for the largest single corporate sponsorship. The bank Lloyds TSB Group PLC today became the first Tier 1 sponsor of the 2012 Summer Olympics in a financial-services and ticket distribution deal worth about C$182 million to the London Olympic Organizing Committee. VANOC's largest sponsor is Bell Canada; it's telecommunications sponsorship was worth about C$200 million to VANOC when it was signed in 2005. As well as exclusive marketing rights for the London Games, the deal gives Lloyds exclusive rights to work with the British Olympic and Paralympic teams going to the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics and the ones going to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games.

SWEDES TO WEAR CHINESE CLOTHING DURING 2010 GAMES

Swedish Olympic Committee president Stefan Lindeberg says his country's Olympic and Paralympic teams going to the 2010 Winter Games will be wearing clothing designed and made by sportswear manufacturer Li Ning, the first time a Chinese brand has sponsored a foreign Olympic delegation. It's part of a four-year deal between the company and the Swedish organization that will also see the firm provide sportswear for the Beijing 2008 Summer Games and the London 2010 Summer Games. Swedish athletes will wearing Li Ning clothing and footwear during training, press conferences and medal ceremonies, but not technical equipment used during competition. The company is listed on the Hong Kong exchange.

RICHMOND STARTS TO FOCUS ON 2010 GAMES "EXPERIENCE"

Polls indicate that about 98% of British Columbians are aware that Vancouver and Whistler are hosting the 2010 Winter Games. An estimated 15,000 residents of Richmond turned out to celebrate the three-years-to-go anniversary of the Olympics, far more than Vancouver and Whistler events. And in many other Olympic host areas, it's a well-known pattern that residents' interest in hosting Olympic and Paralympic Games starts strong when their bid is approved, but they turn to other things until about a year before the Games begin, and start being interested again. But Richmond staff suggest more needs to be done on the communications front. The acting director of Richmond's Olympic Business Office suggests, "There are still many residents of Richmond that are not aware of the role that Richmond is playing in this event and, more importantly, the scope and quality of the Richmond Oval project. We will need to continue to build our communications program." Young reports that there are challenges to create opportunities for Richmond's citizens to "personally experience the Games." He expects the Olympic Torch Relay will provide that. "Community engagement is essential to the success of the Games experience," he notes. "Torino had difficulty in engaging the community and the country to participate in the Games experience because they started too late and there didn't seem to be a clear plan." He expects that options for a comprehensive planning process will be made public in Richmond later this year.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 14, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2195

RICHMOND SPEEDSKATING OVAL VENUE 91% TENDERED AND C$2.5 MILLION UNDER BUDGET

The sports complex that the City of Richmond is building to hold the 2010 speed skating oval venue is now 91% tendered, it's being built essentially on time and it's C$2.5 million under budget. And that's in addition to the contingency and owner's allowances that have been built into the C$178 million budget.

That's just part of the good news contained in reports this month about the project, written by the Acting Director of the Richmond Olympic Business Office, Gary Young, and the City's Chief Administrative Officer, George Duncan, as they reviewed the project 18 months from its opening, and 34 months from its use in the 2010 Olympic Games -- the halfway point since Richmond agreed to take on the project. The remaining tenders, expected to be issued in the next six months, primarily deal with interior work.

The proposed funding for the huge structure, expected to be one of the signature buildings for the 2010 Games and then turned into a major community-use sports complex afterwards, was assembled from a variety of sources, but Young says Richmond's political promise that the construction of the project would not end up on tax bills is expected to be kept. Here's the status of the money to cover the construction budget:

The sale of nearby lands for a housing complex to help pay for the C$178 million project, due to be completed in September, 2008, is still being negotiated, but talks have sufficiently progressed so that they now know the money the City needed from that source "significantly exceeds" the required C$43 million.

The C$30 million promised by the Canadian government is being forwarded quarterly based on construction progress, and will be paid in full by September, 2008. (The BC government provided a matching amount in one payment on March 31, 2005, which, because of interest, created C$2.5 million of "unanticipated benefit" to Richmond.)

Negotiations are continuing with various senior government officials and the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) over the amount of so-called "legacy funding" that will be provided to the venue to help it, and a couple of other specific VANOC venues, operate after the Games are completed. Richmond needed between C$35 million and C$55 million from that source. Young reports that on February 28, following months of talks, VANOC, Whistler and Richmond did a joint presentation to the Legacy Trust Board, which controls the funds. The specific amount Richmond will get will be released soon, but Young reports the "award exceeds the amount required to satisfy the approved financial plan." In addition, he expects Richmond will get the funds at the end of this calendar year, "as much as four years earlier" than expected. He suggests it may be possible to use some of the award given to Richmond to not only offset the operating cost of the complex, but "possibly contribute to the capital cost of some furnishings, fixtures and equipment."

The City agreed to put C$50 million from revenues expected from the operation of the casino in its jurisdiction toward the project. So far, C$15 million of that has been received, and the balance remains committed.

Still in the wind: The City hopes to receive C$10 million from the sale of naming rights for the complex. There's no word on the status of that as yet, however, Young reports the City rejected an "unsolicited offer" for the rights two years ago.

VANOC, through its capital budget program, provided an initial C$30 million towards the cost of the project, which was the amount it expected to spend to build a speedskating oval itself. It then added another C$2 million primarily to account for construction inflation from 2002 dollars to 2006 dollars, which is the year the sports complex's main budget, developed in 2004, was forecast. (Most of VANOC's own construction project budgets are based now on 2008 dollars.)

A potential revenue source that's not been factored into the calculations yet is revenue from parking underneath the complex. The original project cost of C$155 million, with parking adjacent to the building, but staff and council felt that land could be more valuable than the C$23 million to put the parking underground, so it changed the project's scope to incorporate that type of parking.

In other comments about the status of the project, Young reports that a subcommittee of Richmond's Olympic Business Advisory Committee is now working on how the building will be governed and managed once it's completed. That work is still not finished, but will be publicly debated once it is.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 14, 2007

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2194

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC BOARD APPROVES ENLARGED BUSINESS PLAN

VANOC's Board of Directors today approved the organization's business plan, with an operational budget that has risen from earlier estimates by VANOC CEO John Furlong at C$1.7 billion to, as VANOC chair Jack Poole says, "North of C$2 billion." The plan does not anticipate asking governments for additional funds. The expense will be mainly covered by sponsorships, broadcast revenues, ticket and souvenir sales. The amount does not include the C$580 million budget, contributed by taxpayers, to build the 2010 venues, as it's in a separate account. The business plan, which was earlier okayed by the International Olympic Committee and which Furlong says will be made public once it clears its approvals process, now has to be approved by working groups within the BC and federal governments. "It's a balanced budget with a healthy contingency," Furlong said after the meeting. "We feel very good about the plan. We feel optimistic they'll feel the same way."

VANOC QUARTERLY REPORT THURSDAY

VANOC's latest quarterly report on the status of its current business development will be made public Thursday morning.

NORDIC VENUE SNOW DAMAGE? MAYBE

There are conflicting reports about whether there was damage done to a building under construction at the Callaghan Valley venue, where VANOC is building its Nordic Centre for the 2010 Games. An single report to the Vancouver Province newspaper that the roof of the large building had partially collapsed under the weight of snow was not specifically confirmed by VANOC communications vice-president Rene Smith-Valade, who said instead, "We are at a pretty early stage of the review so what we know now is that the building has some structural stress on it. So we have put some safety measures in place so that anyone who might happen to go near it are well aware of the risk. We've been aware of and have been monitoring the situation since late last month and separate measures have been taken for both staff and equipment."

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 13, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2193

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

TSN SAYS DEAL REACHED IN 2010 MEN'S ICE HOCKEY PLAY

The TV network TSN is reporting today that a tentative deal has been reached over how the 2010 Olympic men's ice hockey tournament will be played. It's to take place, according to TSN's sources, over 13 days from Tuesday February 16 to Sunday February 28, 2010. NHL regular season games will be played on Saturday Feb. 13 and Sunday Feb. 14 with players traveling to Vancouver on either the Sunday or the Monday before the Games begins. All but two of the 30 games will be played at GM Place. One wild-card playoff game and one quarter-final playoff game will be played at the University of British Columbia's new VANOC rinks. There will be only 12 teams with 20 skaters and three goalies each. The Sports Network, which will be carrying broadcasts of the Games, says that immediately following the 2008 World Championships, the top nine hockey countries in the world, according to the IIHF's 2008 World Ranking, will be granted automatic entry into the Olympic games. The rest of the teams will have an opportunity to play against each other to get in to the remaining three slots. The bronze medal game will be played Saturday Feb. 27 with the gold/silver medal game on Sunday Feb. 28. The regular National Hockey League season would resume no later than the Tuesday following the Olympics, although players from Olympic teams would return to the season as they are eliminated. The deal still has to be approved by the International Ice Hockey Federation, the IOC and VANOC.

MORE PROTESTS DURING OLYMPIC EVENT

The folks who turned out to watch or take part in the Olympic flag-lighting ceremony last night on the grounds of Vancouver's City hall only comprised about a third of the number of people who were there. The rest, about evenly split, were about 100 uniformed Vancouver police and various security guards, and about 100 social-activist protesters. The protesters mostly yelled and screamed to drown out the ceremony and seemed to be fairly successful at it, although they weren't allowed near the podium. Two people were arrested. Earlier yesterday, during an apparent lapse in the security of the Olympic countdown clock in downtown Vancouver on the Art Gallery grounds, somebody was able to spray-paint "Free Betty" a couple of times on the clock and get away. The phrase refers to the name of a protester jailed for breaching a court order to stay away from protests involving construction of a replacement part of the Sea to Sky highway in West Vancouver. There appear to be two main camps of protesters. One group would rather see the money spent by governments for the Olympics spent on social housing for the poor, while another is a group of aboriginals who are angry at native bands that are working with the Olympics. There is also a smattering of people opposed to the Games for various environmental reasons.

ODD-BALL TENDER SERVES VANOC

Every once in a while, VANOC issues a snap, odd-ball request for quotes. This is one of those times. It's just issued an Invitation to Quote on some rack-mounted server computers. We're not talking a big server farm, here as you might expect from an organization that deals heavily in data exchange. We presume that kind of thing will be ordered later. No, the amount of equipment they want at the moment -- eight servers of various types -- would fit into a small closet. The equipment itself is a bit odd as well. Most of the specifications for the equipment is pretty much standard issue, except for the hard drives. They've asked for each server to have two small 2.5-inch 146-gigabyte drives that, preferably, rotate at 15,000 revolutions per minute. Make those drives a bit bigger, and a bit slower, at 10,000 RPM, and you'll find lots of companies that make them. Companies that have the specified equipment to hand have until Friday to get their quote in.

RESOURCES

Here's the ITQ document for the servers:

tinyurl.com/2gkmsw

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 13, 2007

Monday, March 12, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2192

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC'S C$1.7 BILLION BUDGET TO GO TO BOARD TOMORROW

VANOC's Board of Directors is expected to be asked at its regular meeting tomorrow whether to approve the organization's first public business plan. VANOC management and staff have been working on the plan's construction in earnest since last summer, although it tendered a plan deemed too insubstantial to be released in early 2005 to the BC and federal governments, as it promised it would several years earlier. The current plan, expected to total about C$1.7 billion, primarily involves the operational side of the Olympic Games, and most of that money is expected to be raised by the operations of VANOC and the IOC, through broadcast auctions, sponsorship funding, ticket sales and souvenir retailing.

COC TO STRENGTHEN VANCOUVER OFFICE AND 2010 LINKS

The Canadian Olympic Committee is expected to strengthen its Vancouver office in a month or two with the appointment of a new manager of Education and Community Relations, whose job, in part, will be to work with VANOC. The new job reports to the COC's direct or Athlete and Community Relations, who is based in Ottawa. The new job is expected to be responsible for strategic planning, personnel and program management for the COC's Education and Youth Outreach programs as well as for Community Relations. The job is also expected to do quite a bit of liaison work with the COC's key stakeholders on the west coast as the 2010 Games near. The education and youth outreach plan includes the Olympic School Program, Olympic Academies and Adopt an Athlete programs. The office will also be working closely with VANOC on the development of a 2010 Olympic Education Program. The job's work includes: program design, implementation and evaluation as well as working with corporate sponsors.

VANOC ASKS BC TO PREVENT SPRING BREAK DURING PARALYMPICS

The Vancouver Province newspaper, in a longish article about the 2010 Paralympics, quotes VANOC's Dena Coward, who is in charge of the organization's Paralympic preparations, as saying VANOC has requested the BC government not schedule the regular school spring break during the time the Paralympics will be underway in 2010. "That request was made as it will obviously help us with our [spectator] program," Coward is quoted as saying. The government has not yet made a decision about the 2010 closure schedule. The Paralympics are scheduled from March 12-21, 2010. This year, the spring break closure for provincial schools is scheduled for a week from March 19 to the 23.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 12, 2007

Friday, March 09, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2191

Here are three more moguls we ran into today:

MILITANT ABORIGINAL GROUP CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY FOR STEALING OLYMPIC FLAG

A group calling itself the Native Warrior Society has claimed responsibility for stealing the copy of the large Olympic flag that was flying on the grounds of Vancouver City Hall. Police acquired a photo of three men wearing balaclava-type masks, standing with arms raised in a salute in front of what appears to be the stolen flag, while standing behind a Warrior flag. A letter accompanying the photo reads, "We stand in solidarity with all those fighting against the destruction caused by the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. No Olympics on stolen native land!" The letter also said the act of stealing the flag was to honour a Squamish aboriginal woman, Harriet Nahanee, who died on February 24 of lung cancer, which was not previously diagnosed, after serving nine days in a BC jail for contempt of court. She had ignored an injunction prohibited protesters from interfering with a Sea to Sky Highway route through Eagleridge Bluffs in West Vancouver. The BC government is making a large number of improvements to the highway before the traffic expected to be generated by the 2010 Games and other uses occurs. It included construction a new portion of the highway through the Bluffs area, while opponents preferred a tunnel be built instead. The project is under the control of the BC government, not VANOC.

FLAG LIGHTING CEREMONY SET FOR MONDAY EVENING WITH REPLACEMENT FLAG

The lighting ceremony for the Olympic and Paralympic flags at City Hall -- a new copy of the Olympic flag will be used -- is scheduled for Monday evening at 6 pm, with various government representatives and VANOC chairman Jack Poole in attendance. Protests are planned for it as well.

"WILD AT ART" FESTIVAL PLANNED FOR SQUAMISH DURING 2010 GAMES

"Wild At Art" co-ordinator Carolyn Grass says the organizational committee for the Squamish-based cultural event hopes to it coincide with the 2010 Winter Games. The four-year-old organization has just finished its latest 10-day run of songs, music, dance, art -- plus a fashion show as well as a community barbecue -- and considers it another success. Plans are to start shortly for planning the next three festivals. She told the local newspaper, “We intend to have a 17-day festival to run the full length of the Olympics,” said Grass. “We’re tossing around all sorts of ideas.” Grass is one of a core group of five people organizing the event; she's responsible for advertising, some performances, and a sponsorship drive. This year CTV, which is the host broadcaster for the 2010 Winter Games, was involved, and which Grass says was instrumental in increasing crowds.

RESOURCES

You can see a copy of the flag photo found by police by clicking here:

www.kersplebedeb.com/blog/olympic_flag.jpg

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 9, 2007

Thursday, March 08, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |VANOC| #2190

VANOC OPENS CARDS-AND-POSTERS CATEGORY FOR LICENSING

The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) has opened up another category of licensing -- calendars, posters, postcards and greeting cards branded with Olympic logos and slogans -- and is asking for companies interested in making and distributing them to send it their resumes by March 26.

VANOC says it will shortlist the firms to about 10 from the results of the expression of interest, and provide them with more details for a specific proposal, then award a contract based on the best proposal. VANOC will ask for companies to suggest upfront fees and royalty concepts during the proposal stage, as well as request promises to help fight off ambush marketing.

Besides telling to wholesale and retail, the eventual award is also expected to give the winner preferential treatment when it comes to sponsors and specialty groups connected with VANOC and the Olympics who want to order such items in bulk for their own marketing and gift purposes. The deal will specifically not include marks connected with the 2010 Olympic or Paralympic Torch Runs, nor Canadian Olympic Committee branding, both of which have separate sponsor and licensing operations.

VANOC has incorporated significant details about its social goals -- sustainability, aboriginal inclusion, and preferring operations for inner-city residents -- into the EOI. It also wants an economic value to be added to the process, which it defines as creating "sustainable economic opportunities by integrating local social and environmental enterprises with traditional businesses."

It is also specifically barring some types of firms from becoming involved in the EOI process. They include, "general merchandise department stores... [nor] any specialty retailer which has previously held licensing rights to produce apparel, team uniforms and merchandise bearing COC marks; [nor] sporting goods retail stores or general merchandise retail stores carrying a similarly wide number and variety of product lines..." That's because such firms would intrude on the space staked out by VANOC's retailing sponsor, HBC.

VANOC has left itself the option of awarding portions of the arrangement to different firms, depending on their strengths during the proposal stage. The deal is expected to be good until December 31, 2010, when other similar licenses expire.

VANOC also expects to be issuing other expressions of interest later this year, for such categories as confectionaries and similar consumables, household goods, office-and-school supplies and sporting equipment.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 9, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2189

Here are three more moguls we ran into today:

VANOC TEAM TO OBSERVE PARALYMPIC EVENTS AT MT. WASHINGTON

A spokesman for the organizing group that's using Mount Washington's ski resort in central Vancouver Island near Comox is expecting an eight-member team from VANOC to observe this weekend's Paralympic biathlon and cross-country skiing World Cup meeting. John Aalberg, VANOC's Nordic manager; Rob Bernhardt, Chief of Competition and Dena Coward, VANOC's director of Paralympic Games are among those expected to watch how the TimberWest 2007 International Paralympic Committee Biathlon and Cross Country Skiing World Cup Finals take place. About 80 athletes are expected to compete in teams that include countries such as Russia, Norway, China and Finland as well as Canada. "The new stadium on Mount Washington is well set-up for spectators to experience the finals up close," said McLaughlin, "These are the same athletes who competed at the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics and will be honing their skills for 2010. It will be very exciting." The events take place from Saturday to next Wednesday.

VANOC SPONSOR THE BAY TO GET MARKETING FACELIFT

VANOC retailing sponsor, HBC, has hired a new advertising agency, John St. of Toronto, as the agency of record for its flagship The Hudson Bay department stores, which also sell 2010 Olympic clothing and memorabilia. HBC wants to reposition the Bay stores across Canada, and the new agency has been ordered to start work immediately "on a fresh campaign for the Bay this coming summer." An HBC spokesman says the campaign will include various components, such as advertising and in-store events, and that the agency will be responsible for developing all seasonal campaigns in print, TV and radio for the Bay. Patrick Dickinson, the General Manager of HBC Marketing, says, "We believe their retail experience, coupled with high-quality design and interactive work, will help to move the dial on the Bay's image, and help make it top of mind with Canadians who want stylish brands for their homes and closets." HBC, Canada's oldest company, was sold to an American firm owned by one of its key shareholders last year.

2010-RELATED PROPOSED SMOKING CHANGES MAY PUFF AWAY

Whistler municipality and City of Vancouver have been quietly working on new smoking regulations as part of their partnership to host the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympics. However, yesterday, the BC government tabled legislation that significantly reduced the areas where smoking is allowed in the province, so now the city officials plan to discuss whether to proceed with their bylaw proposals in light of the provincial legislation. The BC law has not yet been approved by the legislature, nor brought into force. BC government officials say there is still quite a bit of regulatory work to be done before it can be enacted, once it's approved.

RESOURCES

John St.'s website:

www.johnst.com

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 8, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2188

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

VANOC BOARD CONFIRMS SKI CROSS, BUT STILL WORKING ON WHISTLER ACCOMMODATION

VANOC's Board of Directors has confirmed it will accept the IOC's request to include ski cross in the list of events in the 2010 Winter Games. The Board's decision was the last in a series of decisions that led to including the popular event. The news ski cross was officially accepted by VANOC was given to the IOC’s Coordination Commission during its visit to Vancouver this week. Although the approval tends to be a formatility, the Board has to deal with the various revenues and expenses that flow from such a decision, including some venue modifications and some logistics. Also approved were a format change to skeleton: athletes are expected to double their competition runs from two to four, and a minor format change to speed skating pursuit that will be related to the qualifying procedures during the Games was also approved by the Board. VANOC has also confirmed it now has about 80% of the media accommodation necessary in the Whistler area. Terry Wright, VANOC's executive vice president of sErvice Operations & Ceremonies reports. "We have secured the vast majority of the rooms we need and are well on our way to meeting and exceeding our accommodation goal. It's been highly encouraging to participate in the collaboration that has taken place between VANOC and the Whistler Tourism sector, particularly the resort's leading property managers." VANOC is expected to provide more information on planning in its next quarterly financial report later this month.

KEY VANCOUVER OLYMPIC VILLAGE BUILDING CONTINUES TO GROW

Vancouver City staff are expected to ask City council Tuesday for permission to allow a major building on the western waterfront corner of the 2010 Olympic Village, known as Parcel 4, to rise another four stories, bringing its total height to 12 stories. That would be triple the height originally envisioned by early concepts of the building. That four-storey height, however, was conceived well before a lot of reality, in the form of economics, politics, village design requirements and other factors got involved in dealing with what had to go into the Village's eight-block area. The complex -- located at 1598 Columbia Street and designed by Nick Milkovich Architects for the developer, Millennium False Creek -- will look like two buildings surrounding a courtyard that looks out onto False Creek and the new seawall. One high-rise will be seven stories, while the western one, right at the northwest edge of the Village, is the one proposed for 12 floors, part of the so-called bookend effect of the buildings along that edge. A staff report says that, "While the proposal to terminate the bookend with a 12-storey mass is a significant departure from the [Official Development Plan]... on balance, it is supported by staff because it results in a better massing for Parcel 4, and creates an iconic building befitting this site. It is also supported by the advice of the Urban Design Panel. However, staff emphasize that the proponents' commitment to a very high quality execution of the building design, in terms of the sculpting of the massing and the quality of materials and detailing, is critical to its acceptability and will be closely monitored...." The staff suggest that, to keep things moving on the tight construction timeline, council OK the height increase and get comments about it when it's presented as part of two public update presentation sessions on the entire Village. Those are scheduled for April 12 and 14.

2010 SUPPORT SERVICES NIPPING AT POLICE DOG HEELS

One of the facilities occupying a corner of the land that will be needed by VANOC for support services for the 2010 Olympic Village starting in 2009 is the Vancouver Police Department's dog-squad kennels, at which live about 20 dogs that train with police officers. There are also some adjacent offices involved. Although the area won't be needed for a while yet, Vancouver City staff say it's time to moved the kennels, which have been located next to the Cambie Bridge at 1st Avenue since 1969. Staff figures it will cost about C$3.4 million to shut down the dilapidated modular buildings and construct new, and better ones. They've been trying to move it for some years, but finding a location that can put up with the noise of a squad that's active around the clock has been the problem. Chernoff Thompson Architects has done the design work for a vacant city-owned site about a couple of kilometres to the east. City council will be asked next Tuesday to approve the concept.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 8, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2187

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

IPC WORKS WITH VANOC ON PARALYMPIC STATUS IN VANCOUVER

Although the focus of the IOC's Co-ordination Commission meetings with VANOC the last three days was the Olympic Games, there were also areas of interest to the International Paralympic Committee. The IPC representative on the Commission, Rita van Driel, says VANOC discussed several areas dealing with the Paralympic Games, whose three-years-to-go anniversary is on Monday. And, van Driel says, she and IPC CEO Xavier Gonzalez, who also attended some of the meetings in Vancouver, looked closely at VANOC's state of planning for those Games. The working group that on Paralympic-specific issues also heard regular mentions of Paralympic Games made throughout the overall presentations by VANOC. That, to van Driel, demonstrated VANOC's integrated approach of planning for both Games, even though they will be held separately. VANOC provided updates accommodation, marketing, the Paralympic budget, city activities as well as education and awareness programs. VANOC last year was forced to abandon its 'Compact Games' concept of holding all of the Paralympic events in Whistler when the community decided it would be too expensive to host the sledge-hockey and wheelchair curling competitions, which were transferred to Vancouver. The Paralympics now consists of two main venue clusters, according to van Driel, with the snow sports in Whistler and the ice sports in Vancouver. van Driel noted that, "While the IPC [Governing Council] has approved the new concept, we have made clear that it is critical to maintain the 'Compact Games' spirit and atmosphere, and to put the appropriate means in place. In order to achieve this, VANOC has committed to developing initiatives such as live sites, education programs and excellent client services, ensuring the connectivity between the two venue clusters." She also said that VANOC will need to provide "appropriate solutions" to deal with accommodation in Whistler as well as Paralympic ticketing to ensure that the stands will be filled with people, which give the Games their atmosphere. VANOC's next meeting with the co-ordination commission is scheduled for September.

REPORT INDICATES CHANGES TO 2010 HOCKEY FORMAT MAY COME BY MAY

Canada's The Sports Network (TSN) is reporting that a working group that includes VANOC hopes to finalize by May an updated format for the way the 2010 Winter Games would host the competition lead-up to the medal hockey games. At the Torino Winter Games last year, there were two groups of six teams that worked their way through preliminary games to get to the medal competitions but the National Hockey League, which loans players to national teams, became concerned about their players exhausting themselves on the resulting back-to-back games, which it felt led to an increased level of player injuries. TSN reports the proposed format involves three pools of four teams each. A round-robin would determine which team was the best of each pool and would provide a direct entry, or "bye", into the quarter-finals, but there are other aspects that are still being discussed that might augment the main concept. Representatives of the NHL, the NHL's Players Association and the International Ice Hockey Federation, as well as those from VANOC met this week in Vancouver to discuss the change, according to the report.

NO SIGN OF THE TIMES FOR VANOC HQ

While the IOC Commission members had no trouble finding their way between their hotel and VANOC headquarters in east Vancouver, a 25-minute drive which involved shuttle vans driven by volunteers, both them and you could walk right past the 2010 Campus, as its denizens call it, and not know it. VANOC moved into the pair of adjacent buildings, a seven-storey, modern-looking office tower next to a two-storey low-rise at 3585 Graveley about a year ago, but not even an IOC commissioner would spot a sign that says what the building represents. There are a few directional signs in VANOC's typeface style, and a little one that identifies VANOC's herb garden, and that's it. Not even a flagpole to run an identification idea up to see who salutes. VANOC's vice-president of Communication, Rene Smith-Valade, was asked what gives. Her reply: "We haven't been in here very long, and I suspect that at some point you'll see signage that more clearly identifies this building. We're just getting settled in, and some of our folks are still moving in, and we're still doing renovations." Since VANOC has about 400 employees at the moment, and expects to have about 1,200 by 2009, we expect some folks will still be moving in, and there will be renovations on the building for some time to come. What, specifically that has to do with signage, however, eludes us.

RESOURCES

A photo of VANOC's HQ is on this page. Click the photo to see a larger version:

tinyurl.com/3848wy

A satellite image of the buildings. The low-rise is the red-roofed structure with the three white stripes in the centre of the image, the tower is the grey-roofed building next to it.

tinyurl.com/2txtza

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 8, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2186

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

IOC COMMISSION WRAPS UP MEETING WITH VANOC

The IOC's commission that oversees the 2010 Olympics wrapped up a three-day, closed-door meeting with VANOC management and senior staff today in the first of two such sessions this year. From various reports, we've been able to determine they reviewed VANOC's progress in marketing and communications, legacy projects, media services, technology, venue construction, key parts of the draft operations budget including TV and sponsor revenue sharing and Olympic Village housing capacity. A large part of the meetings also looked at VANOC's services to its various client groups, such as the 80 national Olympic committees and their teams, the international and national sports federations, the media and the different groups of sponsors. The Commission visits a Games' host city once a year until four years from the Games, when the visits become semi-annual until the Games are held. The Commission's full meetings are supplemented by regular visits to VANOC by smaller IOC groups involving the Commission chairman, Rene Fasel, selected members of the Commission and members of the IOC administration.

QUEST, VANOC TALK ABOUT HOUSING

Quest University Canada, a not-for-profit private institution being built near Squamish, confirms it has been approached by VANOC to help house some of VANOC's Olympic family who will be arriving in late 2009 and early 2010 to take part in the support of the Games. Quest, which is due to open this September, hopes to have about 600 students on campus. A university spokesman said no decisions had been made, but declined to discuss the state of negotiations.

VANCOUVER MAGAZINE CREATES RIOT 2010 COUNTDOWN CLOCK

Only Magazine, a Vancouver-based alternative publication that was alleged by Vancouver police years ago to have encouraged rioting that took place in Vancouver after the city's National Hockey League team, the Canucks, lost the coveted Stanley Cup in the final game of the 1994 series, has begun a new countdown on its website. It has modified an image of the VANOC countdown clock, erected outside the Vancouver Art Gallery (VAG) earlier this year, and renamed it to suggest it's counting down the hours and days until riots at the 2010 Games begin. It's also created a small program for Apple computers, a type called a widget, that people can download and install to display the same thing at the press of a button. Here's their rationale, according to the publication's website: "To celebrate, and to make absolutely clear where the blame will rest should anything go wrong during the 2010 Winter Olympics, Only Magazine has officially named our Olympic Clock, the 2010 Riot Clock. This website should now be looked upon as a replacement for the Official Olympic Clock, that monolithic eyesore down on the lawn of the VAG. Ours is cheaper, it doesn't require a security guard to watch it all day and night (but you can sit and stare at it 24-7 if you like), and it is counting down to something much more exciting than the Winter Games." Only Magazine is published on the first and fifteenth of each month from September to May, and talks about independent music, film and art.

RESOURCES

A recent story we wrote about the composition of the IOC's 2010 Games commission:

'IOC's 2010 Commission visits as terms renewed for another year'

[Morgan:News:2010:Number:2179; Published on Friday, March 2, 2007]

Quest University's website:

www.questu.ca

Only Magazine's Riot 2010 Clock:

onlymagazine.ca/riot2010/

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 8, 2007

Friday, March 02, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2182

BC GOVERNMENT TO UPDATE ECONOMIC REASONS FOR HOSTING 2010 WINTER GAMES

The BC government is planning to conduct studies this summer to update the economic and political rationale for hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics.

The last time the government conducted such detailed studies was in 2002, as part of the development of the 2010 bid for the Games that was sent to the International Olympic Committee a year later.

The government -- in a wide range of speeches and comments by ministers and the premier, as well as in a range of news releases, backgrounders and pamphlets since -- has used excerpts from those studies when talking about the reasons for hosting the Games.

This year's proposed research and studies, coordinated by the BC government's 2010 Olympic Secretariat, are expected to include a detailed look at:

The direct and indirect impacts of the 2010 Winter Games

Steps taken by governments -- federal, provincial, regional and municipal -- "to maximize their benefits" for Canada and British Columbia "by tracking a variety of measures". The major measures it wants investigated:

-- The portion of the Gross Domestic Product that's directly and indirectly attributable to the 2010 Winter Games in British Columbia and Canada;

-- The number of full- and part-time jobs created that can be directly attributable to the 2010 Winter Games in British Columbia and Canada;

-- The amounts of tax revenue collected that can be directly attributed to direct or indirect 2010 Winter Games-related spending at the federal and provincial level;

-- The return on investment that governments can expect from their current investments in the 2010 Winter Games;

-- The growth in international exports, such as what new markets or products in both dollar value and volume, both commodity and non-commodity sectors in British Columbia and Canada, can be attributed to hosting the 2010 Games;

-- The amount of venture capital investment attracted to BC and to Canada as a consequence of the 2010 Winter Games;

-- The incremental growth in "international awareness" of Canada and British Columbia, as a result of the Games, as a place to do business, to live and to visit;

-- The number of new skilled and economic immigrants to British Columbia and Canada;

-- The growth in tourism in Canada and British Columbia by the volume of tourists, and average that they spent per day per person and the average number of hotel or motel room nights generated as a result of the Games

The projected impacts associated with Canada's hosting of the 2010 Winter Games on trade and investment opportunities for Canadian companies, on the resource industry, on tourism and retail, on manufacturing, and construction, as well as any other areas affected;

The social and cultural impacts associated with hosting the 2010 Winter Games on the homeless, on aboriginals, on the disabled as well as on Canadian arts and culture.

There have been several reviews since 2002 of the economic impact or status of the Games, notably by BC's Auditor General in 2003 and in 2006.

RESOURCES

Previous BC government economic reports on the 2010 Games:

The Economic Impact of the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, by InterVistaa Consulting, published in November 2002:

www.sbed.gov.bc.ca/2010Secretariat/2010/Econ_Impact_2010_Games_Update.pdf

Economic Impact of the 2010 Winter Games: Initial Estimates

http://www.sbed.gov.bc.ca/2010Secretariat/2010/index.htm>

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 2, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2181

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

"OLYMPIC" AND VARIATIONS ALLOWED UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS SAYS VANOC

You may be wondering what VANOC's legal department will do, if anything, under the ambush marketing law proposed for Parliament today about Canadian businesses that use some variation of the word "Olympic" in their name. A VANOC spokesman claims that "VANOC is sensitive to the fact... that they have done so long before January 1998." That date's important to VANOC, because it defines when it became widely known the Canadian Olympic Committee had awarded to Vancouver the right to bid on the 2010 Winter Games. VANOC says there's some grandfathering allowed by VANOC under specific conditions:

-- Apart from the use of the word "Olympic" or a similar protected term in its name or marks, the business is not otherwise creating an association with the Olympic Brand;

-- The use of the protected term by the business is in association with the same wares or services for which it used the name before January 1, 1998;

-- The business isn't directly competing with one of the VANOC or IOC Olympic Games sponsors; or

-- The business is not also using the Olympic Rings, the Olympic Torch or other symbols or expressions commonly associated with the Olympic Movement.

At the moment VANOC owns 137 words, slogans or trademark images, and has filed an application to own another one (dealing with the 2008 Summer Games). A number of these were previously owned by the Canadian Olympic Committee, and VANOC has refiled them under contracts with the Committee.

IT'S NOT NICE TO SAY NO TO A SENATE COMMITTEE

When the special Canadian Senate committee was holding hearings on November 14 and 15 in Vancouver into the state of VANOC's ability to provide services in Canada's two official languages, French and English, it met with a number of people from VANOC and other organizations, including Vancouver mayor Sam Sullivan, whose other language is Chinese, which it invited to discuss aspects of the issue with the Committee members. All had time in their lives to attend the hearings. One person it asked to see was Whistler mayor Ken Melamed, who holds his own in French, although it's not his first language, but he was otherwise engaged and the Committee simply expressed its official and polite disappointment about that. However, the Committee then went out of its way to note in its official report, tabled in the Senate yesterday and part of its official record, that representatives of the BC government "refused" -- that was the word Senate Committee chair Maria Chaput used in the report -- to meet with the Committee. They included representatives of the British Columbia 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Secretariat, which coordinates among provincial government departments the provincial government's participation in the 2010 Winter Games; the BC Francophone Affairs office, which provides liaison between the provincial government and BC's French-speaking community; Colin Hansen, the BC minister responsible for the BC government's aspects of the Olympics; and John van Dongen, the BC minister of State for Intergovernmental Relations, which also deals with some of the aspects. We're sure they all had things to do, as they're busy people. "The Committee is of the opinion that their evidence would have made it possible to present a more rounded picture of the situation," said the report. We couldn't be positive, but that line seemed pretty frosty.

SALLY ANN PONDERS 2010 AND HOMELESSNESS

Quote without comment: "Will Vancouver learn from its mistakes and be prepared for the housing issue that will come with its next hallmark event?... Though Vancouver's Mayor Sam Sullivan said he's committed to the issue... [I'm] skeptical of a homeless free Olympics. Let's hope for everyone's sake I'm wrong." -- Jeremy Watt, the Web Producer for The Salvation Army in Canada, today's entry on the official blog of the organization, after quoting various media reports fretting about the possibility that the number of homeless will rise as single-room occupancy hotels are spruced up in advance of the 2010 Games. The author worried the situation would be similar to that which preceded Vancouver's 1986 Exposition.

RESOURCES

The link to the Salvation Army's blog:

tinyurl.com/2krj7t

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 2, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2180

PARLIAMENT GETS FIRST LOOK AT NEW LAW TO PREVENT AMBUSH MARKETING AT 2010 GAMES

As expected, the Canadian government's Industry minister has introduced federal legislation in Parliament that is designed to shield the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) and its sponsors from ambush marketing.

The Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act, says minister Maxime Bernier, involves specialized intellectual property protection, with some time limitations, for Olympic and Paralympic words and symbols, particularly during the lead up and running of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games.

The legislation, according the minister, "will strengthen the exclusive rights of... VANOC over these words and symbols and improve its ability to negotiate sponsorship agreements with businesses interested in associating themselves with the 2010 Winter Games... By introducing this bill today, we are demonstrating our continued commitment to VANOC and its efforts to secure private-sector sponsorships, an important source of funding for the Games."

According to Bernier, "The security and stability brought about by these changes will reassure existing and potential sponsors without impacting on legitimate business practices, such as the use of a protected word in a business address or to explain the nature of a good or service. The bill also contains a "sunset" clause which will result in the automatic termination of some of its protections once the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games end and the need for sponsorship funding is no longer as pressing."

The general aim of the bill is to allow VANOC to react to ambush marketing and shut it down without resorting to traditional copyright protection legislation procedures, which can often take several years. Because the Olympics and Paralympics will all be finished in just over 1,000 days, the damage to sponsored marketing would be done and the Games finished if VANOC had to follow those procedures.

Other jurisdictions, including the US for the Salt Lake City Games in 2002 and Italy for the Torino Winter Games in 2006, made similar accommodations; the proposed Canadian law is similar to that approved Australia for the Sydney 2000 Summer Games and a similar law is already in place for the London 2012 Summer Games. But while it may have cut down on ambush marketing in those areas, it not only didn't eliminate it, but in some cases it has heightened public interest in the ambush marketing, making it all the more of a challenge for some firms for the next set of Games.

The federal minister who is in charge International Trade, as well as of other aspects of the Canadian government's responsibilities to the 2010 Games, David Emerson, was also on hand, saying, "Hosting the 2010 Winter Games will provide Canadian businesses, from coast to coast, with significant economic benefits. The sustained growth in numbers of foreign visitors, construction of Games-related sport and event venues, and the potential for increased sales at home and abroad are only a few examples of the positive impacts the Games will have on Canada's economy and our international reputation."

The legislation, similar to that approved by Parliament for the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics and the 1967 Montreal Summer Games, was ordained in the legal agreements signed by VANOC's predecessor during the Bid phase of the Games that involved the International Olympic Committee and the Canadian government.

The bill contains a "sunset" clause which will result in the automatic termination of some -- but not all -- of its protections once the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games end and the need for sponsorship funding is no longer as pressing.

A VANOC spokesman says the organization intends to provide "enhanced guidance "to the public on the proper use of Olympic and Paralympic marks and will post them on its website, "For example, VANOC is developing detailed guidelines that will be available to the public shortly. The proposed legislation will not be retroactive, and will therefore not apply to prior brand infringement cases.

VANOC has protected over the years about 300 words, phrases and slogans.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 2, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |IOC| #2179

IOC'S 2010 COMMISSION VISITS AS TERMS RENEWED FOR ANOTHER YEAR

The International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland, today renewed the terms of all 10 members of its Co-ordination Commission. It's the group that oversees the operations of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

The Commission schedules full meetings in Vancouver annually until two years before the Games, and then meets twice a year, though its executive come here at least quarterly and management of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) discuss aspects of the Games several times a month with IOC Commission staff.

The Commission's regularly scheduled visit for 2007 -- it's fourth since Vancouver and Whistler won the bid in 2003 -- occurs over three days next week in Vancouver starting Tuesday. The commission members will be receiving private briefings from VANOC staff this time on an overview of the current status of the Games, as well as progress reports on venue planning and construction. VANOC is also planning several working groups on topics that include legacy planning, sustainability, technology and sport services.

All of the Commission members have toured the Vancouver and Whistler venues in visits since 2003.

The chairman of the Commission reports to IOC president Jacques Rogge or his vice-presidents. The Commission is one of 23 such bodies that, collectively, help run the IOC's Games franchises.

Here are the members of the full 2010 Commission, their affiliation and the Commission's contact information:

CHAIRMAN

René Fasel - Switzerland (Member of the IOC, president of the International Ice Hockey Federation)

MEMBERS (In alphabetical order and the countries they're from)

Fraser Bullock - USA (IOC Member, past Organizing Committee representative)

Ottavio Cinquanta - Italy (IOC Member, International Federation representative)

Rita Van Driel - Netherlands (International Paralympic Committee representative)

Gian-Franco Kasper - Switzerland (IOC Member, International Ski Federation)

Gunilla Lindberg - Sweden (IOC representative and one of four vice-presidents of the IOC)

José Luis Marco - Argentina - (IOC Member, a customs and immigration consultant, he is an expert on skiing)

Le Prince d' Orange - Netherlands (IOC Member and IOC representative)

Tsunekazu Takeda - Japan (President, Japanese Olympic Committee, equestrian expert)

Pernilla Wiberg - Sweden (IOC Member, Olympic alpine ski champion, athletes' representative)

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Gilbert Felli - Switzerland (Executive Director of the Olympic Games for the IOC)

ADDRESS

Coordination Commission

XXI Olympic Winter Games, Vancouver 2010

Château de Vidy

1007 Lausanne

Switzerland

TELEPHONE: (41.21) 621 61 11

FAX: 41.21) 621 62 1

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 2, 2007

Thursday, March 01, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Moguls| #2178

Here are three moguls we ran into today:

MAIN TENDERS FOR VANCOUVER OLYMPIC VILLAGE TO BE OFFERED BY JULY

Millennium Southeast False Creek expects to tender many of the main construction contracts for the 2010 Olympic Village by July. The master architect for the project, Roger Bayley, told the Vancouver Regional Construction Association's monthly dinner last night that he hopes the 1,100-unit condominium development with market and non-market suites, will show contractors, architects and engineers throughout the city what can be accomplished in creating an environmentally sustainable neighbourhood. "One of my aspirations is to significantly influence the development industry in Vancouver relative to the acceptance of sustainable design and green-building techniques," Bayley said. "That's really the thrust that the whole design team has embraced, and Millennium has certainly made a significant contribution." There are three other architect teams working on the eight buildings, which have to be completed and turned over to VANOC on November 1, 2009. They include Arthur Erickson and Nick Milkovich, Stuart Lyon at GBL Architects Group and Walter Frankl. The city has been preparing the land for construction for more than a year.

VANOC TO LAUNCH "FIND YOUR PASSION IN SPORT" NATIONAL CAMPAIGN

VANOC says it will launch a new national campaign for the 2010 Winter Games, called "Find Your Passion in Sport." The launch will take place on Monday. Helena Guergis, Canada's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Sport will be involved, along with VANOC CEO John Furlong.

MOORE REPLACES LEE AS HEAD OF CBC SPORTS

Scott Moore, the former head of production for Rogers Sportsnet, has been named the executive director of CBC Sports. He succeeds Nancy Lee, who left the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in October to head up the Olympic Broadcast System for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Moore starts the job on Monday.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 1, 2007

Morgan:News:2010 |Government| #2177

SENATE COMMITTEE URGES VANOC AND ITS SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS TO FOCUS ON FRENCH

The Canadian Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages, after studying the methods used by the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games (VANOC) to take the country's official languages of English and French into consideration, says VANOC needs to do better on a number of fronts.

"Most of the partners have good intentions when it comes to promoting the official languages at this event," says the report of the 11-person committee, chaired by Maria Chaput. "A clear commitment has been made by the government of Canada and VANOC, and this bodes quite well for the official aspects of the Games' organization, such as the ceremonies, signage in the host cities, security services and emergency services."

Despite these findings, says the report, "there are still a number of challenges to ensuring the full and fair consideration of the two official languages at the 2010 Games. The Committee says that "concrete and immediate action must be taken to guarantee compliance:

With linguistic criteria in the selection of host cities;

In the provision of adequate funding for French-language organizations in setting up projects for the 2010 Games

In the representation of French-language communities in VANOC and in the cultural celebrations associated with the Games;

In broadcasting the Games to the entire English and French audience; and;

Regarding bilingual signage outside the host cities.

The report says, "The 2010 Games must set the standard of respect for the two official languages and this is why the Committee is committed to verify progress made by all partners over the next three years."

The committee was also critical of the International Olympic Committee, which internally uses French and English as working languages, saying that it was a "deplorable situation" that the IOC doesn't make the use of the two languages as a criteria for selecting cities to host Olympic Games. It was also critical of the International Paralympic Committee, which is headquartered in Germany, that French is not an official language in its movement.

It also felt that, although VANOC had reached a protocol agreement with two main organizations that support French language and culture in BC, it was confusing about which organization was to play specific roles in the development of French use connected to the Games. Not only that, but the French-Canadian CCAFCB was having trouble getting funding from the federal government, and that only 2010 Legacies Now, an organization funded primarily by the BC government, had provided it with operational funds. "Good intentions are not enough," says the report, blutly. "The Government of Canada must commit to providing suitable funding for the efforts and the needs of the Francophone organizations taking part in setting up and staging these Games, including the Francophone organizations in British Columbia."

The report notes that personel with French-language skills are also part of the issue. "VANOC appears to be on the right track in terms of respect for linguistic duality within its organization," says the report. "A language policy will be implemented in the near future. VANOC has taken steps to ensure the establishment of a bilingual work environment. To date, it has offered French courses to some 70 employees at all levels. VANOC has also developed a strategy to guarantee the recruitment of staff and volunteers who are able to learn the two official languages. Mobilizing enough staff members and volunteers who are able to provide services in both languages, and even in other languages, is an enormous challenge." But it add that it believes Francophones "must be involved in decision-making. VANOC must provide information as soon as possible about the strategies it plans to implement to ensure the representation of Francophone communities within the organization, in general, and at the decision-making level, in particular." The Committee wanted that information delivered to it, not by VANOC, but by the federal government, by this June. One of the methods proposed by the Committee would be to appoint a member representing French-language communities to the VANOC board of directors."

The Senate Committee wasn't too happy with the terms of the agreement between the International Olympic Committee and the consortium of firms that won the right to broadcast the 2010 Winter Games in Canada. As the contract between the IOC and the Bell Globemedia/Rogers Media consortium currently stands, notes the report "a number of Canadians will be unable to watch the Games in their own language." The report quoted the chief French observer for the Torino Winter Olympic Games, Lise Bissonnette, as saying, "The people who will be denied access to the Games coverage in their own language will mostly be Francophones who live outside Quebec, because there is limited cable access to French-language programs." Under the contract awarded to the Bell Globemedia/Rogers Media, the report concludes that Francophones outside Quebec who are not cable or satellite subscribers, and who depend on over-the-air broadcasts, will not have access to Games coverage in French under the terms of the contract.

The federal government and VANOC both concede, says the report, that more needs to be done. It quotes VANOC Communications vice-president Rene Smith-Valade, who is fluent in French and English, as saying, "We will try to work together with CTV and the other partners to see whether we can do something else. It is always a challenge for us, but you can rest assured that our purpose, our philosophy, is to share the Games with all Canadians across Canada. We do not have all the solutions or answers to our questions, but we will continue working on it." The report reveals there was an offer made by the consortium to Société Radio-Canada (SRC) that it distribute one of its French-language signals free of charge outside of Quebec. The SRC, however, turned down the offer almost immediately, saying it wanted control over what was broadcast on its airwaves. The Senate committee said the clock was ticking and that it wanted a solution to the issue by December 31. It also felt the amount of English and French-language broadcasting should be similar, that it found "disturbing" that there was more English hours devoted to the Games than French. The report also questions how French speakers will be able to watch the Games in French in their hotel rooms when cable services to the rooms, which are determined by hotel management, are virtually all in English.

The Committee applauded VANOC's initiative to sign a protocoal agreement with Quebec, which includes language issues, but wanted to know why a similar agreement hadn't been done with New Brunswick, Canada's only official bilingual province. VANOC said it was interested in such an agreement.

Signage, according to VANOC and Canadian Olympic Committee planning, will be available in both languages at VANOC venues, along with bilingual services for security, emergency and medical services. But what about between venues, asked the Committee, "It does not make sense that members of the public would be guaranteed access to bilingual signs and services at the Vancouver International Airport, the Vancouver train station and the competition venues, but be denied it when they travel between these locations."

The RCMP, which is in overall charge of security for the Games, told the Committee about plans for providing bilingual services at the Games, which involves deploying bilingual officers in addition to the officers already assigned to British Columbia, in order to ensure that more staff are able to provide services in the two languages. The committee worried that might a corresponding reduction in such service in other parts of the country.

The Committee was satisfied with VANOC's effort at providing communications, such as news releases and its website, in French. And, it noted, Vancouver mayor Sam Sullivan said that French content would be developed for the city's Web site before 2010.

The Committee was treading carefully, but it wants to have VANOC sponsors pay a lot more attention to French. The Committee quoted Francine Bolduc, VANOC's program director of Human Resources and Official Languages as saying last November, "The challenge will be to work with international companies, which do not necessarily have the two languages as a criterion." VANOC told the Committee it will not impose respect for language criteria on the international sponsors, but it does intend to make them aware of the issue. Some, but not all, of the national sponsors already provide bilingual services, notes the report. But it wanted VANOC to do more on this front as well. "VANOC must ensure that the private firms with which it does business understand and implement the official languages obligations that it has committed to respecting," says the report. "Resources, such as translation services, could be made available to businesses with insufficient abilities in this regard. At the very least, VANOC should provide information services to the sponsors and explain what is expected of them in terms of official languages."

The committee also had a look at how language issues affected sport participation at the Games. The report says "In terms of access to high-performance sport, the Committee noted during its public hearings that English and French did not always have the same status in the Canadian sport system. Despite all the hard work by Sport Canada and national sports organizations, in many areas there is still a lack of respect for linguistic duality in the Canadian sport system. All the witnesses agreed that much remains to be done to guarantee an equitable offer of services and support mechanisms for athletes in both official languages."

The report makes a number of recommendations. Here are the key ones:

That the federal government ensure that the Canadian Olympic Committee, in selecting Canadian cities to bid on hosting the Games, require an official commitment from applicant cities to meet official languages requirements.

That the federal government clarify the roles that VANOC, the Fondation canadienne pour le dialogue des cultures [Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue], the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique [The Federation of BC Francophones] and the Government of Quebec are to play in connection with the Games in order to promote linguistic duality and the representation of the various components of the Canadian Francophonie.

That the Department of Canadian Heritage recognize that there are Francophone organizations in British Columbia... and ensure that there is sufficient funding for their legitimate projects for the 2010 Games.

That the federal government, in cooperation with VANOC and the municipal governments, urge hotels in Vancouver and Whistler to offer their clients access to the signal from at least one of the three French private networks (TQS, RDS or RIS) during the Games.

Originally published to Morgan:News:2010:Gold subscribers on March 1, 2007

Morgan:News:2010:Bronze Edition

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