What does Boston need to do win over Olympic naysayers?
Boston Olympic organizing planners on Monday unveiled their $4.6 billion plan to bring the 2024 Summer Olympic Games to Boston, arguing that the Olympics would create thousands of jobs and housing units and generate millions of dollars in new tax revenue.
The revised bid, called "Bid 2.0," estimates the Olympics would generate about $4.8 billion in private revenue through broadcasting fees, ticket sales, corporate sponsorship, and other profit streams, which would leave about $210 million in contingency and surplus.
Boston 2014 Olympic bid chairman Steve Pagliuca Monday that he believes the estimated revenue is 鈥渁 conservative number.鈥�
Part of the plan includes building two new Boston neighborhoods at Widett Circle and Columbia Point.
Bid 2.0 offers more details than the first bid included in January, but opponents still say planners are not revealing enough.
鈥淲e were hoping for a lot more detail,鈥� Chris Dempsey, a co-chairman of , the chief opposition group, . He specifically talked about the lack of detail in the bid committee鈥檚 insurance plan聽after attending the Boston 2024 presentation.
The bid committee has set aside $128 million for insurance, which it says would protect taxpayers from risk, but there are no specifics on the insurance policy and the possible companies willing to insure the city.
Mr. Dempsey argues that the bid committee does not explain how they got to this number and they do not demonstrate that it is sufficient for insuring the city against overruns.
Opponents argue that the cost of hosting the 2024 Olympics will burden the taxpayers, who they say will not benefit from the event in return.
On Monday, the committee announced that taxpayers will only be responsible for , which the committee maintains should be done with or without the Olympics.
But those who are against the plan are not going to be convinced easily. They are demanding more explanation.
"They still have not explained why city of Boston taxpayers need to take the risk and sign a blank check," Dempsey . "Boston 2024's only real insurer is the taxpayers of Massachusetts."
He adds that the plan still holds a 鈥溾�� to the public.
The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) over bids from Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington in January.
According to monthly polls taken by聽, the support for the 2024 Olympics among Boston residents has fallen from 51 percent in January to 44 percent in February and to 36 percent in March.
The American competitor for the 2024 games must enter the international competition by Sept. 15.
If Bid 2.0 fails to get the green light, the USOC could either reconsider the bid from Los Angeles or just drop out of the 2024 Games.
