Council voting unanimously to pursue an event on a scale that hasn’t been in the city for decades.
Staff will now go through the process of submitting a bid to host the 2024 Ontario Winter Games.
SIMILAR EVENTS HISTORY
Thunder Bay hosted both the Ontario Winter Games in 1974 and the 1981 Canada Summer Games
THE TIMELINE
“The bid document is due [January 8th 2021]. That would be followed by a site visit by Games Ontario staff in early February. The staff make a recommendation to [Lisa MacLeod, the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries], and it’s anticipated that the Minister will make the announcement in March or April of 2021 [as to who the winner is],” says Sport & Community Development Supervisor Paul Burke.
THE FUNDS
- $250,000 between the 2023 and 2024 operating budgets should the bid be successful
- Contribution of up to $50,000 of in-kind services and/or waived fees between the 2023 and 2024 operating budgets should the bid be successful
- Games will require an Operating Budget of approximately $2 million
- Provincial Government provides $900,00 hosting grant and $100,000 for Legacy/Contingency Fund
- The city may ask the province for an additional $250,000 or more to assist with travel costs
- The host municipality must cover any financial loss greater than $100,000
THE FACILITIES
Staff report that existing facilities appear to meet the standards set out by Games Ontario and Provincial Sport
Organizations. Therefore, new or renovated facilities and associated capital budget requests aren’t anticipated to be required.
GOVERNANCE
If successful, the planning and delivery of the event would be the responsibility of the City
BACK UP PLAN
Should the 2024 Ontario Winter Games bid be not successful, administration will look at the opportunity to bid for the 2024 Canada 55+ Summer Games.