Will the mayor run the distance to 2016?
Will the mayor run the distance to 2016?
By Gary Washburn
Copyright © 2006
a Tribune staff reporter who covers City Hall
Published May 7, 2006
The person who must carry the Olympic torch for Chicago is a man who once said he wanted nothing to do with hosting the Games, has abandoned other big proposals and may not be around a year from now.
His name is Richard Daley.
What the future holds for Daley, Chicago's mayor since 1989 and one of its most powerful figures in history, is among the key factors that will determine whether the city ultimately bids to host the 2016 Summer Games--and whether it lands them.
Peter Ueberroth, chairman of the United States Olympic Committee, declined to pass judgment on Daley. But when assessing a city's bid, he said, his organization looks for "strong and knowledgeable" local officials.
Marc Ganis, the president of SportsCorp Ltd., a Chicago-based sports consulting firm, was less circumspect about Daley's role in a Chicago bid.
"Mayor Daley being in office is one of the strongest elements that a Chicago bid would have," he said. "It is vitally important to have a political leader perceived as strong [and] who can follow through on his commitments."
Daley's decision to study the feasibility of making an Olympic bid came as a surprise when it was disclosed last summer. The mayor previously had talked down Chicago's interest in hosting high-profile undertakings in general--and the Olympics, in particular.
Chicago hosted World Cup soccer matches in 1994 and the Democratic National Convention in 1996. But in the decade since, Daley has answered questions about similar events, including the Olympics, by saying that he wasn't interested because of the expense.
But people familiar with the Olympics issue say they have no doubt that Daley's interest in the 2016 Games is sincere and that he is determined to conduct all the research necessary to decide whether a bid makes sense for the city. Those observations were confirmed Friday when it was learned that Daley plans to travel to Beijing at the end of next week and meet with that city's Olympic planning committee.
The mayor has named a staffer to be his point person on the issue and has announced he will form an exploratory committee to do research. Daley is scheduled to meet Wednesday with Ueberroth and other top officers of the USOC.
Talking about a possible bid earlier this year, the mayor said that hosting the games could help reshape Chicago in much the same way two other major events did: the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 and the World's Fair of 1933.
Daley envisions the Olympics not only enhancing Chicago's image around the world but helping to pay for a long list of major infrastructure improvements, including new housing and an upgraded public transportation system.
The Olympics also could serve as the capstone of the ambitious building projects that Daley and the city have undertaken in recent years, including Millennium Park.
"I think there are visionary projects that the mayor probably is looking [at] long-term," said Gerald Roper, president of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce.
But Daley has also lost interest in big-ticket proposals in the past. At one time, the mayor supported casino gambling in the city, then opposed it, only to seek it again. He devoted huge amounts of time and effort to building a new Chicago airport at Lake Calumet in the early 1990s, only to pull the plug on it.
Perhaps the most important event between now and 2009, when the International Olympic Committee names a winning city, is next year's mayoral election. Daley has not yet announced whether he will seek a new term. But if he does, his re-election is not guaranteed.
The administration has been dogged by a federal corruption investigation involving hiring and promotions of city workers and City Hall contracting.
If the mayor does run, opponents could make the Olympics an issue. Already, U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.), one of several potential challengers, has raised the subject.
"I think whether we bring the Olympics to Chicago or build more schools is a debate we should have," Gutierrez declared earlier this year.
Does the effort for the 2016 Games die if Daley decides not to run or is defeated? Not necessarily. Some business leaders say that successors could carry out the project with sufficient money and grass-roots support.
But the Chamber of Commerce's Roper had a different view.
"Unless it has a very sustainable plan that is backed up by finances," he said, "I don't know whether anybody who would follow Rich Daley would be bold enough, brave enough to pick up the baton he would hand off."
----------
gwashburn@tribune.com
By Gary Washburn
Copyright © 2006
a Tribune staff reporter who covers City Hall
Published May 7, 2006
The person who must carry the Olympic torch for Chicago is a man who once said he wanted nothing to do with hosting the Games, has abandoned other big proposals and may not be around a year from now.
His name is Richard Daley.
What the future holds for Daley, Chicago's mayor since 1989 and one of its most powerful figures in history, is among the key factors that will determine whether the city ultimately bids to host the 2016 Summer Games--and whether it lands them.
Peter Ueberroth, chairman of the United States Olympic Committee, declined to pass judgment on Daley. But when assessing a city's bid, he said, his organization looks for "strong and knowledgeable" local officials.
Marc Ganis, the president of SportsCorp Ltd., a Chicago-based sports consulting firm, was less circumspect about Daley's role in a Chicago bid.
"Mayor Daley being in office is one of the strongest elements that a Chicago bid would have," he said. "It is vitally important to have a political leader perceived as strong [and] who can follow through on his commitments."
Daley's decision to study the feasibility of making an Olympic bid came as a surprise when it was disclosed last summer. The mayor previously had talked down Chicago's interest in hosting high-profile undertakings in general--and the Olympics, in particular.
Chicago hosted World Cup soccer matches in 1994 and the Democratic National Convention in 1996. But in the decade since, Daley has answered questions about similar events, including the Olympics, by saying that he wasn't interested because of the expense.
But people familiar with the Olympics issue say they have no doubt that Daley's interest in the 2016 Games is sincere and that he is determined to conduct all the research necessary to decide whether a bid makes sense for the city. Those observations were confirmed Friday when it was learned that Daley plans to travel to Beijing at the end of next week and meet with that city's Olympic planning committee.
The mayor has named a staffer to be his point person on the issue and has announced he will form an exploratory committee to do research. Daley is scheduled to meet Wednesday with Ueberroth and other top officers of the USOC.
Talking about a possible bid earlier this year, the mayor said that hosting the games could help reshape Chicago in much the same way two other major events did: the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 and the World's Fair of 1933.
Daley envisions the Olympics not only enhancing Chicago's image around the world but helping to pay for a long list of major infrastructure improvements, including new housing and an upgraded public transportation system.
The Olympics also could serve as the capstone of the ambitious building projects that Daley and the city have undertaken in recent years, including Millennium Park.
"I think there are visionary projects that the mayor probably is looking [at] long-term," said Gerald Roper, president of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce.
But Daley has also lost interest in big-ticket proposals in the past. At one time, the mayor supported casino gambling in the city, then opposed it, only to seek it again. He devoted huge amounts of time and effort to building a new Chicago airport at Lake Calumet in the early 1990s, only to pull the plug on it.
Perhaps the most important event between now and 2009, when the International Olympic Committee names a winning city, is next year's mayoral election. Daley has not yet announced whether he will seek a new term. But if he does, his re-election is not guaranteed.
The administration has been dogged by a federal corruption investigation involving hiring and promotions of city workers and City Hall contracting.
If the mayor does run, opponents could make the Olympics an issue. Already, U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.), one of several potential challengers, has raised the subject.
"I think whether we bring the Olympics to Chicago or build more schools is a debate we should have," Gutierrez declared earlier this year.
Does the effort for the 2016 Games die if Daley decides not to run or is defeated? Not necessarily. Some business leaders say that successors could carry out the project with sufficient money and grass-roots support.
But the Chamber of Commerce's Roper had a different view.
"Unless it has a very sustainable plan that is backed up by finances," he said, "I don't know whether anybody who would follow Rich Daley would be bold enough, brave enough to pick up the baton he would hand off."
----------
gwashburn@tribune.com
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