The group that is trying to bring the 2026 Commonwealth Games to Hamilton has released an economic and social impact study that says the event would pump between $300 million and $374 million into the regional economy.
The study, completed for Hamilton2026 Commonwealth Games Bid Corp. by PwC Canada, says the benefits that would flow into the region would include big gains in the job market and tourism industry.
Specifically, the report projects that between 14,000 and 16,000 jobs would be created as a result of the games, and it notes that previous host regions have seen a 33 per cent increase in tourism in the three years following the event.
PwC Canada’s 34-page report also notes that the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games led to 34 per cent increase in exports and foreign direct investment, which it credits to increased exposure of the area’s economic profile on the international stage.
Louis Frapporti, chair of Hamilton2026, says the PwC study adds to a “growing volume of evidence validating this initiative as a powerful tool in aid of regional recovery” following the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Quite apart from our affordable housing initiative,” he adds that “the value proposition around 2026 as a multi sector accelerator is undeniable.”
A second report, outlining the impacts of what organizers have said would be a dramatic increase in affordable housing, will be released in the near future.
When bid organizers last appeared before city council on Aug. 10, they proposed creating 3,000 units of affordable housing, which would first help house about 4,500 athletes before being turned over to the community following the Games.
City staff in Hamilton are expected to report back to councillors later this fall, after carrying out their own fact-finding study on the viability of the 2026 games.
City council had originally been told that the municipality would be responsible for up to 20 per cent of the $1.5-billion cost, but Frapporti has since said that the current plan for 2026 would be a “scaled-down” version of the original proposal.
He’s also indicated that private investment will further drive down the city’s costs.