Hamilton is no longer Canada’s “preferred candidate” for the 2030 Commonwealth Games, according to the organization trying to secure the national bid for the event.
In a letter to the committee trying to secure the bid for the city, Commonwealth Sport Canada (CSC) cited a failed effort in getting government support as the reason for the dismissal.
“To date those efforts, unfortunately, have not resulted in securing governments’ commitment, including the Government of Ontario who did not commit to specified requirements from Commonwealth Sport Canada by the deadline,” CSC president Claire Carver-Dias said in an email to Hamilton 2030 chair Lou Frapporti.
“As a result, the Hamilton 2030 … is no longer Canada’s ‘preferred candidate’ for the 2030 Commonwealth Games, effectively immediately.”
Local bid committee member PJ Mercanti, CEO of Carmen’s Group, admitted to 900 CHML’s Hamilton Today that the bid team is going to “cease operations” unless the province reconsiders.
At issue is the province not getting back to CSC in answer to their requirements for a submission at the end of the month.
“So Commonwealth Sport Canada had a specific list of requirements that they needed the province to provide, modest funding for an international date and other small technical items,” Mercanti explained.
“They presented a deadline of Feb. 13 that they required this information by, and unfortunately, that deadline had lapsed without communication from the province.”
Originally called “Hamilton 100,” the 2030 venture was to commemorate the first-ever British Empire Games hosted by Hamilton in 1930.
That proposed bid would pivot to a 2026 proposal when the international Commonwealth Games Federation suggested that bid had better odds of not being challenged by another international bid.
Signs of trouble securing Ontario support for 2026 became apparent in late 2020 when Flamborough-Glanbrook MPP Donny Skelly told Global News that hosting that year created a “conflict” and suggested it could endanger hosting soccer’s premier event, the FIFA World Cup, in Ontario.
In July 2020, FIFA announced it was looking at Ontario, specifically the Toronto area, as a site for multiple games during the 80-match 2026 World Cup event.
Reverting back to a 2030 bid in July 2022, organizers pitched a Hamilton games to local, provincial and federal politicians that would generate a $1.2 billion boost to regional GDP.
Mercanti say the financial ask would have been in the $350 million range with the funding model seeking 35 to 40 per cent of that from the provincial and federal governments.
Additional money would come from revenue generated by the games with the remaining balance picked up by municipalities.
“It would have created $ 400 million worth of games contracts for local businesses,” Mercanti said. “It would have created $300 million in new tax revenue for the governments and 16,000 new jobs.”
Mercanti said Hamilton 2030 had been “going back and forth” with the Ministry of Sport, Culture and Tourism over several months in an effort to align the bid with the federal and provincial government as well as First Nations.
However, he said some “last few items” needed from Ontario didn’t come through and forced CSC to look at other options.
“We learned a lot through this process, and we wish nothing but the best for CSC and the Commonwealth Games Federation,” said Mercanti.
“We’re fans of their theirs and what they stand for in delivering sport with a social impact and focus on legacies and community after the games.”
Ontario’s Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport and Hamilton-East-Stoney Creek MPP Neil Lumsden told Global News in an email that the province had been “working carefully” with the CSC and the Hamilton group to assess the “requirements, opportunities, risks and impacts of hosting the games.”
“As any request of close to half a billion dollars like this, requires careful examination” Lumsden said.
“To date, we still have not received key details that would outline the overall financial risk and municipal commitment to the project.”
Mayor Andrea Horwath said news of Hamilton no longer being the preferred bid was a “big disappointment” but doesn’t think it causes any kind of long standing problem for the city’s reputation going forward.
She said the potential infrastructure projects that could have been developed by hosting the games “would have been nice.”
“We have a lot of infrastructure needs, … we have other needs in our community, and these games are often a way to help us do that,” Horwath told 900 CHML’s Good Morning Hamilton.
“But we still have a plan going forward to deal with our our assets and to deal with our our needs.”