Apparently Adrian Dix is saying that, if elected, he will sell the newly renovated B.C. Place to save the taxpayer the substantial ongoing operating losses that will be incurred in future years. What are businesses paying nowadays for a white elephant?
Based on the Ontario government’s experience with Sky-dome, where the initial construction cost was in excess of $600 million and the final selling price to Rogers Communications was $25 million, he can expect pennies on the dollar. The loss was incurred when the decision was made to spend those tax dollars on this uneconomic project rather than allocate them to more needed projects such as hospital upgrades. I am afraid that the horse has left the barn, and the money spent on this Gordon Campbell legacy item cannot be recouped.
It seems that a trend is developing in B.C. where an incoming government will dispose of the former government’s white elephants at pennies on the dollar (remember the fast ferries). If future premiers would decide to park their egos at the door and listen to sound economic advice that they should be getting from their highly paid and trained staff, perhaps we could avoid such future boondoggles.
Claude Bergman
Penticton