Open Illinois.org

Today’s Chicago Tribune ran an op-ed written by Allen Sanderson, my former economic professor. His specialty being the economics of sports, it only seems appropriate that he would have something to say about Chicago’s bid for the 2016 Games. He asks:

“But how about an unofficial bid book that lays out for local citizens what their potential financial exposures and “congestion exposures” truly are, including why Chicago2016.org doesn’t think we should lose any sleep over these concerns?”

Lawmakers have promised a substantial amount in case of revenue shortfall. Clearly, this amount would ultimately be coming from the taxpayers and it is only fair for them to know what the government is getting them into. Prof. Sanderson also mentions foregone revenue which will be the result of closing down various event facilities in preparation for the Olympics as well as  non-monetary factors such as traffic. And what happens afterwards? It is about time that Mayor Daley produces a copy of the bid book for Chicago residents and tries to impress his constituents as much as he did the visiting committee.