City of Vancouver hands over athlete's village to Olympic officials

VANCOUVER, B.C. - Vancouver's financially troubled athlete's village, which has become a liability for the city and for public perception of the 2010 Winter Games, was officially handed over to Olympic organizers on Wednesday.

In 100 days, the $1-billion village will house the Games' athletes, but the waterfront development has been overshadowed by controversy as costs increased, post-Olympic condo sales stalled and the city had to step in with additional financing to save the project.

However, it was all smiles at the handover ceremony Wednesday morning at the waterfront development that featured aboriginal music, a youth choir and a giant gold novelty key.

"Of course there were challenges, and many of them from far off, but we've come through all that and now we're extremely proud of what we have here," Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson, who used anger over the village's financial woes to fuel his election campaign last fall, said after the event.

"I've always been very gung-ho on the project. We've had a very difficult financial piece that we've had to come through, and it's on good, solid footing right now."

Just how solid that footing remains won't be known until after the Games when the city tries to recoup its money through condo sales.

The original lender, Fortress Investment Inc., had stopped payment on the loan in the fall of 2008, prompting the city to initially lend the project $100 million.

News of the loan leaked out during the municipal election campaign, and Robertson used it to attack his rival and accuse the previous administration of mishandling the file and keeping the public in the dark.

Soon after, the city announced it would take over the project's financing, and earlier this year, secured $550 million worth of credit to fund its construction.

Vancouver hopes to make its money back after the village is converted to condos that will be sold after the Games.

Of the 1,100 units available, 737 will be available as condos, with the remaining used as affordable housing and rental properties.

Bob Rennie, a local realtor whose company is overseeing the sales, said 263 condos have so far been sold, and the rest will be put on the market after the Olympics, with prices expected to range from $450,000 to $10 million.

The sales are far fewer than officials had hoped would be sold by now, but Rennie said there are signs the market is recovering.

"The goal was we would keep releasing, and my advice last February was, let's just wait," he said in an interview.

"I think with the developers running to the sidelines and not a lot of product out there, our market has rapidly stabilized. So any of the erosion that took place was sure to come back."

More than 3,000 athletes will stay at the village during the Olympics and Paralympics next February and March.

The massive development will include stores, restaurants and retail space during the Games, and the finished condo development will also feature food, shopping and other services.

All of the buildings were designed with sustainability in mind, from energy-efficient construction to green roofs and stormwater collection for toilet flushing.

John Furlong, the CEO of the organizing committee, was full of praise for the village.

"The city has really put a flag down for the future here, and I think that's fantastic for the Games and more importantly, it's fantastic for the city," said Furlong.

The festive celebration to mark the village's handover came as the 100-day countdown began before the opening ceremonies on Feb. 12 in Vancouver.

That was marked in a very literal way in Washington, as Canada's new ambassador to the United States unveiled a large digital clock at the Canadian Embassy on Pennsylvania Avenue that will count the number of hours, minutes and seconds until the Winter Games begin.

"I want to say to our friends and neighbours around the embassy and to our American friends and to the world: We welcome you in 100 days to Vancouver-Whistler," Gary Doer said at an event that also featured a performance by Canadian rocker FeFe Dobson.

"We will do everything we can to show you a wonderful Canadian winter. We will do everything we can to show you the kind of warm hospitality you showed us at Salt Lake City just a few years ago, and I know that we will celebrate our great athletic skills across the world at these Olympics."

At a ceremony in downtown Vancouver Wednesday night, Furlong and British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell unveiled a set of Olympic rings that will light up Vancouver's inner harbour during the Games.

The rings, 14 metres tall and nearly 30 metres wide, are made up of thousands of individual LED lights. The lights use energy efficient bulbs that consume about eight per cent the electricity of normal incandescent bulbs.

The rings will be programmed for special light shows every time a Canadian athlete wins a medal.

"This is another example of the atmosphere that's building in the city for the days and months that are coming," Furlong said. "When the television cameras click on every night during the Olympic Games, they'll see these rings."