Talk Of Baltimore Making Olympics Run Is Heating Up
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Talk of the region making another Olympics run is heating up. While the odds are long, they could be in our favor.
Mike Hellgren takes a look at what that could mean.
With three international airports, extensive security, world-class stadiums and lots of hotel rooms, backers are starting to make their case again for a Baltimore-Washington Summer Olympics--this time in 2024.
David Warschawski's Baltimore-based marketing and PR firm--Warschawski Marketing and Communications--helped make the last pitch.
"A lot of that has to do with timing and has to do with world sentiment at the time a choice is made," Warschawski said. "As a region, Baltimore-Washington learned a lot in the first bid, which is going to help us if we decide to do a second bid."
The last time around, Baltimore-D.C. had enthusiastic support from a regional coalition, but we ended up not even making the final round.
Boosters point out most of the athletic venues that would need to be in place for the Olympics are already here, including M&T Bank Stadium. The economic impact would be in the billions--around a $5 billion impact after the costs of hosting are taken out, according to a study 12 years ago and adjusted for inflation.
"Being a Baltimore boy and getting to see how well this region stacks up against any other region in the United States is a wonderful experience to be part of," Warschawski said.
Baltimore-D.C. will likely be up against New York and Chicago, but shouldn't be considered an underdog.
"The torch has been passed. It's headed to Brazil. Now is the time to begin thinking about it," Warschawski said.
An Olympics here could generate 70,000 jobs.
