The 2010 Winter Games were supposed to be all about Vancouver and Whistler. But this small city, a collection of islands in the Fraser River delta, has done a medal-worthy job of becoming a big part of the Olympic conversation.

In many ways, Richmond is a textbook example of how you take advantage of the Olympics when they are coming to your area. And by the time the Games are over, tens of thousands of people – many of whom had never heard of the place before – will have come to visit, spend money and even explore business prospects.

“The Olympics gave us a chance to capitalize on many things,” Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie was saying the other day. “To get international exposure was an unparalleled chance which we seized. This was our one big chance to tell the world about what we had to offer.”

As someone who once lived in Richmond, I can say that it wasn’t that long ago that the city wouldn’t have had much to show off. It was known, primarily, for being the home of the Vancouver International Airport. Richmond isn’t an especially pretty place. The terrain is flat and dull. There is no downtown to speak of. The main artery is bordered by malls and retail outlets.

But down by the water it is beautiful. The old fishing community of Steveston is wonderful. You can still find farm land, although less of it every year. There is a long list of restaurants that are world class, especially if you enjoy Asian cuisine. Some of the new architecture is inspiring.

Anyway, when Vancouver won the bid to play host to the Olympics, Richmond city council decided right away it wanted in – somehow.

Originally, the city was supposed to be the site of the International Broadcast Centre. But NBC didn’t want to be headquartered here. It insisted on being in downtown Vancouver in the new convention centre. NBC got what it wanted. Richmond turned that setback into opportunity.

It stuck up its hand to build a new long-track speed-skating track.

Many in the community were skeptical. Especially, when cost estimates continued to escalate. When it was completed, Richmond taxpayers were on the hook for $115-million of the final $178-million bill. (VANOC contributed $63-million). But today few in the city are complaining about the costs.

The city paid for it by selling roughly 20 acres of land it had around the site of the Oval. It sold at the top of the market and got $141-million. Some went to pay for the Oval and the rest was put in a legacy fund.

The Richmond Oval has become that iconic piece of architecture that is the centrepiece of every Olympics. Sitting on the banks of the Fraser River, the Oval was made, in part, with wood from trees in B.C.’s Interior that were killed by the pine beetle. The roof takes the shape of a heron’s wing, a tribute to the bird and the Salish First Nation that inhabited the river bank a couple of hundred years ago.

The design continues to rack up international architecture awards.

After the Games, the facility will become a multiuse recreational complex, that will include two international-sized ice rinks, eight basketball courts and an indoor track area. It will be the most high-end rec centre in the country.

In the runup to the Games, Richmond began organizing a winter sports festival as a sort of dry run for the real thing. It was the foundation of what has become, for these Games, O Zone, or the biggest Olympic party you will find.

It includes an outdoor skating oval. In the vicinity is Heineken House, the most popular bar-under-a-tent at these Games. People line up for hours every night to get in.

Mr. Brodie, the mayor, is hoping some of the Olympic visitors to his city will also be interested in learning more about the business opportunities that exist within its borders.

There are more cranberries produced in Richmond than anywhere else in the world. To draw attention to this fact, the city laid out 13 million of them on the grounds of a city park to replicate the Olympic rings. You can see it when you fly into the airport.

“We also built a six-storey-high Inukshuk out of shipping containers to emphasize we’re a shipping hub because of our location near the airport but also to a major port, a river and all the rest,” said Mr. Brodie.

“The opportunities are endless.”

(These have been excerpts from the ctvolympics.ca News Centre, article “Mason: Richmond finds its Olympic groove” by Gary Mason, The Globe and Mail. To view the full article, click here)

By: Gary Mason
From: The Globe and Mail

Posted on: 2.23.2010