Los Angeles Poised to Take Another Step Toward 2028 Games

Los Angeles appears poised to take another step toward bringing the 2028 Olympics to the city, despite questions about future costs.

The City Council on Friday is expected to endorse documents at the heart of its plan to stage the Summer Olympics for the third time since 1932. The contract outlines Los Angeles’ financial responsibility in hosting the games, although a budget for the proposed 2028 Games has not been completed.

The vote will take place less than two weeks after the city announced an agreement with international Olympic leaders ceding the 2024 Games to rival Paris, while opening the way for Los Angeles to host the 2028 Games.

Los Angeles City Council President Herb Wesson has called the agreement a “win-win-win scenario.”

The deal comes with millions of dollars of financial sweeteners for accepting the later date. However, the extra four years pose challenges for Los Angeles from maintaining public interest to rewriting deals for stadiums, arenas and housing that were all hooked to 2024.

City analysts have recommended the council approve the contract, which faces an Aug. 18 deadline, but also emphasized a revised budget for 2028 could take months to complete.

“There are inherent risks to hosting such major events so far into the future,” city analysts noted in a report on the agreement.

LA will need to recast financial guarantees approved by the city and state to cover potential shortfalls connected with the 2024 bid. Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation last September that puts California taxpayers on the hook for up to $250 million if Los Angeles was awarded the 2024 Games and they ran over budget. The city had matched the amount.

Those reserve costs would apparently go up for 2028. And city analysts say the question of state support might not be resolved until 2018, though legislative leaders have expressed support.

The Olympics have a notorious history of runaway costs, but city officials have argued their plan will stay in the black by relying on the region’s many existing stadiums and arenas, including the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and the Staples Center. State analysts previously concluded the 2024 plan carried relatively low risk, because it avoided major new construction projects.

The 2028 plan is expected to remain largely unchanged, without building any new, permanent venues.

The U.S. Olympic Committee board of directors must also approve the deal.

The International Olympic Committee vote is scheduled for September, in Lima, Peru.