Finally, now that the Olympic committee is making its grand tour of Chicago and Los Angeles we're seeing the good-spirited hate come out between Chicagoans and Angelenos. NBC4 has video of some sparring between a local reporter and his counterpart from Chicago. Also, Chicagoist of the ist family put together a snappy bulletpoint list of why Chicago deserves it. Fascinating:
· L.A. has hosted the Olympics on 2 separate occasions; Chicago has never been the site of the Olympics.
· Chicago covers much less area, and when the CTA is operating, supposedly it makes the city more accessible than the sprawl that is L.A.
· L.A. only has to spend $112 million on Coliseum renovations, Chicago has proposed a $366 million south side venue at Washington Park.
· Without some major upset or illness, Chicago can almost guarantee political stability in Mayor Daley.
· Chicago held a fundraiser last night that raised over $9 million to fund the city's bid. So far, L.A. hasn't announced how much money they have in the bank. The Olympic Committee is apparently tired of the bickering, saying the two cities should focus on what the Olympics is all about (prepubescent Chinese gymnasts? doped up track & field athletes?). One of the things that continues to worry us here at Curbed is that the Los Angeles plan shows no post Olympic legacy. No grand monument to the games of 2016 that we'll be able to show off 20 years later, while Chicago is building a whole new neighborhood for the Olympic Village. Somebody needs to build something.
· This Week's Olympic Showdown [Chicagoist]
· Olympic Committee To L.A., Chicago: Quit Fighting [cbs2]