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We are very, very worried. A lot of our hotel partners are running below their levels from last year

Still, these are the most expensive Pan Am Games in history, with a budget of $2.5 billion. In economic terms, it is hard to see how Ontario, already running record deficits, will derive a benefit that makes up for the cost.

When it bid for the games in 2009, Ontario produced an economic impact analysis, which concluded that the games would create 26,000 jobs and grow Ontario’s real GDP by $3.7 billion. That report is not public and a spokesperson for Ontario’s Pan Am Games Secretariat suggested a reporter file a Freedom of Information request to obtain a copy. The spokesperson did not respond to numerous requests for an interview with someone who could explain the economic benefit.

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But already there are signs that the 250,000 tourists that organizers expect for the Games may not show up. Organizers set the 1.5-million tickets starting at $20, but have sold fewer than half, and the games start in a week. Hotels in Toronto fear they will welcome fewer visitors than they did last summer.

“We are very, very worried,” says Terry Mundell, president of the Greater Toronto Hotel Association, which represents 170 hotels across the city, with 36,000 hotel rooms. “A lot of our hotel partners are running below their levels from last year.” He remains hopeful that guests will book at the last minute.

And, as Mundell points out, city authorities have been sending out conflicting messages to potential fans. They plead with commuters to carpool or use transit during the games or work from home. At the same time, they want everybody to come to town to see the Pan Am Games.