Whether or not Toronto bids on the 2024 Olympic Games, Mississauga won’t be getting involved.

This morning (Wednesday, Sept. 9) at the first meeting of General Committee since the summer break, councillors collectively decided that they have no interest in supporting Toronto if it decides to make a bid. The chief concerns voiced by councillors included the cost and the fact there isn’t much support for it amongst constituents.

The deadline to apply to the International Olympic Committee is Sept. 15.

Mississauga mayor Bonnie Crombie wanted a Council consensus before she spoke with her Toronto counterpart John Tory about that city’s potential bid and had the matter added to the agenda for today’s (Wednesday, Sept. 9) meeting.

“This is an important decision we all need to make together,” said Crombie.

Ward 9 councillor Pat Saito conducted a straw poll of ward residents and told her peers there was zero support for Mississauga’s involvement with Toronto’s bid.

Comparisons between this summer’s Pan Am Games, where several sports were staged at the Hershey Centre, and the Olympics were made by councillors. Saito said, while the Pan Am Games had its moments, it didn’t do much for Mississauga.

“There was virtually no economic benefit to Mississauga from the Pan Am Games,” said Saito, adding that Mississauga hotels and motel rooms were far from being booked solid when the international sporting event was on. “They just didn’t offer a great deal of benefit to Mississauga outside of showcasing the Hershey Centre.”

The veteran councillor added that, while the Olympics are clearly a much bigger draw than the Pan Am Games, the “costs could easily outweigh” any benefits Mississauga might enjoy if it hosted some of the Olympic events.

The cost of the bid, estimated to be somewhere between $50 million and $60 million, was also off-putting for Saito. While Mississauga wouldn’t be expected to pay that full amount, it would likely pay a percentage of it as part of Toronto’s bid, and Saito felt there were other priorities that money could be used on.