PARK CITY, Utah — Skiers are still on the slopes, enjoying a final week of powder.
Members of the International Olympic Committee's Future Host Commission got an up close look at still-operational venues here, visiting Park City Mountain Resort, Deer Valley, Soldier Hollow and the Utah Olympic Sports Park.
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"We've been so ready for so long, we’re going to obviously do a lot of things but most of it is already done because of the fact that we maintained these venues," said Senate President J. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, who accompanied the IOC delegation on Thursday.
Unlike a lot of other Olympic host cities, Utah has maintained all of its original venues from the 2002 Winter Games, which keeps the cost of hosting an Olympics and Paralympics down. Those will likely need a little freshening up for 2034.
But there is a lot of enthusiasm for another Olympics, said Park City Mayor Nann Worel.
"People that were here in 2002 can’t wait for another Games to come back. They say it was a great community builder, it really brought the community together and inspired our young people," she told FOX 13 News in an interview. "I’m hearing the exact same thing from folks now. They’re excited for the Games to come."
Mayor Worel said her community was already preparing for the next 10 years, but hosting the world is nothing new for Park City.
"The Sundance Film Festival is probably the closest thing we have to the numbers of people that will be here for an Olympic Games," she said. "We’re a town of 8,500 people and when Sundance is here we swell to 80,000 people. We’re seasoned at being able to pull in resources from other law enforcement resources, transportation companies and being able to meet demands."
The Utah State Legislature has already budgeted roughly $40 million to refresh venues. Sen. Adams said lawmakers have identified improvements to things like mass transit.
"We need to look at infrastructure regardless of the Olympics. We continue to need to look at Frontrunner," he said. "You’re not going to build another freeway through Farmington or Point of the Mountain. We need to work on public transit, make sure that functions right."
At Park City Mountain Resort, they welcomed the IOC delegation and highlighted improvements as skiers and snowboarders rode down the slopes.
"I'm really excited to think about the future of these Games right here and the venue that we have today and what we’ll have in the future," said Deirdra Walsh, the resort's vice-president.
The National Ability Center's venue at Park City Mountain Resort excited one IOC Future Host Commission member. It is expected to be utilized for the Paralympics.
"It is wonderful to see this center because this is what we need to develop the Paralympic sports and to have so much equipment and such an easy to go venue available? Wonderful," said Rita Van Driel.
The IOC Future Host Commission will visit more venues on Friday. While it is looking good for Salt Lake City to host the 2034 Winter Olympics, a formal award would be announced in Paris in July.
