After the cheers die down: the boon to Utah of Olympic facilities.

• Author: Doering, David B.
• Position: Forecast of business and industries after the 1998 Winter Olympics

AFTER THE CHEERS DIE DOWN

Whether Utah hosts the 1998 Winter Games, the state stands to win just from its commitment to prepare for the Olympics. With the goal of becoming the "Winter Sports Capital," the state is constructing training facilities to round out its already impressive skiing resources.

Should the state win the Olympics, construction would begin on even more hosting facilities. The tourism trade will have a record year in 1998. Financial services will be needed. Communications companies will upgrade phone and TV networks to each of the sites. A lot of media attention will focus on the Beehive State.

But what about afterward? What will Utah have to show for the effort? Is there a boom/bust cycle from hosting these Games? Who is going to pay for this? Is it worth it?

Utah has committed $56 million to construct and maintain several venues. One is the speed-skating oval. The other is the Winter Sports Park, now being laid out at the Kimball Junction off I-80 near Park City. At the park will be both a bobsled/luge track and the Nordic and acrobatic ski jumps.

The speed-skating oval is still in the preliminary stages, but the park is already designed and includes all but the K120 (90 meter) ski jump necessary to host the Olympics. Since the K120 jump is only used during Olympic competition, it will be the last item added to the park.

The Winter Sports Park is designed by a joint venture of Eckhoff, Watson and Preator, and Van Boerum & Frank Associates (EWP/VBFA). Project managers examined Olympic sites around the world. Doing so, they put together the ideal design for these facilities.

The Perfect Site

Not only were environmental issues of vital concern in designing the park (see sidebar), but the facility had to be located where athletes, team officials and spectators could get to it without a great deal of difficulty. Lake Placid, the other Olympic park in the U.S., is a two-hour drive from the nearest airport. Housing is limited. The community is very small, so only the few local people can take advantage of having the site there.

Not so at the Winter Sports Park. Athletes from schools throughout the Wasatch Front can drive to it in less than an hour. Athletes from outside the state find Salt Lake a short drive from the airport. In Salt Lake, they can have housing, schooling, and a place to work.

The bobsled/luge track and the ski jumps will be as good as any in the world. In fact, the track will be better than state of the art. A...