NYC Mayor: Olympics Not Necessary for Growth

NEW YORK - MAY 26: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks during a wreath laying ceremony at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum May 26 in New York City. Memorial Day, orginally celebrated as Decoration Day after the Civial War in 1868, became a federal holiday in 1971 and commemorates all those who have died fighting for the U.S. in wars. (Photo by Eric Thayer/Getty Images)

(ATR) New York Mayor Bill de Blasio says the current level of tourism in his city makes an Olympics unnecessary.

The mayor was speaking at a hospitality conference on Monday at New York University, his alma mater.

"New York City is already at such an extraordinary point … our international reputation couldn’t be better, our brand couldn’t be more well respected all over the world," said de Blasio, according to the New York Observer.

"So we thought, in a classic New York phrase, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.’"

Last year, 54 million tourists visited New York, from whom the city received $39 billion in direct spending. That makes the potential revenue from an Olympics largely unnecessary.

"[An Olympic bid] is understandable in certain parts of the country. In certain parts of the world, there is a deep desire to bring in the Olympics and other types of events, but particularly the Olympics in the international stage because for many places, they have to establish themselves. They have to brand themselves. They have to become pertinent."

Written by Nick Devlin

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