When the "dust settles on the marquee venue" for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, it could "well be the most expensive sports stadium in the world," according to the AP. The latest cost estimate of 252B yen ($2B) would "push it beyond the current record-holder," the $1.6B MetLife stadium completed in '10 for the NFL New York Jets and Giants football teams. Two sports economists said that while exchange rate fluctuations and inflation "make comparisons tricky, it is safe to say that Japan's new National Stadium will likely to be the most expensive ever built." College of the Holy Cross professor Victor Matheson said, "The spiraling costs come as no surprise. Most of the recent Olympics Games and World Cups have seen final costs come in far above initial estimates." Andrew Zimbalist, an economics professor at Smith College in Massachusetts, "added that he suspects the cost will rise further during construction," which is due to begin in October. At least five stadiums costing more than $1B have been built worldwide, four for American football and baseball teams and Wembley Stadium in London (AP, 7/15). REUTERS' Elaine Lies reported the architect who oversaw the selection of plans for Japan's new Olympic stadium "defended the controversial design," saying ballooning costs were "not his fault even as the government appeared poised to consider cost-cutting changes." The "anger over the stadium" designed by U.K.-based architect Zaha Hadid has "also become a headache for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, his support ratings already battered by efforts to pass widely opposed security laws," making officials eager to "find ways to pacify the public." Tadao Ando, the architect who headed a committee that chose Hadid's design, said he wanted the design "to stay." Ando: "Just like all of you, I want to ask, why does it cost 252 billion yen? Aren't there ways of bringing this down?" (REUTERS, 7/16).
OPEN TO SUGGESTIONS: The AP's Mari Yamaguchi reported Japanese political leaders said Thursday that the new main stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics is "too costly and called for cost-cutting efforts." Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters that officials "are open to any suggestions to minimize the cost burden." He said, however, that "no specific decisions have been made, including whether to completely change the building design." Abe said that he will "turn his ears to the people's voices and do utmost for the success of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics." Abe reportedly will hold talks Friday with former PM Yoshiro Mori, head of Tokyo's Olympic organizing committee, "to discuss how to address the issue" (AP, 7/16). NIKKEI ASIAN REVIEW reported with its push for "controversial national security bills rapidly eroding
public support, the beleaguered Japanese government sees no choice but
to address" an expensive Olympic stadium plan. Reversing course, the government "plans to reassess the construction plan
for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics' main venue" to slash the estimated 252B yen cost. A cabinet member said, "We must first set a policy to review the plan." The government is "considering reworking the stadium's unique design
involving two arches that support the roof." The "scope of the revisions" will be decided later (NIKKEI ASIAN REVIEW, 7/15). THE ASAHI SHIMBUN reported the Abe administration is "considering a different design" for the new National Stadium. The government is "looking at other designs" entered into an int'l competition in '12 for the blueprint of the main venue of the 2020 Summer Games and
Paralympics. In addition, sources said that the construction period "could be extended to
curb potentially high personnel costs if many workers are employed simultaneously over a short period." Such an extension "could mean the stadium will not be built in time" for the 2019 Rugby World Cup (THE ASAHI SHIMBUN, 7/16).
