Toronto councillors cooling on 2024 Olympic bid

Four city councillors voiced concerns about Toronto's potential Olympic bid ahead of a budget meeting on Monday.

Coun. Gary Crawford, the city's budget chief, at one point said he was confident Toronto could bid for the Olympics and win in the wake of the TO2015 Pan and Parapan Am Games.

But he said Monday he's now "cautiously holding back" his opinions on a potential shot at the Olympics.

• Toronto's possible Olympic bid could be thwarted by politics, business

Mayor John Tory would have to submit a letter to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) expressing Toronto's interest in hosting the 2024 Olympics by Sept. 15. A bid alone could cost the city between $50-60 million, according to a city feasibility report published last year.

But it's not just the dollar figures that are causing concern at city hall, where the budget committee is meeting Monday.

Coun. John Campbell said the bid would be an "albatross" for the city.

Coun. Kristyn Wong-Tam sent a letter to Tory urging him to hold off sending a letter to the IOC until due diligence has been completed. 

Coun. James Pasternak, meanwhile, said he's unsure Toronto would be able to compete with Los Angeles if the southern Californian city's bid moves forward.

L.A., which previously hosted the 1932 and 1984 Olympics, put forward a $4.1-billion plan to host the Games, predicting it would generate a $161-million surplus for the city.

L.A.'s bid came after Boston decided to drop its bid.

Other potential rivals include a joint bid from Rome and Paris, as well as Budapest, Hungary and Hamburg, Germany.