The Olympics are over and as our Olympic gold-medal-induced high fades away, we’re left to contemplate the impact that the winter games have had on Vancouver. Left are the Canadian flags painted in the windows of stores and an unlit cauldron. Downtown streets look eerily deserted in comparison to the crowds that packed them just a couple weeks before. Advertisers are letting out a sighs of relief as their billboards are unearthed from beneath those of the official Olympic sponsors. Claustrophobes are also letting out a sighs of relief as they are able to navigate the streets and make use of the Canada Line once again. Our closets are groaning under the added pressure of Olympic paraphernalia that we purchased with abandon from the Olympic store. Miga, Quatchi, and Sumi are caught meandering the streets of East Van, contemplating their impending future.
But the end of the Olympics will hit the restaurants, bars, and small retail businesses the hardest as they readjust from the surge in business from tourists and celebrating Vancouverites during the games. Although the Olympics were slated to improve the presence of Vancouver and British Columbia on the global stage, we will have to wait and see in the coming year whether the Winter Games have done anything to attract more tourists, and in turn, boost our local economy.
Where to now?
