In recent years, Utah has raised its hand to host another Olympic Games. With Vancouver recently backing out of the running for 2030, things are looking up for a potential Salt Lake City Games in 8 years.

So what does that mean for the local economy? 

According to the University of Utah Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, a prospective 2030 Salt Lake City Olympics would have a smaller economic impact on the state compared to 2002, anticipating $3.9 billion in output, 30,000 job-years of employment, and $1.5 billion in personal income. The 2002 Winter Olympics is well known as one of the most successful in history, even with the reverberations of September 11th. Additionally, with Utah's pre-planning to maintain the Olympic facilities into the future, Salt Lake, Park City, and the surrounding areas have become a winter sports mecca. 

With its prior successes and so much to learn, Salt Lake seems poised to be selected as the 2030 host city. Interestingly enough, it could turn into a more regular occurrence as a result of the International Olympic Committee (IOC)'s stance on climate change. At the beginning of December, the IOC was set to make a selection on the 2030 host city but deferred the decision seriously considering a 20-30 year rotation for all future Winter Olympics. This would mean that if Salt Lake City was selected, it could be deemed a host city every few decades. The goal of this move would be to reduce the economic and environmental impacts of the infrastructure required in each new city. One of the key factors in this decision "is whether the average temperature at the site over the past 10 years has been at or below freezing" (KPCW).

So what do you think? Would Salt Lake, Park City, and its surrounding areas serve as a good regular host city? We'll have to see what the community and local officials think of the proposal in the coming months. The Winter Olympics would turn into a true industry in the future host cities. We're looking forward to hearing new updates!