The costly story of Montreal's Olympic Stadium, and why the story won't end

Montrealers know the story of the Olympic Stadium, or the Big O, or the Big Owe, very well, from the saga of the failing roof, to the astronomical cost that took more than a generation to pay off, to the controversially ambitious design that took a decade and a half to build.
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[@stuarttupp3541]

"It has acquired an international reputation". Yes, as an example of every mistake that can possibly be made when designing and building a stadium.

[@lucky247365]

Who is coming up with this ridiculous quote to demolish the stadium? There is no way it costs as much to break it down as it does to make a new stadium. Is Quebec really that corrupt where everything costs 5x more than what it should cost?

[@Plasmax-jp6pm]

Honestly. Probably yeah.

[@Conservativelawyer]

Have you ever seen bad blood?

[@DarkStar3147]

Quebec is probably 100x more corrupt than you can ever imagine 😂

[@TheRandCrews]

Not to lie compared to what these Quebecois people says, i actually did look forward seeing the area of where the Olympic Stadium is. Came to the city to look at universities and meet up with friends, found this while exploring the city. Enjoyed the whole complex, the architecture, the history, and the views. I think its unique and a great though infamous relic of the Olympics in Canada. Though it be great if it gets reused once more with the ever growing transit connections in the vicinity with the BRT, Metro, and bike lanes which also a staple of Montreal’s culture.

[@user-fj5os6jw4o]

Did you steal the soundtrack from 1970's NFL highlight shows?

[@mtl6562]

Take it down.

[@turboshelby8322]

Yes!

[@TerreSeche213]

We need the Delaney roof

[@sharptoothtrex4486]

If Los Angeles dealt the 1976 Summer Olympics than in 1984 might prevent Canada's costly problem. Canada's worst dumb move.

[@handymatt1970]

plante's vision continues

[@rboddington]

Oh but it's a source of Quebecois pride and must be preserved at all costs!!!

[@grantslam0999]

If they keep this Canada can never get rid of skydome

[@reesejabs1895]

At least the sky dome roof works.

[@christian_cheuque]

Build a permanent roof and use the stadium for concerts/events/sports

[@Arational]

$32 million to run the facility and revenues of $20-25 million per year. If calculated in 2024 dollars, the amount spent on the big O is closer to $9 billion. Does anyone think that the price for the newest roof will hold? Probably close to $1 billion will be wasted. The Professor is correct. It should be torn down and an efficient Facility built to replace it.

[@scbtripwire]

Given how much it costs, I sure hope the money it brings in from tourism makes it worthwhile.

[@AJAXRAIDER]

It is unfortunate as it was a very revolutionary and futuristic vision. However, in my mind, the difficulty is hiring an architect with little to no experience designing a stadium/roof such as this in such a cold and snowy climate with little to no experience in that climate. Hope it stays and they find a solution.

[@PoliticallyIncorrect90]

They are delusional in many ways, but especially if they think people go to Montreal to see that eyesore.

[@Arational]

The big Oh-O

[@fantasticvoyage262]

Why wasn't it built with a fixed roof?

[@bouncypear_net]

Inflatable roofs like that were all the rage in the 70s and 80s. Note the late Pontiac Silverdome and Metrodome in Minneapolis. Most of them have been demolished by now! I think a roof like that is better suited for a climate with less snow.

[@Itsmytest]

Summer Olympics are required to be held in an open-air stadium. The idea was that, since they'd be using it long after summer of 76, to have a retractable roof. It wasn't important that it wasn't completed in time for the games, since it was never going to be used for the games anyway.

[@angusmackaskill3035]

It will cost as much to demolish it that it did to build it

[@marcodm]

Its a beautiful building has to stay, leave it without a roof

[@richardzink6026]

I was there 30yrs ago it was a dump then

[@lucky247365]

It's a concrete monstrosity. Just build a new stadium and stop funding this money pit.

[@sigma9102]

Now it's time for a new roof that will cost at least $750 million. It's time to bulldoze the damn thing. It's not the icon Quebec Tourism Minister Caroline Proulx says it is. It's an embarrassment and has always been a joke since it was built....not to mention the massive corruption surrounding it's construction back in the day. Classic way the Quebecois do things.

[@rickburton3505]

Did they ever pay The Big Owe off? A colossal money pit, and a dump.

[@js8805]

It's an awesome tower, venue and place overall. Keep this thing. It's such a great place to visit and for holding events

[@bill6255]

What about leave the tower, tear-down the stadium - then rebuild it to more modern standards? IDK. $900M demo fee lol

[@derricklafrance9440]

Montreal should spend that money on a good hockey team. Lol. Btw big Habs fan.

[@davidlafleche1142]

It shouldn't cost more than $1 million to tear it down.

[@joemadden4160]

It shouldn't be more than $5-$10 million. You forgot graft😉

[@user-dn1cb2uz3x]

I liked Montreal Expos Expos had best player……Cromartie G. Carter Dowson Rains Parrish Gullickson Brooks I hope the Expos

[@locks4]

I loved that team!

[@user-my7cf3pz4j]

SAVE the BIG O!!!

[@rodrigoborin6049]

Sorry to tell you guys but it’s not worth the trip… there are other places in Montreal way more interesting…

[@JonniMartinez]

what is famous about that stadium? nothing! ... It should be torn down and rebuilt into a new stadium

[@MikeTeaveeJr]

Swifties in the area are still hoping that it can be restored soon enough to bring the Eras tour in; her fans are definitely more well-behaved than metalheads. And if the EBU were to invite Canada to participate in next year's Eurovision Song Contest and the selected artist were to win, then it would be the perfect venue to host. BTW, 9PM Central European Time is 3PM Eastern Time, so it would be more feasible for the CBC to host than Australia's SBS.

[@bestsolutions1773]

One thing is certain is that the productive class - as opposed to the parasitic bureaucratic class - will leave Montreal or annex it. No way Montrealers paying for this maintainance and roof to hold a couple of french tourist to make francoise legault happy. This is the dumb whim based prehistoric dark aged economics he is able to cough up. Please vote him out, he is ruining Montreal.