Vancouver taxpayers have been told that the park board can’t afford to operate the children’s petting zoo in Stanley Park and the Bloedel Conservatory in Queen Elizabeth Park. The combined annual subsidy for the petting zoo and the conservatory is $410,000. However, the city has managed to set aside an even greater sum—$450,000—to pay for Olympic host-city uniforms and patches for thousands of municipal staff during the 2010 Games.

On May 5, council approved the expenditure as part of the Host City Team Program. Staff who wear the uniforms will work at live performance venues in Yaletown and downtown, as well as in bylaw enforcement, according to the city’s director of Olympic and Paralympic operations, Paul Henderson. In a phone interview, he told the Straight that approximately 1,000 staff will receive uniforms, which include an outer shell, rain pants, two long-sleeved T-shirts, a tuque, and gloves. Each uniform costs approximately $350—which adds up to a $350,000 expenditure. Senior management, park commissioners, city councillors, and the mayor will be among those outfitted in these taxpayer-funded uniforms, which are being manufactured by Stormtech Performance Apparel.

In addition, Henderson said, another 2,000 city workers who work in engineering, parks, and other departments will receive hard hats, safety vests, or coveralls festooned with Olympic branding. Those who already wear uniforms on the job—such as firefighters, police, and parking-enforcement staff—will have Olympic patches sewn onto their clothing. Henderson said that these “uniform elements” will cost an additional $100,000. “It brands our staff so that Games visitors can see that these are representatives of the city,” Henderson said.