$602,050 of Island of Montreal taxpayers’ money down the drain again

On Sunday June 7, the 25th annual Tour de l’Ile de Montreal (Le Tour) will take place. Marc Lebel (Division Head-Division de la gestion des documents, des archives et de l’access a l’information, Ville de Montreal) informed me that last year the taxpayers of the Island of Montreal spent $602,050 to stage Le Tour — which works out to a $20 subsidy for every cyclist in the event.

It is interesting to note that the majority of the participants usually come from Laval and the South Shore, even though Montreal taxpayers ended up giving a gift of $602,050 to Velo Quebec to organize this messy event which inconveniences tens of thousands — if not hundreds of thousands — of Montreal motorists. Not to mention that it does nothing for tourism and causes pollution–inducing traffic jams, which hurt retail sales.

Despite this annual gift from Island of Montreal taxpayers, Velo Quebec refuses to fully cooperate or allow a charity or more, in the Montreal area to raise money by soliciting paid sponsorships for the various participants in Le Tour through in invitation in the event’s mailing/website — a fund-raising technique used in similar athletic events across North America and throughout the world.

It’s not as though Quebecers are tapped out when it comes to charitable donations. In 2007, the median annual charitable contribution based on receipts issued to Quebec taxpayers was $130 — by far the lowest in Canada. The median in the four provinces with less disposable income than ours (NB, NS, PE, NL) ranged between $300 and $360!

According to Statistics Canada, twenty-two percent of individuals in Quebec, 15 years and older, did some sort of volunteer work. The percentages in other Canadian provinces range between 32 percent and 47 percent! So Quebec has the dubious distinction of having by far, the lowest per capita levels in Canada for charitable donations and volunteerism.

So why doesn’t Velo Quebec wish to cooperate with charities? Velo Quebec says the event is “a social and humanitarian cause and does not need to associate itself with any other causes.”

By the same premise, the New York City Marathon could say that their marathon is also a “social and humanitarian cause” since running provides exercise. But, unlike Velo Quebec, the NYC Marathon decided years ago to allow fund-raising for the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Centre (MSK). “Sponsors have reacted favorably to our fundraising relationship with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK),” Nancy Rowe, an official with the NYC Marathon wrote to me in a letter 16 years ago (and Velo Quebec was copied). “Rather than stealing deserved attention from sponsors, it gives their commitment a new dimension — not only are they sponsoring a major sporting event, but they are sponsoring an inherently good, charitable major sporting event. This only enhances their reputation and public perception and increases the value of their sponsorship. Overall, it is safe to say that our fundraising arrangement with MSK has been a great success and has earned the NYC Marathon even more prestige and respect than it already owned.”

Some principled Montreal-area officials have taken a stand against allowing Le Tour to pass through the streets of their municipalities. Last month, Dorval Mayor Edgar Rouleau showed heart and fortitude in favor of charitable fund-raising by banning events like Le Tour from the streets of Dorval — unless participants are invited to raise funds for charity.

Shortly after, Kirkland followed Dorval’s lead. Cote St. Luc, Dollard des Ormeaux and Laval all decided years ago not to allow Le Tour back because of the great inconvenience.

Ordinary, Montreal-area citizens should follow that lead by contacting their mayors and councilors, urging them to ban Le Tour immediately unless it cooperates with charitable fundraising. Maybe such a “people-powered initiative” could eventually lead to substantial funds flowing into the charitable pipeline instead hundreds of thousands of Island of Montreal taxpayer dollars going down the drain.

Murray Levine Murray Levine is founder of the Philanthropic Athletes Foundation. www.pafoundation.wordpress.com www.giv3.ca