L.A. officials raise alarms over crippling Olympic costs: 'Bankruptcy cannot be the legacy'

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Los Angeles officials are expressing growing fears that taxpayers and the city treasury could be hit with a round of crippling costs to support the 2028 Olympic Games if the city doesn’t ink a rigorous deal to assure a “zero–cost” Games.Some city officials have long been concerned that taxpayers could be left with massive bills if the Olympics don’t generate the income organizers have promised.Delays in finalizing a deal between City Hall and the Olympics committee have heightened those tensions.The exact costs to L.A.

and other local governments remain unknown, as officials wait to hear from LA28 and federal security agencies about exactly what services they will need.Recent controversy over the ties between Casey Wasserman, the head of the L.A.

Olympics, and Jeffrey Epstein have added to the uncertainty over the finances in the minds of some city leaders.City Atty.Hydee Feldstein Soto and Councilmember Monica Rodriguez both issued letters demanding a contract pledging that LA28 cover any of the city’s future costs that arise as the city plays host to hundreds of thousands of athletes and fans.The contract, more than six months overdue, is needed “to foreclose any scenario in which funds might go back to the wealthy backers and investors of the LA 28 organization without reimbursing taxpayer funded extraordinary costs,” the city attorney wrote to council members.Rodriguez agreed in a separate letter this week that the city needs a contract that assures that the Olympics organization will pay any excess costs for policing, transportation, trash pickup and more, so that taxpayers are not burdened or “core city services” slashed.

That should take priority over the private nonprofit LA28 building a “Legacy Fund” to bankroll future youth sports programs, public sports facilities and the like, argued the city officials, who are both up for reelection this...