Opinion: The most fitting Olympics venue

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Now that the U.S. contestants for the 2016 Olympics are officially down to a race between L.A. and Chicago, maybe it’s time for a moment of unofficial regret that no one was pushing--New Orleans. Of course, such a nomination would have taken quick, creative thinking and coordination among federal, Louisiana and New Orleans agencies, and we all know how that went both pre-and post-Katrina.

But a bid on behalf of the Big Easy would have married doing well with doing good in a way that would have gained global sympathy. A win for New Orleans would push the relevant agencies into a full-bore rebuilding of the pummeled city, providing an Olympics that combines the charms of the past with the best hopes for the future. Imagine a host Olympics town offering both the French Quarter and new pedestrian-friendly retail-entertainment-art projects along the waterfront. Olympic villages for the athletes could, post-Games, become residential villages of affordable housing. The excitement would draw both private investment, and displaced New Orleans residents who have felt too afraid or disheartened to return. And it would force a deadline on a reconstructon effort that has been all too laggardly.

The weather in New Orleans, as the helpful have pointed out, is not at its best during the traditional time for the Games. But that offers another chance for some out-of-the-box thinking. If the Olympics are to be a truly global event, why should some spots on the globe be forever out of the running because of accidents of the season? With nearly 10 years to plan, it seems like Olympic athletes could pencil in a couple of different weeks on the 2016 calendar.