It’s been 40 years since the 1976 Summer Olympics, an anniversary that dredges up the agony of defeat in Montreal.

Although the Games produced memorable moments – Nadia Comaneci’s perfect 10s, high jumper Greg Joy’s last-minute silver medal – for Montrealers, they left mostly negative memories. That’s because those Games were our last hurrah, the city’s last real moment on the world stage.

When Jean Drapeau, then Montreal’s grandiose mayor, won the Games in a wave of euphoria after his hugely successful 1967 World Exposition, he promised the Olympics would be “self-financing.” Instead, they all but bankrupted the city, with the $2.5-billion bill paid off only 30 years later.

Things started to unravel even before Olympic construction began. That Drapeau had severely underestimated costs quickly became clear. Then, without so much as a whisper of input from anyone else, Drapeau hired French architect Roger Taillibert to design and oversee the Olympic Park. He was given carte blanche to build a bold Olympic Stadium using an unproven design for a retractable roof.

Corruption was rampant, with builders of the Olympic Village arrested days before the Games opened. Construction unions flexed their considerable muscle, using their leverage – the tight deadline – to strike, sabotage and generally cause havoc on work sites. With inflation hitting record highs, the unions wanted wage hikes or they’d shut down the Games.

Fears that facilities wouldn’t be completed on time raised the spectre of the Olympics being cancelled. With a provincial election in the offing, that prospect terrified then premier Robert Bourassa. He stepped in and took over construction, much to Drapeau’s chagrin. The Games went on, but the state of the Olympic Stadium – the roof and supporting tower were noticeably missing – were a constant reminder of Montreal’s ineptitude.

The lessons of Montreal 1976? Don’t put too much trust in a single person, no matter how great their past successes. Iron-fisted politicians and formidable architects need oversight. Big dreams are great, but make sure you have the resources to fail big if things go south. After the Games, a provincial inquiry pointed the finger directly at Drapeau, saying he “must assume the greater part of the blame” for the Games’ exorbitant costs.

Today, a massive reminder of the insanity remains: the accident-prone Olympic Stadium, which can’t be used in winter for fear its fragile roof will rip further. A new roof would cost a small fortune: $215 million.

Although the Olympic hangover tarnished Drapeau’s legacy, he also is remembered for supporting the building of the subway, pulling off Expo 67 and landing a major league baseball team. Still, he won two more elections, retiring only in 1986 when a reform-minded Opposition was about to unseat him. Drapeau was mayor for a Montreal record tenure: a combined 29 years.

Montreal’s current mayor, Denis Coderre, has some of Drapeau’s qualities – arrogance and single-mindedness – but he has tempered any extravagant tendencies he may have. For Montreal’s 375th anniversary in 2017, Coderre’s “legacy projects” include tearing down an elevated highway and sprucing up part of Ste-Catherine Street, the city’s downtown commercial strip. These are modest, some would say banal, plans. Drapeau wouldn’t have been impressed. But Montrealers are, thank you very much.

© 2016 Investment Executive. All rights reserved.