Mayor Bass says she's glad Paris is hosting the Olympics before LA: "I couldn't imagine"

When Los Angeles last hosted the Olympics, in 1984, the world games left behind a mixed legacy for the city. 

There was one of pride in the millions of dollars in profit the international event produced, doing what so many U.S. cities before it couldn't. And then there was the one mired in controversy, telling of a city accused of trying to hide away its homeless population and allowing questionably heavy policing to keep up a certain appearance for the world stage.

Currently, Paris is hosting 10,500 athletes representing 205 delegations. 

As the Summer 2024 Olympics kick off Friday, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is visiting Paris to see what she can learn as LA prepares to host in 2028. It will be the first time in more than four decades LA hosts, and already, there's been criticism from social justice groups saying the costly, massive event could end up hurting the city's poorest and most vulnerable.

For others, the 2028 games could be a chance at recapturing the magic of Los Angeles in 1984, when U.S. gymnast Mary Lou Retton became a star and corporate sponsors like Coca-Cola and McDonald's took on a financial burden carried by city and state governments in years past. The Los Angeles 1984 Summer Olympics were the first to be organized without state funding since 1896 and actually generated a profit of $223 million after so many cities had suffered huge losses before.

But one thing many agree on is a point Mayor Bass herself admits to.

And it's not the logistics of having big enough stadiums and buildings. Rather, Los Angeles is having to work on itself, to look inward and confront its most pressing everyday struggles — from a homelessness crisis as housing prices continue rising to a streak of violent crimes aboard buses and trains this year. 

"We didn't need to build any big venues," Bass said. "We have plenty of stadiums, plenty of venues, and so I'm hoping then that we can use all of the energy toward the games to solve some of our problems."

One of the most significant issues facing LA, of course, is its homelessness crisis.

"We do have a problem with homeless Angelenos, and so we want to make sure that we get everybody housed because we do not want the world to come to Los Angeles and see people living on our streets," Bass said.

This year, the city saw a very slight decline in its homeless population, which has gone up for the past five years straight. Back in 1984, LA still had a sizeable population of people struggling with homelessness. Leading up to the Olympics, the city cracked down, enforcing laws criminalizing homelessness as police made arrests and drove people out of Skid Row, according to Curbed Los Angeles, which mentioned an interview a local police chief did then with the Los Angeles Times.

"We're trying to sanitize the area," Los Angeles Police Department Captain Billy Wedgeworth told the Times a week before the games.

These days, Bass said she wants to do things differently, and she's been critical of the recent order by Gov. Gavin Newsom calling on local governments to clear encampments of people living in tents outside. Her "Inside Safe" program moving people out of encampments and indoors into places like motels has drawn both criticism and support from advocacy groups.

"Frankly, our homeless population is so vast we couldn't move them out if we wanted to," she said. "And we don't. We want to house them."

But the mayor said the biggest thing she's learned from being in Paris this week is how the city is handling transportation. Paris has a well-established transit system that mirrors that of New York City more than LA, long known for its traffic and highways. Still, it's not just the functionality of Los Angeles' public transit system but also its safety.

According to Bass, more investment into social workers and other care providers will help the safety issues facing the county's LA Metro system, a proposed solution she and some local leaders disagree on. She said law enforcement presence is needed but so are these other resources. Earlier this year, LA Metro saw an alarming streak of violent crimes, from attacks on drivers to killings of passengers. 

Back in May, Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins was adamant that the transit system would be prepared to host the world in 2028.

"As for 2028, it is clear that failure is not an option," Wiggins said. "There is no fear that these issues will be here in 2028."

"We know this is an incredible opportunity today to improve the experience," she said. "So that in 2028, when we're hosting the world, transportation will be the least thing they have to worry about."

Environmental issues are also being looked at, with the mayor promising coastal waters will be swimmable — recent sewage spills aside. Last week, a 15,000-gallon spill closed two LA County beaches.

"I think the oceans will be ready," she said.

It's clear LA has quite a bit of work to do. And Bass admits as much, telling of her reaction when Paris and Los Angeles were announced as the next Olympics hosts in 2018.

"I told (Paris) Mayor (Anne) Hidalgo when I met her that I was so glad she won," Bass said, adding that she took office at the end of 2022 so she worried about how she would prepare if LA had to host in 2024.

"I couldn't even imagine being mayor, a new mayor and having to walk into international games," she said.

In 2026, Los Angeles will host the World Cup. Bass said it will be like a "dress rehearsal" leading up to the Olympics.

"The World Cup is going to be huge but it's not going to be anywhere near the size and the complexity of the Olympics," she said.

After attending the opening ceremony Friday night, Bass will make her way back to LA. She's returning to Europe for the closing ceremony, for a special event alongside Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who, like Bass, is the first woman mayor in her city's history.

"The mayor of Paris, Mayor Hidalgo, will hand me the flag," she said. "To me, it will be an extremely special day."