Opposition councillors demand to know total cost of Montreal's Formula E race

Just how much did last month's Formula E race cost?

The opposition parties at City Hall say they aren't getting the answers they're looking for.

"It's like being at the dentist and trying to pull teeth on this one. And I suspect it's because the news is not good," said Marvin Rotrand, a city councillor and leader of the Coalition Montreal party.

"Just because Mayor (Denis)Coderresays everything was great, doesn'tmean it was great. We need to have all the data."

The City had announced that the event would cost Montreal taxpayers about $24 million to host the international high-speed electric car race for the first time.

• Montreal to foot $24M bill for Formula E race, but other cities pay nothing to host same event
• Coderredefends $24 M price tag of Montreal's Formula E race

But onMonday, Montreal city council approved additional costs for the race worth $5.3 million.

Original price tag at $24M

The original $24-million price tag was criticized by many, especially after learning that other cities such as Berlin, Hong Kong, Paris or New York didn'tspend any public money to host the same event.

The price included the costs of:

• Building and dismantling the track.
• Protection of the track.
• Race fees.
• Road work.
• Engineering and inspection services.
• Parking compensation for residents within the perimeter of the track

Rotrand said even though it's known that the cost of holding the event was more than $24 million, there are still many unanswered questions.

Heand other councillors want to know if any of the $10-million line of credit for Montreal, c'est lectrique, the organization responsible for the event, was spent.

They also want answers about the number of tickets sold versus those given away for free.

• Ontario Street bar owners condemn city order to remove terrasses for Formula E race
• Red flag for east-end residents as city builds Formula E track

"[Coderre] said the race was great for the economy in Montreal. If it didn't sell a lot of tickets and bring a lot of tourists in, or sell a lot of hotel rooms, I don't see how it's particularly good for the economy of Montreal," Rotrand said.

Coderre said the focus for this year was not on ticket sales, but on ensuring this first edition would be a success.

• 'Mission accomplished': Denis Coderre says race was success, despite complaints

Coderre also added that Montreal, c'est lectrique will tally up the costs and release the numbers on March 1, 2018. That will be after the municipal electionin November 2017.

Added to the tally will have to be the Regional Transit Authority's calculations. All STMbus and Metro service was free for race weekend.