Two enormous cranes have removed the final elements of the temporary seating stands at the London 2013 Aquatics Centre, revealing the original Zaha Hadid designed building.
The final trusses which formed the spine of the temporary seating stands on either side of the Aquatics Centre were removed today as part of the work to transform the former Olympic site into Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
Each truss weighed 172 tonnes and required two cranes weighing 800 tonnes and 750 tonnes to lift and lower the pieces to the ground.
Dennis Hone, Chief Executive, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park said:
“The former Olympic Park is being transformed in to a fantastic new public park. The £292million project to adapt the Park and take down the temporary venues, like the Aquatics Centre seating, is running on time and on budget. We will open the first part of the Park this summer with a series of events in the north of the Park and the Copper Box opening to the public. The rest of the Park will open in phases through to spring 2014 when the Aquatics Centre will open and people will be able to swim in those fantastic Olympic-sized pools.”
Balfour Beatty is working on the transformation of the Aquatics Centre, now the two seating stands have been removed work has started to install 3,000m² of glass along the sides of the Aquatics Centre allowing lots of natural light into the pool.
When the Aquatics Centre opens in spring 2014 it will have a cafe and crèche, a dry dive training area and a full programme of aquatics activities from lane swimming and lessons to aqua-aerobics, water polo and synchronised swimming.
The Aquatics Centre will be operated by GLL on a 10 year lease. GLL is a London-based social enterprise which means that surpluses it makes are reinvested into sport and local communities. GLL is working with British Swimming to locate an elite swimming and diving programme in the Centre alongside community use.
Going for a swim in the Aquatics Centre will be affordable, when the pool opens the price of a swim in the Olympic pools will be the same as a swim in a local leisure centre – currently around £4.30. Around 800,000 people are expected to make use of the Aquatics Centre from 2014.
The Aquatics Centre will continue to host major swimming competitions, London has bid for the 2016 European Swimming Championships and the 2014 FINA Diving Championships which it hopes to host in the Aquatics Centre.
Since taking control of the Park in November 2012, the Legacy Corporation has been undertaking a huge programme of work to transform the site and its iconic venues ready for public use.
The £292m construction programme, one of the largest in Europe, is on track to deliver Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park – a new part of London to live, work, visit and invest. The Park will soon begin to re-open in phases as works reach completion, starting with the official opening of North Park in July 2013.
This will include the Copper Box, London’s third largest arena at 2,743m2 (equivalent to 12 badminton courts), and the Unity Kitchen Café at Timber Lodge, a new community space with a stunning new playground and open spaces for visitors to walk, play and enjoy.
Over the past six months, the Legacy Corporation has been getting its programme ‘Clear, Connect, Complete’ well underway to transform the Park from the Olympic event site to a new part of London. The programme is clearing Games-time overlay including temporary venues, walkways and stands, connecting the Park to the surrounding area with new roads and pathways and completing the Park’s venues and parkland to their legacy designs, ready to open its doors in full in spring 2014.
Just as the Games were delivered across 10 years from bid to closing ceremony, the delivery of legacy is a 10 year programme and the works underway now will deliver a lasting legacy for east London. Construction on the Park has already brought over a thousand jobs to the area, 44 per cent of workers are from the local area and there are 60 apprentices on site – the highest number on any London site.
In just a few months, the first families will also begin moving into 2,818 homes, including 1,379 affordable homes on the site of the Athletes’ Village, to be known as East Village. Chobham Academy will also open this September, with a further three schools planned to be built on the Park over the coming years.
The Legacy Corporation is celebrating the phased re-opening of the Park from July 2013 to spring 2014 with a programme of summer entertainment and events, bringing world-class sport and international artists back to the iconic venues. The summer line up will give local residents and visitors an opportunity to experience what the park will have to offer when it opens in full in spring 2014.
