5.4.1

Stratford

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Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park - Stratford

The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London (Stratford) was developed and constructed for the 2012 Olympic Games. The key features of the development are:

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Olympic Park

  • An area of 350 hectares of abandoned and derelict land was converted into sports and residential facilities.
  • There are 100 hectares of new green space, with 4,000 trees and 600,000 tonnes of soil cleaned (to remove contaminants like arsenic and ammonia).
  • 3km of rivers and canals were cleaned and 230,000 cubic metres of contaminated groundwater was removed.
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Housing

  • The accommodation that was built for Olympic athletes in the Olympic Village was converted into new housing for 2,800 people.
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Transport and infrastructure

  • The rail, bus and cycle routes in Stratford were improved to cater for the volume of people visiting during the Olympics and for residents afterwards.
  • A new rail station was built at Stratford International.
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Retail

  • A new Westfield shopping centre was constructed within walking distance of the Olympic Park and Olympic Stadium.
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Sports facilities

  • The Olympic Stadium has become the London Stadium, which is home to West Ham Football Club.
  • The London Aquatics Centre has become a public swimming pool.
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Culture

  • There are plans to build a lot of cultural buildings and experiences in Stratford. These include the Victoria & Albert East museum, Sadler's Wells East, which is a dance theatre and the London College of Fashion.

Stratford - Urban Regeneration

The redevelopment of Stratford illustrates many of the core principles of regeneration.

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International impact

  • The presence of many MNC retailers like Zara in the Westfield shopping centre illustrates the significance of global influences on places.
  • Furthermore, the Olympic Park was primarily built initially to host the Olympics, which is a global competition. London probably only won the rights to host the 2012 Olympics because of good rail, underground and air transport links.
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Regeneration strategies

  • Stratford has the hallmarks of all four major urban regeneration strategies:
    • Sport-led regeneration is clear with the London Stadium, Aquatic Centre and Olympic Games.
    • Tourism-led regeneration is evident because the Olympic Park hosted the Olympic Games.
    • Retail-led regeneration is shown by the construction of a Westfield shopping centre nearby.
    • Culture-led regeneration is shown by the establishment of museums like the Victoria & Albert Museum East nearby.
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Win-win redevelopment

  • Although, many stakeholders may have attachment and life experiences of the pre-development Stratford, regenerating derelict and unused land is likely to be less controversial than developing other areas.

Jump to other topics

1Tectonic Processes & Hazards

2Option 2A: Glaciated Landscapes & Change

3Option 2B: Coastal Landscapes & Change

4Globalisation

5Option 4A: Regenerating Places

6Option 4B: Diverse Places

7The Water Cycle & Water Insecurity (A2 only)

8The Carbon Cycle & Energy Security (A2 only)

9Superpowers (A2 only)

10Option 8A: Health & Human Rights (A2 only)

11Option 8B: Migration & Identity (A2 only)

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