Olympic Village to Become Residential Community After Games

By Jessica Fiur, News Editor

London—The Olympics Opening Ceremony is today, but multifamily developers are already looking toward the end of the games. At that point, the Athlete’s Village—the area built up in Olympic Park to house all the athletes—will be turned into a residential community.

The housing, which will be located in the new East Village area of East London, will include 2,818 new homes, including one-bedroom apartments, and four- and five-bedroom townhouses.

The temporary partitions that are currently in the living spaces for the athletes will be removed, and the remaining space will be used for the living rooms and bedrooms. Kitchens will also be installed, and new carpet and flooring will be added.

QDD, a consortium comprised of Qatari Diar developer Delancey, owns 1,439 of the homes. Triathlon Homes, a joint venture of housing associations East Thames Group and Southern Housing Group and developer First Base, owns 1,379.

Additionally, East Village will include a new school called the Chobham Academy—a school for children and teens from the age of 3 to 19, as well as a health center, retail space and restaurants.

So far, 35 percent of the new housing will be set at affordable rates—a welcome addition to the bustling city known for its high rents.

Currently the Athlete’s Village includes residential units for approximately 17,000 Olympic athletes and officials. There are 11 residential plots that each make up five to seven blocks and include communal areas, courtyards and water features. Each apartment includes Internet access and wifi. The village also features shops, restaurants, a gym, an alcohol-free pub that includes karaoke and pool tables, a hair salon, florist, medical areas and media and leisure facilities.