Discover the architecture and planning of the Olympic Park and the Lower Lea Valley
Join Open City for a socially-distanced walking tour exploring the 2012 Olympic Legacy — assessing how much progress has been made 10 years on, in the creation of a new chunk of Metropolitan City on the former industrial lands of the Lower Lea Valley.
This insightful walking tour around the Olympic Park — led by expert guide Nick Edwards — tells the story of the post 2012 landscape and success of Legacy ambition. It will tell the story of the multi-billion regeneration project which has transformed 250 hectares of former industrial land in the Lower Lea Valley, covering the pre-Games, Stratford City metropolitan plans and Legacy masterplan proposals for five new neighbourhoods alongside some ground-breaking community engagement programmes.
Providing a safe and fun way for enthusiastic urbanists to explore the city in our pandemic era, this walking tour is part of a new series responding to the core themes of the Open House festival and wider Open City programme.
The tour will cover the planning, design and delivery of this new large-scale mixed use district which is now home to the Financial Conduct Authority, Transport for London, Cancer Research UK, UNICEF, British Council, Loughborough University, BT Sports and the Bartlett.
Landmark buildings featuring on the tour include Manhattan Loft Gardens by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), East Village (former Athletes Village) with towers by Hawkins Brown and Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands, Chobham Manor - the first of the five Legacy Neighbourhoods, Michael Hopkins’ Velodrome, Lend Lease’s International Quarter, Zaha Hadid Architect’s Aquatics Centre, HOK’s London Stadium and Good Growth Hub by Turner Works, a temporary skills and job training centre with glimpses into the fringe neighbourhood of Hackney Wick.
The tour will visit 2012 Gardens South Park by New York based James Corner Field Operations and discuss the emerging East Bank - a new powerhouse for innovation, creativity and learning — where you will soon find the V&A, Saddlers Wells, BBC, London College of Fashion and UCL.
This tour will examine the success of the 2012 Legacy project to date while also looking ahead to what the future for the area might hold.
Meet: Outside 5 Celebration avenue London E20 1DB. Duration 3 hours approx. Tour ends London Aquatics Centre. Cost £14.50 / £9.50 concessions (students/unemployed).
This tour does not incorporate the use of Zoom. Tickets are non refundable. Tours go ahead rain or shine…Get in touch with Adrianna at tours@open-city.org.uk with any queries.
Meet the tour guide…
Nick Edwards is an architectural educator and change driver with 20 years experience creating innovative participation opportunities which encourage greater understanding of architecture, regeneration, planning, placemaking, active citizenship and sustainability.
Since studying architecture, Nick has spent most of his career working in formal and informal education demystifying built environment processes, changing perceptions and advocating for the role that communities can play in shaping and caring for their neighbourhoods.
Much of Nick’s professional experience has focused on East London and specifically the 2012 Games and its
Legacy. This included co-founding Fundamental Architectural Inclusion
funded by CABE; establishing the
Architecture Crew, Britain’s first youth architecture forum and setting up the Legacy Youth
Panel on behalf of the London Legacy Development Corporation to facilitate young people’s
response to the Legacy Masterplanning Framework for the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
and surrounding area and feeding directly into the Legacy Community Strategy; bringing
young people to the forefront of influencing and shaping socio economic and community
engagement policy at the London Legacy Development Corporation.
He joined the Open City team in February 2021.