Speaking yesterday (16 May), Biggs called on the London Legacy Development Corporation to review its announcement that the public won’t be able to use all of the Olympic Park venues until at least Easter 2014.
As reported by Event, the Legacy Corporation revealed
The North Park will begin to open for events and to the public from summer 2013. But the south side of the park will only reopen in Easter 2014 after an 18-month transformation programme, meaning attractions like the ArcelorMittal Orbit and Aquatics Centre will shut down for 18 months.
Biggs said the reopening dates seemed to prioritise the needs of engineers over those of the public.
He said: "Whilst I welcome the redevelopment plans, this long delay in opening the Olympic Park after the games is simply unacceptable."
Biggs, who represents the City and East constituency in the assembly, said: "For most of my constituents, the opening of the Olympic Park will be the nearest they will get to being part of the Games. I will be calling on the Mayor and his Development Corporation to review their decision as I am sure an incremental opening would be possible. It seems that the convenience of engineers counts more than my constituents."
In response, a Legacy Corporation spokeswoman said:
"It is not true that the whole Park will remain closed until Easter 2014. The intention has always been to open the park in phases as we want to get people onto the park as quickly as possible after the Games.
"The north part of the park, including the Multi-Use Arena will be opened exactly one year after the Games with a large community event, closely followed by the mayor’s two day festival of cycling in August 2013 – which will involve around 100,000 people visiting the Park. The remainder of the North Park will reopen by the end of 2013, this will include the VeloPark and the Lee Valley Tennis and Hockey Centres. By Easter 2014 parts of the North Park will have been open to the public for almost a year. We will then open the South Park including the Aquatics Centre and the ArcelorMittal Orbit with a grand opening event.
"Given the scale of the transformation works needed this is a challenging timetable but we are committed to getting people into the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park as soon as the building works are complete and it is safe for them to enjoy. We are also on track to reopen the stadium as planned in August 2014, there are no delays to our planned Park reopening schedule."
Work on the park when the Olympics have finished will involve clearing temporary venues and connecting the park to its surrounding area with new roads, cycle and foot paths.
What do you think of the Legacy Coporation's schedule? To leave a comment and let us know your thoughts.For more in-depth and print-only features, showcases and interviews with world-leading brands, don't miss the next issue of Event magazine by