Lea Valley VeloPark Legacy Mode Redevelopment | 6,000 Capacity | U/C

[dronkula]

Ok, as there doesn't seem to be a specific Velodrome thread, this seems like a good story to start one:

Welcome to the velodrome
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standa...ome/article.do
Laura Clout
08.09.08
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Olympic triple gold medallist Chris Hoy today unveiled the design for London's VeloPark, where Britain's cyclists aim to recreate their Beijing success.

The 2012 venue, at the north of the Olympic Park, will include a 6,000-seat velodrome and 400 metre BMX circuit.

Underneath a spectacular "floating" roof will be a glazed concourse, offering views of London's skyline.

The building has been designed by Hopkins Architects, who say it is intended to be lightweight and efficient - reflecting the workings of a bicycle. The venue will also be linked to cycle routes across the capital.

The £80 million budget, one of the Olympic Park's largest, now dwarfs the original bid figure of £28 million.

Olympics chiefs say the concept has since been expanded to house a one-mile road cycle circuit and 6km mountain bike course.

These facilities, to be created after the Games, will form part of the 2012 legacy, catering for cyclists of all abilities. A spokesman for the Olympic Delivery Authority said: "The current budget is for a venue with a much wider range of facilities and the design now includes a road cycle circuit and a mountain bike track to be completed after 2012. It's about providing a permanent world-class cycling facility for London."

Hoy, the first Briton in 100 years to win three gold medals at the same Olympic Games, said he hoped the building would boost the popularity of cycling.

"Becoming Olympic champion simply wouldn't have been possible without the local cycling facilities I used when I was growing up, so I'm delighted to help launch the designs of the London 2012 VeloPark, which will provide first-class facilities for cyclists of all ages and abilities," he said.

The cyclist visited the site this morning with Boris Johnson, Lord Coe, chairman of Games organisers Locog, and ODA chief executive David Higgins. The Mayor said the venue would be an " outstanding iconic landmark"-adding: "I can't wait to see the finished structure packed to the rafters, cheering on Team GB cyclists as once again they go for gold in 2012."

The design team, which also includes Expedition Engineering, sustainability consultants BDSP and regeneration experts Grant Associates, was chosen last summer.

Their initial concept has been tweaked after consultation with local user groups and cycling experts.

The double-curved roof structure, to be clad in 288 exposed timber panels, reflects the geometry of the cycling track. A continuous ribbon of windows underneath will allow a view of the track from outside, and offer spectators-inside a vista of the rest of the Olympic Park.

To make the building as environmentally friendly as possible the design uses daylight to reduce electric lighting and allows natural ventilation. Water saving fittings allow the collection of rainwater for use inside.

Construction is due to begin next spring by builders ISG.

The release of the plans follows the opening of the £4.5 million Redbridge Cycling Centre last month. This replaced the Eastway Cycle Circuit. which was demolished to make way for the Olympic venue.

[DarJoLe]

image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


The site today:

Looking north
image hosted on flickr


South-east
image hosted on flickr


South
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South
image hosted on flickr

[NothingBetterToDo]

Very nice indeed - who says there aren't going to be any iconic structures on the Olympic site?

[Manuel]

Very nice, a bit polite, but good!

"The double-curved roof structure, to be clad in 288 exposed timber panels"
So they finally kept wood as the preferred material for the roof?

[DarJoLe]

Well the wood is the facade, not specifically the roof, which is steel. But yes, I imagine now they are keeping the wood.

[Metroguy78]

Love it, elegant, non intrusive, and fits in with the resst of the park and main arenas (aquatic centre).

Can't wait to see all these grow over the next few years

[tigerman]

This and the Aquatic building (in legacy mode) are both stunning - lets hope Boris doesnt want to demolish them after the games so he doesnt have to pay for their upkeep.

[Jamandell (d69)]

I was originally worried about the new roof, but the whole building looks fantastic! I LOVE it!

[RobH]

That is going to be Magnificent. I'm a big fan of Hopkins' work and I've no doubt that the real thing will look ten times as good as the renders.

[high_flyer]

Looks brilliant, clean, focused design that isn't too fussy or over the top, lets just hope the sky is as blue on the renders in 2012, and not as wet as the photos of the site now!!
We need to increase our carbon output to speed up global warming, and seed the clouds

[RobH]

If the sky was THAT blue I'd be worried to be honest.

[delores]

One thing comes to mind, why does Zaha's building have to be mutated with those wings and this building stay in its present state after the games? Which is a far far better situation. I really like the design, a very elegant solution which I'm sure will be executed very well by Hopkins.

[DarJoLe]

Originally Posted by delores

One thing comes to mind, why does Zaha's building have to be mutated with those wings and this building stay in its present state after the games?

Hadid blew her budget on too many curves.

[delores]

Personally if they sorted out the aquatics centres wings or just made the bloddy building bigger to accommodate the seating I really do believe that the complaints about the Olympics being cheapened would just not happen. Was not the swimming the most popular of sports in the Beijing Olympics? so why do we have to have a botched non legacy mode building?

[DarJoLe]

Because it was designed too big for the site it was being built on.

[Madman]

Also a 20,000 capacity (easily filled during the games) is totally unsustainable in legacy mode, so something had to change anyway in the design from games mode to legacy - just she and the ODA have caused it to be a rather inelegant transition.

[Bob]

Excellent, that's really quite beautiful. I'm so glad the wood cladding stays.

[Horizon911]

Not a bad effort on the outside, looks like a giant curvy wood cabin, but not keen on the interior. Too claustrophobic. Would prefer a lot more natural light.

[Octoman]

Very nice! Love the exterior.
Hoperfully they improve on the interior roof. Looks a bit confrence centre-ish.

[tuten]

Although to be honest, if you were there, just finished watching a final between two British teams you wouldn't say 'What an amazing race! Shame about the roof'

The exterior looks wonderful, lovely curves and fits in well with the surroundings, should be great!