London legacy chief loses job over lack of anchor tenant for the Olympic Stadium
Andrew Altman, the chief executive of the London Legacy Development Cooperation, will leave his job after the conclusion of the Olympic Games. He is thereby paying the price for failing to secure the future of the stadium. His exit was announced just 24 hours after new chairman Daniel Moylan formally started work.
Attempts to find a long-term solution for the future use of the stadium has been disrupted several times by legal challenges that the LLDC has been unable to defend or counter satisfactorily, writes the Independent.
The retention of the athletics track has made the stadium generally unattractive to football clubs, and the LLDC has struggled with this fundamental problem.
The tender process for the stadium was launched for the third time last month and the deadline for bidders will be July 12. The most serious bidder is the West Ham football club, which remains the favourite to occupy the stadium. A second serious bid comes from the University of East London and, according to Telegraph Sport, bids were also received from University College of Football Business and a company claiming to bid on behalf of Formula One.
Moylan, writes the Independent, may also consider proceeding without a football tenant and rely on concerts and one-off events to cover the £10 million in maintenance costs rather than do a bad deal with West Ham. Income from the stadium is crucial as it is to pay for the upkeep of the entire Olympic park.
SOURCE: The Independent
Read also the World Stadium Index’ analysis of the future of the London Olympic stadium. Go to the theme page or download the relevant chapter of the report from here.