17 September 2009
Cllr Chris Roberts, Leader of Greenwich Council, has reassured residents that the Greenwich Olympic legacy is safe, following news that projects intended to deliver a legacy of the 2012 Olympics have been cut by the London Development Agency because of financial issues.
Cllr Roberts said "Greenwich operated on the basis that the Government would never be able to deliver on its legacy plans. The moment the debate turned to costs, legacy was doomed. The fact is, stadiums and the Olympic Village simply have to be built and so in any debate about costs it is legacy which will always lose out.
"We always believed legacy would have to be generated locally and to this end our plans to maximise local employment, plant 2,012 trees, develop play and sports facilities in our playgrounds and parks and win Green Flag status for 12 parks will continue.
"Our initial legacy fund of £10.2 million has already risen with matched funding and external financing to almost £17.5 million. More than £7 million will be invested in state-of-the-art sports facilities at Thomas Tallis and Crown Woods schools, as part of a complete rebuild of these schools. A further £2.75 million will be invested in new sports facilities in local parks, playgrounds and housing estates as part of our ongoing commitment to deliver a real local legacy for the 2012 Games in Greenwich.
"Some £1 million will go towards developing a cultural Olympiad here in Greenwich and there will be a £1 million pot to invest in our wonderful parks and plant 2,012 trees in the borough in time for the Games."