Moylan hopes Olympic legacy housing could win Stirling Prize

Speaking at the opening of David Kohn’s £550,000 White Building arts centre on the Olympic fringe in Hackney Wick, the recently appointed chair said that winning the £20,000 award for the Queen Elizabeth Park housing projects was ‘just as important’ as any of the major venues landing the prize.

His remarks come just 24 hours after the ODA mistakenly claimed the Populous-designed Olympic Stadium had landed a place on the Stirling Prize shortlist.

Sidestepping a question about the blunder, he said: ‘It would be great if the Aquatics Centre or Velodrome or Olympic Stadium won the prize. We would also like to see the housing developments win the Stirling Prize, this is just as important.’

Explaining his vision for the area’s regeneration, he said: ‘This is a question I am looking for an answer on. We have one or two modes of regeneration we know we don’t want here. We also have a very wide range of opinion.’

He added: ‘There are issues about the extent to which the Queen Elizabeth II Park is public space or managed space. Finding something intellectually and conceptually that can bring people together is the most you can hope for.’

Moylan said a decision on the chosen developer for the park’s first legacy neighbourhood – Chobham Manor – could be made at a board meeting on Tuesday next week.

Architects teamed up with developers vying for the role include MAKE, PRP, Muf, Allies and Morrison and Maccreanor Lavington.

Moylan also said a planning application to transform the Olympic Stadium after the Games would be submitted ‘quite soon’. The project is being designed by the stadium’s original architect, Populous.

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