London Stadium hires architects to plan the land around it: hotels, food and a possible second venue

This follows yesterday's story, London Stadium wants 24 concerts a year. That one is about how the stadium is used. This one is about what could be built next to it.

London Stadium has appointed the architects Populous to work out what could be built on the land around the stadium, on its island in the Park. Populous announced the appointment on 6 October. Populous designed the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Fulham's Riverside Stand.

What is being studied

Populous says the study will look at turning the stadium and its surroundings into "a leisure-led, mixed-use destination". The uses on its list are:

• leisure and entertainment
• hospitality and hotels
• conferencing
• food and drink
• a possible secondary venue

The study also covers landscaping and public space across the stadium island, including the canalside, and links to the rest of the Park.

City AM reported on 7 October that there had been reports of a basketball arena on the site, and that the Park's land managers had not ruled it out. That is a report, not a plan. Nothing in the announcement names a basketball arena.

Who said what

A London Stadium spokesperson told City AM: "We have now appointed Populous to explore potential development and leisure opportunities."

Declan Sharkey of Populous said the work "will explore how new leisure, hospitality and public realm uses could make better use of the surrounding land".

What it could mean for East Village

Nothing has been decided. There is no planning application, and neither announcement gives a timeline. Populous says the work builds on a feasibility study from 2024 and will shape "a shared planning vision" with Newham Council, so any scheme would go through Newham's planning process before anything is built.

If something does come forward, the questions that matter here are the ones the concerts application raised: more people on more days, and how they get to and from Stratford station. A hotel or a second venue would bring activity on non-event days too, which the announcement gives as one of its aims.

What to do

Nothing yet. When a planning application is filed, it will appear on Newham Council's planning register, and I will cover it. Comments on the separate concerts application go to Newham under reference 26/01784/FUL.

Photo: London Stadium by Daniel from Glasgow, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.