Athletes' Village (Glasgow 2014)
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The Athletes Village for the
2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games (), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014 (; ), were an international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Commonwealth Games as governed by the Commonwea ...
was situated on a site, in the east end of
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
. The project was designed by the Paul Stallan Studio @ RMJM. At first the site was used as accommodation for up to 8,000 athletes and officials from all over the
Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...
nations, as well as providing a retail area, recreation area, dining hall and medical facilities for the athletes. After the commonwealth games, the site was further developed and has up to 1,400 homes, a portion of which are available for social rental.


Location

The 35-hectare site, set in
Dalmarnock Dalmarnock (, ) is a district in the Scottish city of Glasgow. It is situated east of the city centre, directly north of the River Clyde opposite the town of Rutherglen. It is also bounded by the Glasgow neighbourhoods of Parkhead to the north-e ...
in Glasgow's East End, aims to be a purpose-built village at the heart of one of Europe's largest regeneration areas. Designed with input from athletes, the Village was right on the doorstep of the
Celtic Park Celtic Park is a Soccer-specific stadium, football stadium and the home of Scottish Premiership team Celtic F.C., Celtic, in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, Scotland. With a capacity of 60,832, it is the largest List of football stadiums in Sco ...
venue for the Opening Ceremony in July 2014, and the new
Commonwealth Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome The Commonwealth Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, known for sponsorship reasons as the Emirates Arena, is an indoor arena and velodrome in Dalmarnock, Glasgow, Scotland. Built for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, these venues hosted the badminto ...
, which were officially opened on 6 October 2012.


Planning and construction

Work first began for the project in August 2009, with the City Legacy Consortium chose the 35-hectare site in the east end of Glasgow. The site was previously a mix of residential, industrial and open spaces with significant areas of vacant land with approximately 1,600 people living in the immediate area in around 859 households. The Athletes Village created up 1,500 jobs in Glasgow ranging from architects and designers to apprentices and highly skilled tradesmen from all over the world. Site Clearance was required to allow the selective excavation of around of contaminated soils and materials from different sections across out of the site. The majority of which was treated on site to permit its reuse. Soil washing using a bespoke plant – which was assembled specifically for this contract – was used on roughly . This method of soil washing is an extremely sustainable remediation option which took place on site. As a result, very little of the material had to go to landfill meaning less lorry movements; thus reducing costs and
carbon footprint A carbon footprint (or greenhouse gas footprint) is a calculated value or index that makes it possible to compare the total amount of greenhouse gases that an activity, product, company or country Greenhouse gas emissions, adds to the atmospher ...
, a key target of the games as well as the
Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( ; ) is the Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. It is located in the Holyrood, Edinburgh, Holyrood area of Edinburgh, and is frequently referred to by the metonym 'Holyrood'. ...
. There was a focus on using energy and products which are both
sustainable Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...
and re-usable promoting a friendly, green image for the games and
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
. 10% of the energy used in the village was aimed to be generated by sources of renewable energy on site, which will be included in the construction of the site. Also, at the very least 10% of the material used for the construction of the village will be recycled already.


Facilities

Primarily the site was used as accommodation for the athletes competing in the games as well as team officials from every competing nation for the duration of the games. As well as accommodation the athletes' village also provided an exclusive retail area for the athletes as well as a dining hall and medical facilities.


After the games

Following the Games, when the temporary facilities were removed from the Games site, more land was cleared for housing, with up to 1,400 homes being built (including approximately 300 private homes, 400 homes for rent and a new 120-bed care home for the elderly). The mix of properties of different sizes and types will be important in creating a more diverse, yet balanced community in the area. This, in turn, will aid the sale of the properties. The unique design of the accommodation is highly flexible and allows for relatively simple post-Games retrofit. In 2016, plans were confirmed for the construction of a large primary school in the area. ''Riverbank Primary School'' opened in August 2019. A pedestrian footbridge was constructed across the river to access the Cuningar Loop, a landscaped park developed from previously undeveloped derelict land.


References


External links

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Glasgowarchitecture.co.ukCitylegacy.co.ukBbc.co.ukScotland.gov.ukInsidethegames.bizClydegateway.com
{{Areas of Rutherglen and Cambuslang 2014 Commonwealth Games venues Accommodations for sports competitions Areas of Glasgow Bridgeton–Calton–Dalmarnock