Reuse and repurpose: Turning old assets into new gold

Host countries have used mega events like the Olympics and Paralympics as a conduit and accelerator for large-scale infrastructure development. According to statistics from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), approximately 816 permanent venues were built across 51 Games, from Athens 1896 to PyeongChang 2018. 

Of those, around 690 venues are still in use, while 124 were either demolished or destroyed, replaced by new buildings, or removed for not having a working business model. Unfortunately, some 36 venues were either closed or abandoned.

As part of the Olympic Agenda 2020, the IOC actively encouraged host countries to use temporary facilities or overlays instead of constructing new infrastructure. This is part of a recent move to drive sustainable urban development and a lasting, positive legacy for host cities.

First tested at the Tokyo 2020 Games, the New Norm approach is increasingly crucial to hosting a modern Olympic Games, meeting increasingly high expectations of sustainability and longer-term economic viability.

In respect to venue sustainability, the IOC recommended the following:

• Encouraging temporary venues over constructing new ones
• Allowing sporting events to take place outside of the host city if appropriate
• Basing Games on long-term sustainability, particularly from an economic perspective. 

The costs of sustainability measures have already been reflected in Paris’s Games expenditure. The budget for Paris 2024 is much lower than previous Olympics, operating on a EUR 8.9 billion budget (approximately AUD 14.7 billion), which is much lower than London 2012 (approximately USD 17 billion, EUR 15 billion, AUD 26 billion), Rio 2016 (USD 24 billion, EUR 22 billion, AUD 36 billion) and Tokyo 2020 (over USD 14 billion, EUR 13 billion, AUD 21 billion).

It is worth noting that this budget is separate from the EUR 1.4 billion (USD 1.5 billion, AUD 2.3 billion) and EUR 3.5 billion (USD 3.8 billion, AUD 5.8 billion) budgets for cleaning up the Seine River and extending the Metro transport system, respectively.

France’s asset transition strategy can be divided into four categories: existing, temporary, new permanent, and new modular. Each category had a different transition plan, depending on the nature and ownership of the assets.

Existing venues such as the Stade de France, Roland-Garros Stadium, Parc des Princes, and the Accor Arena were used with very little modifications needed for the sports they were built for.

Utilising their existing tourist attractions, Paris repurposed the Eiffel Tower, Champs-Élysées, the Grand Palais Éphémère and the Place de la Concorde to hold events such as beach volleyball, cycling, fencing, and skateboarding. These temporary venues will be dismantled after the Games, without leaving a permanent footprint.

Aside from the Saint-Denis Aquatics Centre and Olympic Park, the remaining two permanent venues are primarily for housing guests and are located in areas that are in need of social development. The Olympic Village, which hosts athletes and officials and has a capacity of 17,000 beds, is located north of Paris, in the suburbs of Saint-Ouen, Saint-Denis, and L'Île-Saint-Denis. The village will be converted into affordable housing and social facilities after the Games. The Media Village, which hosts members of the media during the Games and has 4,000 beds, is in the Le Bourget suburb and will be converted to housing and public spaces after the Games.

Modular venues and facilities are those that encourage flexibility in reuse or relocation and can be assembled and disassembled when needed. A great example is that of the Place de La Concorde where a series of overlays will transform the iconic landmark area into venues for BMX freestyle, breaking and skateboarding.

Building new infrastructure requires a significantly higher financial investment for host cities, especially around sourcing and purchasing construction materials, given current global supply chain constraints. If all goes to plan, Los Angeles 2028 will be held without the need to build any new venues. As we’ve seen in Paris, new venues might not even be needed in the first place. 

A greater emphasis on successful asset transition can also be a springboard for deeper community engagement. Through needs assessment and constant collaboration, asset management planning is better placed to deliver a lasting positive legacy on communities well beyond the Olympic Games.

A key benefit of the Aquatics Centre in Saint-Denis is that children within that community will soon have a venue in which they can learn how to swim. The Sydney Olympic Park, which was built for the 2020 Olympics, is now a major event and entertainment site that is also used for community and elite sports.

Repurposing existing infrastructure aligns not only with the Olympic Agenda 2020 and its New Norm plan, but also the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement. It is becoming increasingly critical to consider the environmental impact of major projects at the forefront of mega-event planning. Australia, in particular, is among the most vulnerable nations facing the impact of climate change, with a unique ecosystem at stake.

Central to building new venues is the careful consideration of community legacy, developing a venue that will not become a white elephant, or expensive to maintain with little future use. Ideally, a community asset that can be used by all and enjoyed long term, something that seamlessly improves and blends into the lives of the people living around it. 

Where does this leave us for Brisbane? Strategic asset management planning will play a critical role in how we utilise and enhance our existing infrastructure to better serve our communities and our guests during this global event. Proper asset transition will ensure that our infrastructure is repurposed effectively, leading to a more environmentally and economically sustainable Games.

Brisbane 2032 plans to have events outside of the host city, including the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and other locations across Queensland. This is a first and part of a broader regional ecosystem that will host both the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Importantly, venues constructed for the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games will also serve as key Olympic and Paralympic venues.

Hosting the Games in 2032 offers many exciting opportunities to deliver lasting benefit to several communities. We have an opportunity to create enduring value through the projects we choose, especially in the asset transition space. After all, it’s not always about building more, but rather building better.