AoU Journal - Here & Now - Autumn 2024

Major events require painstaking planning, resources, commitment, and real estate. Especially in the context of the Olympics which are enormous, and roam the earth on a four yearly cycle. The venues and infrastructure required can be highly specific and have been criticised as unsustainable and costly. In response, we saw France taking a novel approach to venue creation.

Once these venues are created and the Games complete, what is left is the long tail of legacy. A fantastic opportunity if correctly approached, or a missed opportunity, if not.

As such in this publication, we address the twin topics of major sporting events and legacy. Marcus Adams from JTP looks back at two significant places to distil his placemaking lessons learnt, Kay Hughes addresses the legacy question through an analysis of Barcelona versus London, and Rymer Leverett considers if L.A’s 2028 car free Olympics could be the most exciting games yet.

Leyla Moy transports us with a piece on tailgating culture and, closer to home, Harrison Brewer sees a town refreshed through the power of football. Rose Jump and Victoria Smyth stay on theme to provide a fascinating exposé of the local economic impact of women’s football on local high streets.

We have a new feature - our ‘spotlight’ series - in which Heather Claridge provides a personal account of her experience growing up with the Academy.

On top of this, we have a new ArtPlace from our resident artist David Rudlin, two new MyPlaces, and Jon Alexander’s book Citizens is given the Brewer treatment as Harrison sees a shift in approach to a more equitable future. And the Urban Idiot returns, irate at level crossings.

We continue our partnership with BPD’s Good City initiative and publish the Toronto essay. 

Finally, the issue wraps with Andreas Markides, our resident philosopher,providing a considered look at the Olympics through time.

The editorial team