San Francisco Eyes Waterfront Redevelopment for America's Cup Bid

The City of San Francisco has unveiled a broad waterfront redevelopment plan in accordance with its bid to host the America's Cup.

[I]f city officials are successful in their plan to host the next America's Cup, the drab Piers 30-32 would be transformed into a striking bayfront amphitheater and sailing showplace - a focal point of a revived waterfront stretching from the Bay Bridge to south of AT&T Park - all without tapping taxpayer funds.

Under a proposal that Mayor Gavin Newsom's administration recently presented to race organizers, the city would provide free land and future development rights on the property in exchange for the America's Cup event authority paying $100 million to $150 million to shore up the piers, dredge the area around them, and install new breakwaters and utility lines.

San Francisco's plan for hosting America's Cup
San Francisco Chronicle
September 4, 2010

Olympics: Causing or Curing Ecological Issues in Sochi?

A Russian vice-premier is trying to convince locals that the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi will help the resort city to deal with various ecological problems, despite reports that construction for the event had been tainting the environment.

"The main heritage of the Olympics is that ecological problems will be resolved. We have been eliminating dumps, launching an incinerator, and will resolve the issue of polluted water run-off into the sea," Kozak told reporters during a working visit to Sochi.

Last week, the head of the city's ecological council was quoted by Russian daily Novaya Gazeta as saying that the ecological situation in Sochi had worsened significantly over the past six months mainly because of the growing number of cars and increasing construction pace combined with the absence of full-fledged environmental protection measures.

Winter Olympics will help tackle ecological problems in Sochi - Russian vice-premier
Ria Novosti
September 13, 2010

Bid Deadline Nears for London Olympic Stadium Takeover

A deadline is approaching for private firms to submit bids to take over operations of the new Olympic stadium being built for the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

So far only three parties are known to have expressed an interest but a "handful" of others are expected in the next fortnight.

They have until September 30 to submit their bids to the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC).

The OPLC is the body which is tasked with finding a tenant for the 80,000-seater venue in Stratford, east London.

Who'll Take Over London Olympic Stadium?
Sky News
September 16, 2010

New Terminal Opens at Sochi Airport

A new $200 million USD terminal has opened at the Sochi airport, the first of the city's broad Olympics-related projects to complete.

The terminal is the first major facility commissioned for the games and ticks off a box on Russia’s long to-do list in preparation for the event.

The new terminal is fully operational and services both domestic and international flights. It boasts the latest know-how in ecological and resource efficiency and the most modern equipment, the company said in a statement.

New Sochi Airport Terminal Opens
The Moscow Times
September 17, 2010

Sochi Olympics Fuel Transportation Infrastructure Spending

Transportation infrastructure spending is on the rise on Sochi, Russia, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics. Industry officials expect the national market to increase 4% to roughly $23.5 billion USD.

Spending to build roads and bridges for the 2014 Sochi Olympics has already peaked, he said, as the projects are slated to be operational in 2012.

Despite the impressive size of Russia's road construction market, it has no foreign contractors because of the high entry barriers, Mozalyov said.

Infrastructure Spending Is Rising, Builders Say
The Moscow Times
September 17, 2010

Bridge Collapse Just One Worry at New Delhi's Commonwealth Games

The collapse of a bridge near one of the main stadia to be used in the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi highlights construction delays. Some are concerned that venues won't be ready in time and that the event will have to be postponed.

Representatives of the dozens of countries participating in the Commonwealth Games, a quadrennial competition among members of the Commonwealth of Nations, started arriving in Delhi in recent days to look at facilities and conduct security checks. The athletes’ village, built for the Games, is not ready, they say, and questions linger about security after an attack on tourists in Delhi on Sunday.

On Tuesday afternoon, a bridge next to Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the main Games venue, fell apart. The footbridge collapsed into three pieces, taking several workers with it and uprooting one side of the arch that supported it.

Bridge Collapses at Commonwealth Games
The New York Times
September 21, 2010