How Olympic Villages evolved into sustainable urban legacies

Following suit during the 1936 Berlin Games, architect brothers Werner and Walter March master-planned the Olympic Village built in Elstal–part of today’s Wustermark municipality in Brandenburg—to host almost 4,000 athletes participating in the Games that year.

In addition to a fancy reception building and a semi-circular House of Nations with 38 dining halls, more than 140 residential buildings, separate kitchens, a sports hall, a swimming pool, and a hospital were built here.

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By the late 20th century, Olympic Villages had become large-scale construction projects. These developments often provided local residents with high-density public housing or repurposed into student accommodations for university campuses.

These include those for the Georgia Institute of Technology following the 1996 Atlanta Games  and the University of Utah and Fort Douglas after the 2002 Salt Lake City Games.

While growing criticism emerged regarding the environmental and economic impact of these large developments, some of the Olympic Villages successfully evolved into proper neighbourhoods: La Vila Olímpica emerged on the reclaimed sea front in Poblenou after the 1992 Barcelona Games, and Newington, is a new suburb following the 2000 Sydney Games.

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Master-planned by Millennium Development Group, the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Village was repurposed into a mixed-use neighbourhood called the Southeast False Creek–Canada’s first LEED Platinum community with a sustainable urban development that features energy-efficient buildings and extensive green spaces across a mix of market-rate and social housing to promote social diversity.

East Village in London, on the other hand, was adapted from the 2012 Olympic Village. Master-planned by Fletcher Priest Architects, it’s a thriving mixed-use neighbourhood with nearly 3,000 homes including 1,379 for affordable housing, fitted with amenities such as schools, health centres, and retail spaces.

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Many, however, were seen as “white elephants”—expensive developments with little use or yielded little to no profit after the Games concluded. 

The 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Village stands out as a cautionary tale in more recent years, as the US$700 million complex–the largest in Olympic history—was slated for conversion into luxury condominiums post-Games.

However, Brazil’s economic downturn dealt a severe blow to these ambitions, further contributing to the US$13 billion financial disaster of the Rio Games, when much of its infrastructure built solely for the Olympics were abandoned or underused. 

Business Insider reported that by 2017, a mere 7 per cent of the 3,600 apartments had found buyers, leaving the vast majority of the development vacant, while the remote location and lack of surrounding infrastructure further dampened interest in the properties over the years.

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While economic conditions influence the sustainability of Olympic Villages significantly, the shifting perceptions have also impacted future infrastructure planning, as the International Olympic Committee now requires bid cities to present concrete legacy plans for these projects.

Recent Olympic Village designs not only align with fluid economic realities but also emphasise on sustainability. This includes increased use of modular or temporary structures that can be easily repurposed or relocated, as well as greater focus on integrating these developments with existing urban plans to ensure long-term viability for local communities.

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The ongoing conversion of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Village into a mixed-use residential area, Harumi Flag, aims to create a diverse community reflecting the country’s ageing population and urban planning needs, with units specifically designated for seniors and families with children.

Master-planned by Nikken Sekkei, the thoughtful design and focus on sustainability is also apparent in the Village Plaza. The single-storey festive space with overhead eaves reminiscent of a traditional porch, conveyed Japanese charm by combining the lightness of temporary architecture and the softness of wood.

Remarkably, the Plaza utilised up to 40,000 pieces of timber sourced from local governments across Japan. Post-Games, the materials were dismantled and returned to their respective municipalities for transformation into benches and public facilities.

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The 2024 Paris Olympic Village has come a long way since its complex of mere cabins built near the stadium 100 years ago.

The Olympic Village project this year, led by Dominique Perrault Architecture (DPA), spans 54 hectares across three communes in Seine-Saint-Denis, and aims to reduce carbon emissions by 47 per cent compared to a conventional development project.

Overseen by the Olympic Games delivery authority Solideo, the Village includes distinctive apartment blocks designed by Brenac & Gonzalez & Associés, comprising a gridded, hybrid structure of timber and concrete, with a terracotta-tiled façade decorative enamels in different forms and reflections.

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Besides that, lining the verdant streets are 350 energy-efficient LED street lamps designed by Studio 5.5 and Concepto, made from salvaged materials, such as reused galvanised steel and laminated wood.

From 2025 onwards, the current infrastructure will transform into a new neighbourhood with 2,800 homes–2,000 for families, 800 for students–designed to accommodate up to 6,000 residents in total.

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