The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) claims that London’s bid for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games is at risk because of “clumsy approaches” to local businesses by the bid’s “avaricious” property consultants.
A report says that the London Development Agency owns only 75 acres of the 500 acres in East London, site of the proposed Olympic precinct. It must acquire at least 50 per cent before the bid is submitted in November or London could be disqualified.
RICS spokesman Philip Challinor said the agency and its property consultants CB Richard Ellis have upset the 300-strong local business community and created a resistance to land sales that could put the entire bid at risk.
The consultants are telling landowners and businesses that they will be compulsorily purchased if they do not sell the land cheaply.
London Development Agency (LDA) property director Tony Winterbottom said most of the businesses would sell as soon as they realized the LDA was offering between 500,000 and 800,000 pounds an acre, but he agreed his agents behaved badly.
Property Consultants CB Richard Ellis said, “we are aware of the concerns raised by a number of landowners last year. Since November we have been working to ensure that the land acquisition work to deliver successful urban regeneration through the Olympic bid is handled as sensitively as possible”.
