£2m to be spent on facelift for the East End of London prior to the 2012 Olympics
Buildings along planned marathon route to be cleaned up
6 May 2009
A TOTAL of £2m will be spent sprucing up the East End in preparation for the 2012 Olympic marathon.
More than 1 billion TV viewers are expected to watch the race, which will go through Whitechapel, Mile End and Bow towards the Olympic Stadium at Stratford.
Tower Hamlets Council is set to put £1m towards a project to clean up some of the route’s shabbiest buildings along the A11 – which it has dubbed High Street 2012.
English Heritage has already agreed to spend £1m on the project to restore “poorly maintained” historic buildings and sweep away unauthorised extensions and shop signs.
Owners of buildings will be given grants to carry out work under council supervision, while those who refuse to comply will be forced to carry out the work.
As well as restoring some 60 facades, High Street 2012 will improve the streets and green spaces along the 26.2-mile route.
The aim is to show the world a “vision of a world-class and thriving high street”, a report by Tower Hamlets said.
“However, the main intention is not short-term ‘street dressing’ but a longer term programme of works that will reveal some of the streets’ rich history and contribute to the regeneration of the area.”
It is hoped funding will be found for another 60 renovations, which may cost £3m.
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