The cost of removing and reinstating London Stadium's retractable seats could have been avoided, official says.GETTY IMAGES
Senior officials responsible for the development of the London Stadium have admitted that they "got it wrong" over the design of the retractable seats that have become "one of the biggest contributors to the venue's financial woes," according to Martyn Ziegler of the LONDON TIMES. The £8M ($11.3M) cost of removing and reinstating the retractable seats each summer has caused a "big issue" and "could have been avoided," the London Assembly's budget monitoring committee heard on Wednesday. Former London Legacy Development Corp. Chair David Edmonds told the committee that the retractable seats were one of "three big issues" facing the stadium, "along with the failure to secure a naming rights partner and being unable to attract more events to the venue." Edmonds said, "The big issue is the impact of the seating decision on the ongoing cost of the stadium. In hindsight, the advice we had turned out not to be right. There is no suggestion we were negligent ... but in retrospect, clearly we did get it wrong." Edmonds also admitted that the LLDC was "forced to give in" to EPL side West Ham United's demands during negotiations on the deal for the club to rent the stadium, as it was the only bid left after Tottenham's proposal was rejected (LONDON TIMES, 3/22).
