Olympic Legacy:Flexible Architectural Strategies for Boston's 2024 Olympics Proposal

Abstract

The Olympics present the perfect opportunity for host cities to show their value to the world. This opportunity introduces immeasurable pressure to create an impressive display of entertainment for the spectators. The architecture and planning of the Olympic venues provide the optimal platform for countries to impress the world where the architectural forms, innovation, and technology are on full display. What happens to the Olympic venues when the events conclude? How can buildings be designed to, first of all, host the games and impress the viewers, and secondly, be used efficiently for decades after the closing of the Olympic events? Boston withdrew their proposal to host the Summer Olympic Games in 2024 due to lack of public support. This paper introduces flexible design strategies for the sports venues in Boston’s original proposal that allows the buildings to be adaptively reused after the Olympic events conclude. Through site analysis and efficient design, Olympic venues can change to suit the needs of the city and its inhabitants. The event venue spectrum established for this paper places strictly temporary venues on one end and permanent venues on the other end, while flexible design strategies are a mixture of those two types. Case studies of past Olympics and individual venues (temporary and permanent) establish a set of design guidelines that influence a new model of Olympic venues. An analysis of flexible design strategies provides the adaptability that is required for Olympic venues to establish a lasting legacy.