From Paul Kelso
The British Olympic Association has formed an unlikely alliance with Mick Jagger as it attempts to strike a lucrative deal for the sale of its headquarters in Wandsworth.
It is set to leave its attractive but impractical town house on Wandsworth Plain and, with the developer Minerva carrying out a major redevelopment of the nearby Youngs Brewery and the surrounding area, the time is right to sell.
The connection with the Rolling Stone comes because the BOA occupies Nos 1-4 on the Plain, Jagger owns Nos 5-6, and each has a one-third share, with Capital Studios, of Nos 7-9, which complete the terrace. Jagger and the BOA are in talks about agreeing a single price with the developers for the buildings as a set, and their success in securing a high price will have a major bearing on the BOA’s future.
A decision has not yet been made on where it will move to but a temporary relocation to Canary Wharf, home of the London 2012 organising committee and the Olympic Delivery Authority, cannot be ruled out. In the long term the BOA could move into the Olympic Park post-2012, but with uncertainty surrounding what use the stadium will be put to after the Games, and where the promised British Olympic Institute will be based, no final decision will be made this year.
Read Kelso’s full column on the Guardian website by clicking here (will require registration)