More than a decade after London hosted the Olympic Games, cranes are still everywhere in and around the Olympic Park in Stratford, where an array of buildings are under construction.
But most of the "affordable" housing for the east London area is still to be delivered.
The 2012 Summer Games - widely seen as a roaring success - were held primarily at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Newham, one of the city's poorest boroughs.
Heavily industrial in the 19th century, the factories, workshops and nearby docks had declined by the 1960s and 1970s, leaving behind polluted land and an increasingly deprived population.
Bidding for the Olympics, the organizers' promise was clear - the Games would provide the "enduring legacy" of regenerating "an entire community for the direct benefit of everyone who lives there."
That included plans to build tens of thousands of homes, particularly social housing at so-called affordable rates, alongside new amenities.
But critics say the transformation taking place is not living up to the pledges made over affordability.
Nearly 12 years after the global showcase, new residents continue to stream into newly built homes in the area.
Cafes and gyms have appeared alongside a superb Olympic swimming pool. The park's green spaces are perfect for joggers and walkers, while a big Westfield shopping center has opened. A new railway line arrived in 2022, taking passengers to and from central London in 15 minutes.
The Victoria and Albert Museum, the Sadler's Wells dance venue and the BBC will all soon be opening branches in the park, while universities are also moving in.
Local resident Julia Johnson, 33, relocated from central London two years ago with her partner.
"The apartments are high-quality design. The neighborhood is lovely," the project manager said.
But Johnson pays 2,300 (HK$18,000) a month for a two-bedroom flat - a similar rate to some of the city's central districts.
"In other blocks friends are paying 3,000," she noted.
Nearly 12,400 homes have been built in and around the Olympic site, but only around 1,000 - less than 10 percent - are social housing units, according to figures from the London Legacy Development Corporation.
Newham has some of the poorest neighborhoods not only in London but the entire UK.
Narjiss Kadiri, a 45-year-old housewife, lives just beyond the park.
She rented a private flat in the area with her husband and their five children, initially for 1,000 a month, which then was increased to 1,400.
The rent leapt to 1,800 when she moved out two years ago after securing a 600-a-month social housing flat following an 18-year wait.
In Newham, rental rates surged by 20 percent over the last three years - the biggest rise of any London borough.
In 2023, the average rent for a flat there was 1,850.
Demand for social housing in Newham was the second highest in England in 2022, according researcher Penny Bernstock. The increases are "particularly problematic given the income profile of Newham residents," she said.
"There is evidence of an Olympic effect, with the borough experiencing some of the highest house price growth in the owner-occupied and privately rented sector in London."
But borough-wide, the Games have led to "some good things," Bernstock acknowledged.
"They have built fantastic schools because they wanted to attract families to the area and improve educational activities," she said.
Meanwhile crime levels on Stratford's outskirts have fallen.
"The area is much safer than it was before the Games," Kadiri said.
Nearly 12,400 homes have been built in and around the Olympic site, but only around 1,000 – less than 10 percent – are social housing units. AFP
