As Steve pointed out in the Or maybe there's an extra swan in the CGI? post, the ODA's latest 'unveiling' of plans for the Athletes Village landscaping contains nothing that hasn't already been publicised previously by LendLease (who are responsible for the project) on their own Athletes Village website.

However there's been unsurprising downgrading of the landscaping apparent in the CGI. Anyone remember the 'Cascades' that were supposed to go down the middle of the Village? These have been quietly forgotten by the ODA but the PR is curiously inconsistent.

The LendLease website currently still confidently claims

"There will be water – at the heart of the development, a spectacular series of pools tumbling over shallow waterfalls."

And housing association consortium Triathlon, who are managing the so-called affordable housing component, still feature the original wow-factor waterworld Masterplan fantasy on their website.

Here is the succession of visualisations looking southwest.

May 2008 - Expensive looking water features plus a tower block with pieces missing

March 2009 - Now we have pavement cafes and the water has reduced to a pool in the park area on the left. This is LendLease's idea of what they are constructing, from their theathletesvillage.com website, also featured on Triathlons

July 2009 - What's happening here? The tide has come in and there appears to be a beach.

August 2010 - From the ODA 'unveiling' - no more water, lots of pavement, the tree varieties have changed yet again, and some flying ducks. No sign of the '100,000 wild plants'