Japan's ability to organise and deliver on major projects and its fortitude in the face of a major challenge – as demonstrated by rebuilding after the tsunami and Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster – is thought to have won it the 2020 Olympic bid. Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), stressed the importance to the IOC of ensuring the 2020 games is of the highest quality, saying: "Tokyo

Plans have been revealed to transform a 32-acre site in Kirkham, Lancashire into an £18m community sports, science and education centre. Plans for the Mill Farm site, drawn up by Frank Whittle Partnership, include a new 6,000-capacity home stadium for non-league AFC Fylde, a large indoor sports science building, a range of all-weather pitches for community use and a 63-bedroom hotel. There will also be a food store, a distribution

Netherlands-based hotel company citizenM has revealed plans to open two new hotels in London during 2014. The first to open will be citizenM Tower of London, a design-led 'pod hotel' which will be built over the exit hall of the Tower Hill London Underground Station. The nine storey hotel will comprise of 370 luxury modular bedrooms over eight floors, a ground floor cafe, bar, living room spaces and a SocietyM

The lavish JW Marriott Resort & Spa on the island of Sacca Sessola in Italy, which is set to open end of 2014, has announced details of its wellness offerings. The resort is situated 15 minutes by speedboat from Piazza San Marco in Venice. The Sacca Sessola is a 40-acre man-made island, is one of 118 islands in the Venetian lagoon. Spa consultant and management company GOCO, is developing a

YTL Hotels, part of Malaysian conglomerate YTL Corporation Berhad, has announced a new hotel and spa project in the UNESCO World Heritage City of Bath, UK. The Gainsborough Bath Spa, the company's first Classic Hotel in the UK, will open early in 2014. The hotel will have direct access to Bath's natural thermal waters. The 99-room property is located on Beau Street and made up of three historical buildings, each

The Regional Fund for Contemporary Art in the Centre region (FRAC Centre) will open its doors in a new location in France in September, with a striking public reception piece designed by architects Jakob + MacFarlane. The Turbulences, the public entrance area, features a cafeteria, bookshop and auditorium. The prefabricated tubular structure is covered in an anodised aluminium casing and will be programmed with lighting displays. The FRAC Centre will

Italy’s eagerly-awaited science museum, the eco-friendly Museo delle Scienze (MUSE), has opened in Trent, Italy, providing the public with an education about science, nature and the environment. MUSE offers a progressive range of displays, with visitors beginning at the top of the building in the mountains and working their way down to a rainforest at the bottom, as they gain an understanding in how habitats change with altitude. Some of

Queens Park Rangers Football Club (QPR) has begun initial talks over the possibility of building a new 40,000-capacity stadium. It's believed the club is looking into a site at Old Oak Common in West London – close to its current home Loftus Road, which has a capacity of 18,400 and has been deemed too small to fit in with QPR's plans of becoming a regular Premier League club. The club's

The Peterson Automotive Museum in Southern California will mark its 20th anniversary in 2014 with an exterior transformation and interior redesign, creating world class facilities displaying the art, culture and heritage associated with automobiles. The museum’s new exterior is designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates and will incorporate long ribbons of stainless steel that wrap around the redesigned red building, in order to create imagery linked to speed and the

Construction work to transform the London 2012 Olympic Stadium into a permanent sports and cultural venue has begun at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. During the work the stadium's capacity will be reduced from 80,000 to around 60,000 and a new roof will be fitted, covering every seat in the ground and improving the venue's acoustics. New retractable seating will also be installed so the lower bowl can be protracted

Plans have been approved to build a huge indoor surf centre in Snowdon, north Wales. Surf Snowdonia will be built on the site of a former aluminium factory and will feature a 30,000sq m (322,000sq ft) Wavegarden lake, 14,000sq m (150,000sq ft) wakeboarding lake, waterslide, restaurant, retail and indoor play facilities. The attraction will also include accommodation, with low impact, sleeping ‘pods’ to be located along the lake’s waterfront. Larger

Plans have been approved to build a huge indoor surf centre in Snowdon, north Wales. Surf Snowdonia will be built on the site of a former aluminium factory and will feature a 30,000sq m (322,000sq ft) Wavegarden lake, 14,000sq m (150,000sq ft) wakeboarding lake, waterslide, restaurant, retail and indoor play facilities. The attraction will also include accommodation, with low impact, sleeping ‘pods’ to be located along the lake’s waterfront. Larger

Hastings Pier will undergo a £14m restoration after the 140-year-old structure was almost completely destroyed by fire in 2010. The Hasting Pier Charity formally took ownership of the derelict pier following a Compulsory Purchase Order issued by Hastings Borough Council, forcing ownership from Panamanian company, Ravenclaw, after it failed to carry out repair work. Renovation work is due to start later this month. It will include a refurbishment of the

The architects who designed the pool at Sheffield's Ponds Forge have said that comments made by British Swimming – that the pool is 'too fast' – are a compliment. Earlier this week, Bill Furniss, head coach of British Swimming, said the pool at Ponds Forge "distorts swimmers' times" and that he's considering holding qualifying events for the Olympics and other major competitions elsewhere. Michael Hall, from architects FaulknerBrowns – the

Sir David Attenborough, the Eden Project's Tim Smit and science writer Mike Hanlon are supporting plans for Jurassica, a proposed £85m fossil attraction in Portland, Dorset. The attraction would be created by putting a glass roof over the disused Yeolands quarry and would house thousands of fossils which are currently being stored by the Natural History Museum. The attraction is likely to include animatronic dinosaurs and immerse experiences which enable

Velaa Private Island, a new luxury resort in the Maldives, will open in Q4 of 2013, with a Spa My Blend by Clarins. Privately owned and managed by Czech entrepreneurs Radka and Jiri Smejc, the Petr Kolar-designed resort is made up of 43 private villas and five four-bedroom residences, which focus on local materials and contemporary flourishes. Each private retreat offers a generous outdoor space and private pool. The spa

Amanresorts is to open a beachside resort and Aman Spa on the shores of Vietnam’s East Sea next month. Amano’i will be situated on a white-sand beach overlooking Vinh Hy Bay on the coast of Nui Chua National Park. The resort includes 31 pavilions and five Aman Villas, which fuse contemporary elegance with traditional Vietnamese architectural styles. Accompanying the resort is a full-service Aman Spa, as well as an elaborate

New York City officials are tackling obesity in the city by setting up the first ever Centre for Active Design, as well as announcing new legislation that will change the way new buildings and renovations are designed. Active Design was recently set up to combat architects' tendency to value convenience over health, often leading to a lazier lifestyle. The centre, which is a non-profit organisation, aims to promote changes to

A new Fairmont Hotel has been opened inside Azerbaijan's tallest building complex. Fairmont Baku, Flame Towers, is also the luxury brand's first development in the emerging destination of Azerbaijan. The incredible building, designed by HOK, cost $350m (£226.1m, €263.2m) and is completely covered with LED screens that display the movement of a fire visible from the farthest points of Baku. The hotel, located in one of the building's three towers,

Chinese billionaire Tony Fung’s A$4.2bn (US$3.75bn, £2.4bn) mega leisure development in Cairns, Australia has moved to the next stage, having been declared a ‘co-ordinated project’ – the first step in the Australian government’s planning approval process. The Aquis Resort at the Great Barrier Reef project would include nine luxury hotels, a 25,000-seater sports stadium, a casino and high-end retail space. The resort would offer 3,750 hotel rooms, 1,180 apartments and

Parts of the New York City skyline will be transformed over the next 30 years by the Hudson Yards development, a 26-acre, US$32.9bn (£21.5bn, €24.8bn) scheme, which has been in the planning stages since 2001. The overall development is being driven by the Hudson Yards Development Corporation, with New York City-based property firm Related Companies selected to work on the redevelopment. The centrepiece for the project is a mixed-use real

Artist's impressions, claiming to show detailed plans for a new football stadium in New York, US, have emerged on the imgur.com photo sharing website. The plans purport to show the new home of the New York City Football Club (NYCFC) - a new franchise due to enter Major League Soccer (MLS) in 2015. NYCFC was announced as the MLS's 20th franchise in May 2013 and is a joint venture between

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is accelerating its presence in Africa with the signing of a new management agreement for a luxury retreat in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company signed the long-term agreement with the owners of what was previously The Westcliff hotel in Johannesburg. The retreat, set on a cliffside garden estate in the northern suburbs, was closed on 30 June this year to undergo renovations and new construction.

English lifestyle brand, Laura Ashley, has opened the doors to its first luxury boutique hotel. The new venture comes as the company celebrates its 60th anniversary. Located in the Hertfordshire countryside, Laura Ashley The Manor, Elstree is set in a Tudor revival property, surrounded by 10-acres of woodland. The hotel features 49 guestrooms and suites, each individually designed using the current Laura Ashley Home collections. The Cavendish Restaurant & Terrace

A new £45m leisure complex, to be built in Bournemouth, has been earmarked as better than "any other on the south coast", according to the developer. Work on the mixed-use development, which is being developed and managed by the Osborne Group, will start in February next year. The complex, which will create around 300 jobs, will include a nine-screen, 2,000-seat cinema, a linear rooftop garden with terrace, 14 restaurants, a

London Borough of Wandsworth's planning committee has given its consent for the £1bn Ram Brewery project in Wandsworth, London. The development will have a heavy emphasis on the heritage of the historic brewing site and will include nearly 10,000sq m (107,600sq ft) of leisure space. There will also be a micro-brewery and a brewing museum and 661 new homes - some of which will be located in a 36-storey landmark

The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Centre, Rugby's new leisure centre, is on track to opens its doors on 31 August. The new centre replaces the Ken Marriott Leisure Centre, which has been demolished after serving the town for 40 years. The centre, designed by B3 Architects, has been built on the site of the Ken Marriott Leisure Centre's car park. Facilities include two swimming pools, a 100-station gym, a climbing wall,