Contributor(s): Alison Nimmo | In the past 10 years London has seen the resurgence of Regent Street to one of the globe’s most iconic streets and the regeneration of London’s East End catalysed by London 2012. Hear from Alison Nimmo who helped to win and deliver the Olympic Park and is now chief executive of the Crown Estate, a business that is using its expertise and extraordinary assets to transform the heart of London’s West End. Alison Nimmo joined The Crown Estate as chief executive in January 2012. The Estate’s assets range from prime real estate in London’s West End, to around 50% of the UK’s foreshore and almost the entire seabed around the UK, to farmland and forestry. With a capital value of over £8billion the business pays its surplus revenue (profit) to the Treasury for the benefit of the nation every year: in 2012/13 this was £252.6 million. Alison spent five years with the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) where, as director of design and regeneration, she was responsible for delivering the overall design and early delivery of many of the venues for the London 2012 games. Alison specialises in urban regeneration and was awarded a CBE in 2004. Her previous roles have included chief executive of Sheffield One and project director of Manchester Millennium Ltd. Alison is also a non-executive director at Berkeley Group and a visiting professor for Sheffield Hallam University. In January 2014 Alison was awarded the prestigious Royal Town Planning Institute Gold Medal for services to planning throughout her career.