Morning walkers on the Marina may soon be able to pace the stretch from Anna Square to Adyar Creek without hindrance. The proposed Marina beautification drive is all set to improve aesthetics along the Marina Loop Road from Light House to Srinivasapuram.
The loop road will get better pavements although the road will not be widened. The State government has given its nod to the proposal for beautification of the Marina with focus on heritage structures on the western side of Kamarajar Salai, improvement of footpaths on Kamararajar Salai and Loop Road. Steps will be taken to improve the aesthetics of the fishing settlement in the area.
Statues, including those of Mahatma Gandhi, Nethaji Subash Chandra Bose, Thiruvalluvar, Kambar, and Subramania Bharathiar, will be renovated. This is yet another attempt to beautify the beach. The previous DMK regime had already spent Rs.25.92 crore on a beautification project, which was completed in December 2009.
Mayor Saidai Duraisamy last year told the Chennai Corporation Council that the civic body would beautify the beach. However, the proposal failed to take off over issues related to rehabilitation of shopkeepers on the beach. There are over 1,000 vendors and the civic body has identified some who own several shops in the 3.1 km long beach, from Triumph of Labour Statue to Light House.
The proposed beautification will focus on flowering plants and improving lush green landscape.
The Madras High Court, in January, granted an interim injunction restraining authorities from allowing anybody to carry on business and run shops on the entire stretch of the Marina. The petitioner, a lawyer, had said the beach, the second longest in the world, was today “the dirtiest beach in the world.”
