VMC plans ‘see-through’ parks to improve city’s aesthetic value

Move will also check misuse by anti-social elements, says Commissioner

The green approach: Works worth about ₹40 lakh were going on and a lot had been improved in the Rajiv Gandhi Park.

The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation is going to adopt a new design approach in making green spaces part of the city life by doing away with the traditional concept of having compound walls that apparently exclude public from what is meant to be a common space.

All the existing parks in the city are surrounded by several foot high compound walls for the protection of the property and to keep miscreants at bay. However, on several occasions parks have been misused by miscreants and is among the reasons behind colony residents abandoning the parks despite being close to them.

Taking a leaf out of Brazil’s Sao Paulo city which has such parks, VMC would emulate the concept in the city while designing new parks.

VMC Commissioner V. Prasanna Venkatesh took part in the global meeting of Global Platform for Sustainable Cities hosted by Sao Paulo.

“The ‘see-through’ parks will have only footpaths, benches and cattle traps to prevent the entry of stray animals. High compound walls hide parks from the view of public while greenery is meant to be visible and increase the aesthetic value of the surroundings,” Mr. Venkatesh said.

“With no compound walls parks could no longer be misused by anti-social elements. Only because they are available as safe havens people misuse it,” he said.

Mr. Venkatesh said that there were plans to remove walls of a major park in the city. “We want to have it open and visible to all amid the concrete jungle. It will add recreational value to the city,” he said.

The same concept will be followed in designing several upcoming parks in the city, he said.

4 new parks

He said works worth about ₹40 lakh were going on and a lot had been improved in the Rajiv Gandhi Park and designs for the development of Raghavaiah and B.R. Ambedkar Park were being prepared.

Mr. Venkatesh said that discussions were under way to make a commercial park open to all for free while handing over the rides and paraphernalia and park maintenance to private partners under PPP.

Under Centre’s AMRUT scheme, four parks including one each in LIC Colony and Urmila Subba Rao Nagar would be developed soon. In addition, 10 parks would be developed across the city and tenders for designing had been called. He said the design for the central park at ₹50 crore was also ready.

Meanwhile, VMC has asked the Amaravati Development Corporation to hand over three projects for better maintenance. Works for landscaping of Eluru and Ryves canals are also under way.