Bangkok will get 40 to 50 new pocket parks this year, says BMA
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) will this year open 40 to 50 small public parks that will be just 15 minutes away for most communities.
A BMA source, who asked not to be named, said on Sunday that the city administration was taking steps to set up the parks in line with Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt’s election promise.
Chadchart had promised to turn small unused plots in Bangkok into parks for locals to escape the heat and exercise.
The first such park will be developed by the Lat Phrao district office, which has been given a 400-square-wah plot (1,600 square metres) by a real-estate firm. The office said it will spend one to two months to turn the plot into a pocket park.
The BMA operates 40 main public parks and plans to add another 40 to 50 pocket parks by encouraging the private sector into giving up unused land, the source said. One of the incentives offered to private companies is waiver of land tax.
The BMA is also surveying deserted plots with no public access and space in front of large buildings to turn them into pocket parks. All pocket parks will be made clearly visible on Google Maps and other navigation apps, the source added.
