TOI : Theme Parks Take A Bow : Aug 19, 2007
THEME PARKS TAKE A BOW
Crores are going to be pumped into the city’s pumping stations to turn them
into parks with themes that reflect the cultural and social history of the
neighbourhood. It’s flowers for Dadar and fish for Mahim
Shalini Nair | TNN
When the Brihannumbai Municipal Corporation goes on a beautifying spree,
its efforts usually elicit guarded reactions from citizens. Ugly concrete
pots on pavements and Penguin dustbins with yawning mouths haven’t exactly
been a hit. Now, the corporation has unveiled an ambitious multi-crore plan:
a series of theme parks in different parts of the city.
The project is only just getting off the drawing board, but one
reassuring factor is that the themes are not bizarre Disney World or Sun
City confabulations imported from outside, but local concepts rooted in the
cultural and social history of the neighbourhood. The sensitivity to city
heritage, say architects, is a positive sign, though execution will
determine the quality and draw of the parks.
Dadar will sprout a flower park in a colourful nod to its bustling
flower market, and Mazgaon will host a massive 20-foot mural with scenes
from its once-thriving port life. Mahim, which has the dubious distinction
of having one of the filthiest beaches in the world, will have a fishing
village off the causeway, where an old colony of fishermen have their boats
tethered.
This scheme is part of the BMC’s agenda to create oases for a city
starved of open spaces. Most of the theme gardens will abut busy streets and
be built on land used by the civic water and sewage departments. Pumping
stations and reservoirs, which make up the majority of the plots, are going
to get a green makeover with the BMC set to spend crores on these
projects-this year the civic budget earmarked Rs 400 crore for maintaining
open spaces. Next in line are plots at Worli, Bhandup Versova, Ghatkopar and
Bhandup.
Already in the process of construction is the aquatic-themed garden in
Powai, the largest and most expensive of the lot. Five other projects are
scheduled to take off this year, such as the ones at Dadar, Mahim, Mazgaon,
Colaba and Veravali in Andheri east. “Each theme was decided by a group of
consultants who studied the location and area of the plot,” said additional
municipal commissioner Manu Kumar Shrivastav.
The 28-acre Dadar garden (as large as the Oval maidan) will have a riot
of flowers blooming throughout the year, potted plants, exhibition prisms, a
conservatory and a nursery. Existing structures will be integrated into the
design, so ramps and terraces will be used for flower beds while lily ponds
will ripple in old tanks, with rainbowcoloured flower ziggurats (a series of
steps) along the walls.
Visitors to the Mahim village will be treated to a view of the Arabian
Sea and the Mahim fort from the terrace of the pumping station. However,
access to the core ISO 900-approved pumping station, the largest in Asia,
will be restricted to students. “There will be no construction, only
redesign using rustic elements of coastal Maharashtra and Goa,” said an
architect from The Designers, the consultants for the project. So the
existing security cabin will have a thatched roof, the pavilion will be
remodelled into fishermen’s outhouses and the colour scheme will restrict
itself to terracotta and green. The apparatus and artefacts of fishing
life-boats, nets, tulsi vrindavan, grinding stones and rangoli-will be
worked into the design. Even the plants will be those native to the coastal
region such as palms and coastal shrubs and climbers.
The Colaba garden opposite the majestic Afghan Church will also offer a
sea view. “We are yet to decide on the specifics of this garden because of
the CRZ rules. As of now, we plan to have a public park, a conservatory and
a walkway along the sea,” said landscape architect Kishore Pradhan, the
consultant for Colaba and Mazgaon.
The Bhandarwada hill reservoir in Mazgaon already has the 127-year-old
Joseph Baptista garden with a panoramic view of the ports. “We will work
with existing structures. For example, there is a 20-foot-high drab concrete
wall staring at you. We could engage an artist to create a bold mural
depicting port images,” said Pradhan. A rock below this wall will serve to
create a water cascade. In addition, there will be a garden maze and a play
area with abstract elements to stimulate children’s imagination.
The rest of the city will have to wait until these parks start
functioning and their success is assessed. Architects warn that unless
construction quality, aesthetics, and upkeep are controlled, the theme could
remain a dream.
THEME GARDENS FOR 2007
BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR UDYAN, POWAI
AQUATIC THEME, 40 ACRES, RS 38 CRORE
DADAR PUMPING STATION
FLOWER GARDEN, 28.8 ACRES, RS 35 CRORE
BHANDARWADA HILL RESERVOIR, MAZGAON
MURALS, 30 ACRES, RS 5 CRORE
MAHIM PUMPING STATION
FISHING VILLAGE THEME, 5.7 ACRES, RS 5 CRORE
COLABA WASTE-WATER TREATMENT FACILITY
TO BE DECIDED, 3 ACRES, RS 3 CRORE
VERAVALI RESERVOIR, ANDHERI (EAST)
TO BE DECIDED, 33 ACRES, RS 8 CRORE
IN THE PIPELINE
Worli Hill Reservoir Bhandup Reservoir
Bandra Influent Pumping Station and Waste Water Treatment Facility
Versova Lagoons
Old Ghatkopar Pumping Station
New Ghatkopar Pumping Station
Bhandup Influent Pumping Station
PETAL PERFECT: A model of the garden at Dadar which will have flower beds
and a conservatory for exotic flowers
A PATH UNTRAVELLED: The Mazgaon garden at the Bhandarwada hill reservoir
will have free-flowing walkways flanked by foliage and flowering shrubs
THATCH TO MATCH: The fishing village in Mahim will have thatched roofs and
cottages done up in earth tones
Publication:Times Of India Mumbai; Date:Aug 19, 2007; Section:Times City;
Page Number:5