Have You Seen The New Pattaya City Sign?

[PATTAYAPUNTER]

http://www.pattayacitynews.net/news_10_01_50_2.htm

I've been up to the observation deck this week. While it's still a work in progress, I've noticed that it's not handicap friendly (steep stairs) with no handrails yet. The cliff is lower than Buddha Hill just over the boatyard south of Bali Hai Pier. The letters change colors every few minutes which is a nice touch.

The city has installed beautiful ornate benches but the benches for two only seats one comfortably as the back is only smooth on half the bench. This is not a typo. The other half has a ridged design which juts into your back. TiT.

I noticed CCTV cameras on some of the letters. I like to be an optimist but I believe there will be crime in this spot soon enough. With the deep embankment above the deck, illicit activities can occur unnoticed by the law.

Do you think it's chic or gaudy?

[eugengeri]

http://www.pattayacitynews.net/news_10_01_50_2.htm

I've been up to the observation deck this week. While it's still a work in progress, I've noticed that it's not handicap friendly (steep stairs) with no handrails yet. The cliff is lower than Buddha Hill just over the boatyard south of Bali Hai Pier. The letters change colors every few minutes which is a nice touch.

The city has installed beautiful ornate benches but the benches for two only seats one comfortably as the back is only smooth on half the bench. This is not a typo. The other half has a ridged design which juts into your back. TiT.

I noticed CCTV cameras on some of the letters. I like to be an optimist but I believe there will be crime in this spot soon enough. With the deep embankment above the deck, illicit activities can occur unnoticed by the law.

Do you think it's chic or gaudy?

Sorry, haven't seen this in person. I always interested in typographie and studied the pictures in your link above.

IMO they have chosen very poor letters for the word "P A T T A Y A" - same like a typewriter letter. I don't know the colors can compensate this. The letters for "City" I like.

[PATTAYAPUNTER]

Do you think this was a waste of money?

[eugengeri]

Do you think this was a waste of money?

If this is an art of a copy from the sign HOLLYWOOD - Yes.

[Nam Plah]

IMHO I think it nicely bookends Pattaya Bay.

Tooling down Beach Road the other night at 4AM I couldn't help but admire its placement, scale and coloration as it is clearly visible from the Dusit Resort all the way down to the new Bali High Center (under construction). Nice.

As long as they don't try to overly gentrify Walking Street like they Disneyed up New York's Times Square let the TOT beautify and upgrade the environs til the Kwai come home.

Good for tourist snapshots and keeps the locals feeling like the City Council is taking steps to improve the city's image.

IMO they have chosen very poor letters for the word "P A T T A Y A" - same like a typewriter letter.

Not to quibble but I know a fair amount about typography myself and these are not serif letterforms (the kind a traditional typewriter prints) but sans-serif and were probably chosen for their legibility at a distance.

Take a gander at them in person to see what I mean.

Notice the wide spacing between the letters, this also enhances the ability to read the words at a distance.

If they had chosen a swirly, swashy calligraphic font it would have been confusing to international tourists who don't all share the Arabic alphabet as their native language's script. ie, Russian, Greek.

OK, I'm putting the soapbox away....

[Cuban]

Nice to see the city fathers addressing the issues that cause complaint and distress to tourists and locals alike:

1. Congestion at the left turn caused by empty Songthaews cruising Beach Road.
   
2. The Beach used as a night-time toilet.
   
3. The 5 Baht - Songthaew arguments.
   
4. Pedestrian crossings of busy roads.
   
5. Poor sidewalks/paved areas.
   
6. Traffic congestion.
   
7. Water supply.
   
8. Muggings.
   
9. Parking.
   
10. Theft.
    

Only a cynic would suggest that addressing these issues would cost money and not personally benifit or generate direct income to those that control council contracts and business in Pattaya.

Where as building a new illuminated sign or another gateway over the road provides a nice little set of building contracts to milk city funds during construction and then the on-going maintaince costs, the gift that keeps on giving.

...if not the gateways, consider the road side shelters (green metal things on Second Road), what were they for?

Expansion of Thapphraya Road, where will all the extra traffic go, the bottle neck just moves along the road either way.

Edited January 11, 2007 by Cuban

[britmaveric]

Waste of dosh - they should be thinking about more important things - lets start with cleaning up the beach for starters.

[CRUNCHER]

Waste of dosh - they should be thinking about more important things - lets start with cleaning up the beach for starters.

Absolutely. Followed by the roads.

[PATTAYAPUNTER]

Waste of dosh - they should be thinking about more important things - lets start with cleaning up the beach for starters.

Absolutely. Followed by the roads.

Followed by sterilizing all the dogs and then their owners. Oh wrong thread.

[sriracha john]

http://www.pattayacitynews.net/news_10_01_50_2.htm

Do you think it's chic or gaudy?

I think it's very gaudy and cheap to have the letters of pattaya city news spelled in the water like that. Not sure what they used, but I bet it's polluting to the ocean.

[dogleg]

I was well impressed when I first saw it - took my mind of Cuban's points 1 - 10 altogether.

As long as it keeps working, I expect it will spell FATTY or something soon enough!

[PATTAYAPUNTER]

Went up there again tonight to see the new developments since last week. About 40 new benches installed all with that awkwardly designed backing so that one has a comfortable recline while the other is reclined against what could only be described as a fish gill design.

As I said in my original post, there's no handrails by the steep stairs nor wheelchair access. There's also no toilets (Wow. I'm quite the complainer today!).

If you haven't seen the new Pattaya city sign yet, you'll probably like it.

[tropo]

Do you think this was a waste of money?

It was a great idea. The city is slowly coming of age and developing an identity.

You asked if it was a waste of money. How much money has the project cost?

[PATTAYAPUNTER]

Do you think this was a waste of money?

You asked if it was a waste of money. How much money has the project cost?

One million dollars!!

[ZZZ]

Actually a bit more than that, US$1,500,000

http://www.pattayamail.com/696/news.shtml

"Nong Nuch Landscape and Garden Company, who were hired by the city under a 54,950,000 baht contract to improve the appearance of Radio Station Hill.

A sign with the characters “Pattaya” spelled out with LCD technology is the central feature, and landscape viewing points and a CCTV network have also been included.

Pichet said that the project has progressed greatly and the meeting was being held primarily to fix specifications and standards of equipment that are to be installed.

The Pattaya sign is more than 13 meters high and 20 meters in length."

[sriracha john]

Do you think this was a waste of money?

It was a great idea. The city is slowly coming of age and developing an identity.

Actually a bit more than that, US$1,500,000

"Nong Nuch Landscape and Garden Company, who were hired by the city under a 54,950,000 baht contract to improve the appearance of Radio Station Hill.

One wonders what Mobi D'Ark's Mercy Centre:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=102032

could could have done with the 55 million squandered baht.

[Galong]

Actually a bit more than that, US$1,500,000

I would have done it for HALF that price!

[begsaresponse]

I agree with Cuban ...points 1-10. When City Hall gets close to sorting these out will Pattaya 'come of age'.

[Hobgoblin]

It's gaudy and an unimaginable waste of money that could have been spent on any one of a thousand things around the city that would be much more beneficial the the populous than reminding everyone the name of the city they're in.

For Shame!

Edited January 20, 2007 by Hobgoblin

[ZZZ]

There is also the "infinity" sign planned for the Sukhumvit entrance to Pattaya City, budgeted at 64mn Baht. The Tourist Call Centre at 60mn Baht. There must be a lot of money around!!

On the other hand when it comes to promoting Pattaya in key Asian markets only 15mn Baht is being used this year. Guess it's easier to make money spent on local constuction project disapear in someones deep pockets.