Pattaya: Three spots to become "Landmarks" - Bali Hai "cruise terminal" mooted

 

Picture: Manager Online

 

Manager quoted Pattaya's mayor Sontaya Khunpluem as saying that he was hurrying ahead with plans to create three "landmarks" in Pattaya as part of the Eastern Economic Corridor plan ordered by the government. 

 

The plans are for Walking Street, the Bali Hai port area and Khao Thap Phraya. 

 

The mayor revealed that he had ordered a plan to create a completely new port alongside Bali Hai.

 

Picture: Manager Online

 

It would cost about 700 million baht. He called it a "cruise terminal".

 

Manager said it would be capable of carrying cargo as well as passenger traffic. The plans have already been completed, just an environmental impact assessment was needed.

 

Picture: Manager Online

 

For Khao Thap Praya there are plans for a convenient "skywalk" making it another landmark of the eastern seaboard.

 

Walking Street will have a walking area with recreation and shops forty meters from existing premises on the beach side creating what he called "Pattaya on Pier". 

 

Picture: Manager Online

 

He promised that after all the cable burying and roof building at Walking Street the area would be a modern entertainment area with the further planned improvements.

 

Source: Manager Online

 

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... and to make it complete, the Watermark building. LOL

So instead of removing the walking street 105, he plans to increase the illegal encroachment!

A new port at Bali Hai ?

 

Sounds familiar with the sinking pontoons and the big waste of money

on the famous Marina project at the same location few years ago

Surely this will result in Pattaya becoming even more congested, especially when & if tourism regains any significant ground.

You call them "landmarks". We call them "eyesores"

I remember bringing my 9 year old daughter to dinner at Nang Nual 28 years ago she simply loved Walking Street and all the attention she got from the girls. She had no idea that they were working girls who missed their own children. The lights and street clowns and jugglers were just amazing for her. A "New Look Pattaya" would just be another expensive shopping mall and make traffic jams even worse. 

2 hours ago, Geoffggi said:

Surely this will result in Pattaya becoming even more congested, especially when & if tourism regains any significant ground.

I'm pretty sure Pattaya will come back, certainly not this year, probably not in 2021 either. I just wonder what all the bureaucrats planning these changes do't destroy the whole thing.....and when government money is involved (I read) 30-50% of the budget goes in graft to support the lifestyles ion the anonymous men who runt he place. It's why the quality of the infrastructure doesn't last longer than the paint drying.

5 hours ago, webfact said:

He promised that after all the cable burying and roof building at Walking Street the area would be a modern entertainment area with the further planned improvements.

A "Landmark" of sorts.

Given the failure rate of what they've done so far, IMO don't expect much. However, I doubt the construction is the actual reason for the projects, if one knows what I mean.

20 hours ago, webfact said:

The plans have already been completed, just an environmental impact assessment was needed.

Plans are drawn up and paid for to favoured architects; contracts are awarded after 'due consideration; and work begins.  The impact on the environment is assessed then ignored.

Pattaya's mayor Sontaya Khunpluem said.....

Walking Street will have a walking area

 

 

This will be epic mistake...This maybe the worst mistake that Pattaya has ever made if that is even possible.....

 

They want to build a walkway on the water, on the back side of the walking street beach side buildings.....

 

To do this they will need to chop off the ends of about half of the buildings....Goodby to having dinner,or having a beer over the water and enjoying a ocean view.....

 

There will be HUGE cost to cut off the ends of the buildings and piers and build this walkway.......The walking street businesses will be in ruins...

 

And what AMAZING WONDERFUL FANTASTIC things will you see on this AMAZING WONDERFUL FANTASTIC walkway.....Well on one side you will see a CLOSE-UP (as in a few feet away) of the backside of the walking street buildings and on the other side you will see the EXACT same view you can see from anywhere on beach road or Bali-hi..........

 

So in summary......A Huge  amount of money will be spent to destroy a bunch of business.....And take away a experience ALL PEOPLE LOVE having a meal or a drink over the water.......All this for the same view you can get ANYWHERE else on the waterfront.......Also WALKING STREET is called WALKING STREET because that is where people WALK,  to see the sights of WALKING STREET.........WALKING STREET THE STREET FOR WALKING......This walkway is absolutely not needed and will destroy what little character or uniqueness  that Pattaya has left.....

 

21 hours ago, Emdog said:

You call them "landmarks". We call them "eyesores"

Correct, and who wants cargo ships in Pattaya? Crazy idea when you got Leam Chabang port just north of Pattaya.

1 hour ago, redwood1 said:

Pattaya's mayor Sontaya Khunpluem said.....

Walking Street will have a walking area

 

 

This will be epic mistake...This maybe the worst mistake that Pattaya has ever made if that is even possible.....

 

They want to build a walkway on the water, on the back side of the walking street beach side buildings.....

 

To do this they will need to chop off the ends of about half of the buildings....Goodby to having dinner,or having a beer over the water and enjoying a ocean view.....

 

There will be HUGE cost to cut off the ends of the buildings and piers and build this walkway.......The walking street businesses will be in ruins...

 

And what AMAZING WONDERFUL FANTASTIC things will you see on this AMAZING WONDERFUL FANTASTIC walkway.....Well on one side you will see a CLOSE-UP (as in a few feet away) of the backside of the walking street buildings and on the other side you will see the EXACT same view you can see from anywhere on beach road or Bali-hi..........

 

So in summary......A Huge  amount of money will be spent to destroy a bunch of business.....And take away a experience ALL PEOPLE LOVE having a meal or a drink over the water.......All this for the same view you can get ANYWHERE else on the waterfront.......Also WALKING STREET is called WALKING STREET because that is where people WALK,  to see the sights of WALKING STREET.........WALKING STREET THE STREET FOR WALKING......This walkway is absolutely not needed and will destroy what little character or uniqueness  that Pattaya has left.....

 

Walking street is already in ruin, it's now a driving street like the others

with 80% of the businesses closed, a lot of them forever

 

All the building on the sea side are illegals and an encroachment on the beach

the fundation pillars are in a bad state and one day or another a building should collapse

maybe with all the customers on the terace enjoying the view

 

the best and cheapest way is to buldoze the lot and restore the beach

 

1 hour ago, redwood1 said:

They want to build a walkway on the water, on the back side of the walking street beach side buildings.....

I can only think that this new walkway  is a means to legitimise the 101 "illegal"  businesses already built out into the sea.

Pattaya will never be like it was.  Walking street can still be walking streetBUT does it need all the skin stores that it has.  

 

Personally I would like a Walking street with upscale restaurants that you can chave a nice neal and look out on the water.  That would be the ultimate plan.

Keep the bars on the land side destroy everything but the restaurant at the beginning of walking street and revamp it and rebulid it.

 

As to a harbour maybe have a spot for cruise ships to come in to port.

On 10/28/2020 at 1:01 PM, kingofthemountain said:

Sounds familiar with the sinking pontoons and the big waste of money

on the famous Marina project at the same location few years ago

34 minutes ago, kingofthemountain said:

the best and cheapest way is to buldoze the lot and restore the beach

Mind you, I seem to recall Pattaya doesn't have much of a track record when it comes to restoring beaches!

Complete buffoonery considering the plans for the proper cruise ship terminals in Laem Chabang and Sattahip as part of the EEC development. 

19 hours ago, redwood1 said:

So in summary......A Huge  amount of money will be spent to destroy a bunch of business.....And take away a experience ALL PEOPLE LOVE having a meal or a drink over the water.......All this for the same view you can get ANYWHERE else on the waterfront.......Also WALKING STREET is called WALKING STREET because that is where people WALK,  to see the sights of WALKING STREET.........WALKING STREET THE STREET FOR WALKING......This walkway is absolutely not needed and will destroy what little character or uniqueness  that Pattaya has left.....

You seem to overlook the reason for the project. IMO the project is but the excuse and the reason is the money, if one knows what I mean.

 

They didn't have a problem replacing a pleasant walkway where people could sit, relax and observe the passing parade with a soul less shadeless pavement with few seating opportunities.

18 hours ago, kingstonkid said:

Pattaya will never be like it was.  Walking street can still be walking streetBUT does it need all the skin stores that it has.  

 

Personally I would like a Walking street with upscale restaurants that you can chave a nice neal and look out on the water.  That would be the ultimate plan.

Keep the bars on the land side destroy everything but the restaurant at the beginning of walking street and revamp it and rebulid it.

 

As to a harbour maybe have a spot for cruise ships to come in to port.

It wouldn't be a Walking Street then, would it?

 

It already has plenty of restaurants to have a nice meal and look out on the water. You just want to make them more expensive.

 

Pattaya is a dump, IMO, because it's so chaotic, but it's an enjoyable dump ( or at least it used to be 10 years ago ). Can't make a pig's ear into a silk purse.

18 hours ago, johng said:

Hard to tell from that photo, but did they make it with mild steel? That would be crazy, but ......................................

23 hours ago, kingstonkid said:

Pattaya will never be like it was.  Walking street can still be walking streetBUT does it need all the skin stores that it has.  

 

Personally I would like a Walking street withthat you can chave a nice neal and look out on the water.  That would be the ultimate plan.

Keep the bars on the land side destroy everything but the restaurant at the beginning of walking street and revamp it and rebulid it.

 

As to a harbour maybe have a spot for cruise ships to come in to port.

"upscale restaurants"  Not until they sort out the sewage problems, I doubt if upscale customers would eat there if they don't.

On 10/30/2020 at 8:08 AM, thaibeachlovers said:

Pattaya is a dump, IMO, because it's so chaotic, but it's an enjoyable dump ( or at least it used to be 10 years ago ). Can't make a pig's ear into a silk purse.

Pattaya was more prosperous as a "dump."  It was the sex trade that made many wealthy here. 

 

Then, they wanted to change the demographic of tourists to Chinese mass package holiday tourism, or "zero baht tourists" and to also market Pattaya as a "family holiday destination."  All the while, leaving in place the sex trade. 

 

They just wanted every tourist they could get here, and did not care about the false advertising, or the fact the infrastructure here could not handle mass tourism.

 

As the saying goes, you can be good at many things, or great at one thing.  Pattaya was the greatest when it came to the sex trade.  They should have stuck to that business model. 

 

They will end up with declining numbers of sex tourists.  Unimpressed package holiday makers.  Disgruntled family tourists. 

 

They targeted every tourists market, without catering to any specific market.      

So the illegal buildings on the beach side of Walking Street are to remain, and the street enhanced by adding a roof. How about clearing the illegals and giving more beach access ?

On 1/24/2021 at 4:46 PM, cracker1 said:

So the illegal buildings on the beach side of Walking Street are to remain, and the street enhanced by adding a roof. How about clearing the illegals and giving more beach access ?

 

What would hold the other side of the roof up?   ????