Pattaya beach remodel project paused after several prominent local residents protest

[hotchilli]

23 hours ago, smedly said:

At some point Pattaya "beach" resort is going to need a name change

Amazing Atlantis?

[shdmn]

2 hours ago, redwood1 said:

 

When they say they will be planting trees, they mean Palm Trees....When they say they will be planting shade trees,they mean Palm trees.....Palm trees do give off a few feet of shade (so it's not a lie)

 

Think.....People....

Real shade trees take years and years and years to grow....Why would you cut them all down and say you will be planting shade trees?

It make zero sense....

 

They don't want shade trees, they don't want shrubs, they don't want plants, they only want Palm trees and nothing else....

What point are you trying to make?  Palm and coconut trees are what you put next to a beach in the tropics because that's what naturally grows there and also what tourists expect.  You expect them to put up evergreens or something?

[redwood1]

2 minutes ago, shdmn said:

What point are you trying to make?  Palm and coconut trees are what you put next to a beach in the tropics because that's what naturally grows there and also what tourists expect.  You expect them to put up evergreens or something?

Actually they don't like coconut trees to much......Only Palm trees....

[Mickeymaus]

3 minutes ago, redwood1 said:

Actually they don't like coconut trees to much......Only Palm trees....

Coconut trees can be dangerous. The coconuts need to be removed and this is work and costs money. 

[jacko45k]

3 hours ago, shdmn said:

What point are you trying to make?  Palm and coconut trees are what you put next to a beach in the tropics because that's what naturally grows there and also what tourists expect.  You expect them to put up evergreens or something?

And the trees that were cut down are not 'natural' despite being there for 30 years?

[gk10012001]

What project?  Are the plans listed anywhere?  What budget was used?  Who authorized it?

[skorp13]

Imagine that, prominent people are protesting about beautification of their city. how about stop spending money on beach beautification, especially when they're already closed, and give that money to the poor, starving, and sick people you supposedly care about?

[Jingthing]

I want to hug a tree but they tore them down.

 

 

[redwood1]

7 minutes ago, gk10012001 said:

What project?  Are the plans listed anywhere?  What budget was used?  Who authorized it?

The who authorized it, is a heck of a good question....

 

Because the Pattaya city council were appointed not elected so I doubt they were behind the makeover.........So my guess is the same folks that gave, Khao San road its makeover might be involved along with many other projects......Plenty of youtube videos of how Khao San road turned out....

[aussienam]

This is a bloody hot climate. Shade is a premium on the beach front.  The proposed development theme along the beach is devoid of shade.  High palms won't suffice I wouldn't have thought.  Maybe others here have more of a green finger than me? 

Copying themes from countries with beachfronts that probably have much more moderate climates is poor planning IMO.  Forcing people to sit in the paid shaded areas may be the mindset? I suppose removing shade moves on the poor who find respite from the heat.  

Walkway awnings would have been nice. 

Edited August 18, 2021 by aussienam

[redwood1]

2 minutes ago, aussienam said:

This is a bloody hot climate. Shade is a premium on the beach front.  The proposed development theme along the beach is devoid of shade.  High palms won't suffice. 

Copying themes from countries with beachfronts that probably have much more moderate climates is poor planning IMO.  Forcing people to sit in the paid shaded areas may be the mindset? I suppose removing shade moves on the poor who find respite from the heat.  

The beach will be unusable in the daylight hours any more without shade it's just that simple................Unless you rent a chair.............And the Thais hate sun..........So expect to see a beach almost empty of people during the daylight hours from now on...........

[Espanol]

1 hour ago, redwood1 said:

The beach will be unusable in the daylight hours any more without shade it's just that simple................Unless you rent a chair.............And the Thais hate sun..........So expect to see a beach almost empty of people during the daylight hours from now on...........

 

Chinese hate sun too, and all Asians in general. Only farangs like sun. So it has been a bad move in their strategy of attracting Asian tourists to replace Westerners.

 

[Jingthing]

Don't kvetch about this here or the Bangkok Herald (that esteemed bastion of world class journalism) will call you "bitter old Yanks and  Eurotrash."

 

https://bangkokherald.com/commentary/stop-moaning-about-pattaya-beach-trees-theyre-not-special-project-needs-to-proceed-now/

Edited August 18, 2021 by Jingthing

[redwood1]

51 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Don't kvetch about this here or the Bangkok Herald (that esteemed bastion of world class journalism) will call you "bitter old Yanks and  Eurotrash."

 

https://bangkokherald.com/commentary/stop-moaning-about-pattaya-beach-trees-theyre-not-special-project-needs-to-proceed-now/

This article is wrong on many points......

 

But I am especially fond of the statement on public hearings and Jomtien beach......

 

I read all the news every day and I did not see a single mention of a public hearing EVER not one.....Also there were zero public hearings for the 2013 beach makeover too, I am sure of that......

The protesters would not be protesting if they could have gone to hearings...............Think..................

 

And who says Jomtien beach turned out well??

Not any post that I have ever read......

I use to like to go there after Pattaya's 2013 beach destruction, because it was still nice, ......But after the Jomtien beach makeover, the beach was ruined, and has yet to recover...

 

Pattaya's beach redo was funded through the EEC so the city has little oversight over the project.....

 

I did have a slight hope for Pattaya's beach redo.....

But now I fully expect the very very worst in regards to this project......

Edited August 18, 2021 by redwood1

[Kerryd]

On 8/17/2021 at 8:28 AM, jacko45k said:

Or the elimination of the swamplands that used to exist and absorb some of the floodwaters... like Buakhao and much of the darkside. 

Exactly.

From Sukhumvit west to the ocean, Pattaya is 99% concrete. Nothing but roads, buildings and parking lots from Naklua to Big Buddha Mountain..

Due to the natural slope, every time it rains, all that water wants to head to the ocean. It's not getting absorbed into the ground and the aquifers like it normally would. Pretty much all of the original (natural) drainage canals have been filled in and paved over ages ago as well.

Add to that a poor drainage system which plugs up with accumulated garbage and construction waste (i.e. sand and unused concrete) and causes the water to backflow onto the streets and you end up with all that water being channeled almost straight at the beach.

Most of the water from the Darkside gets drained to (somewhere) and not just the "railway channel", which often floods anyways.  Right where they are putting that high speed rail line.
(Maybe that has something to do with all the drainage work they are doing along the railway bypass road recently ? Trying to keep the water from washing out the new rail line perhaps ?)

It's not going to Sukhumvit though some may think so. The flooding around the South Pattaya intersection is mainly because it's a natural depression so runoff is running into it from 3 different directions (runoff from the Darkside between the railway bypass and the highway, plus runoff coming down the Suk from the North and South).
If all the water from the other side of the railway bypass was being dumped onto the Suk, there'd  be a raging river all the way down South Pattaya to the ocean every time it rained. (And down Thepprasit as well.)

They've had the pumps on the Suk by the Esso station for what, a year or so now ? Just West of that, there's a small soi behind the Batman building that they dug up around the same time and never seem to get around to finishing whatever it is they are doing there.

You can see the drainage channels under the soi. There are two of them, each larger enough you could drive a large ATV through then and not worry about hitting the sides or your head on the top.

Those are supposed to drain the water from the center ditch on the Suk and send it (somewhere towards the ocean).
By rights, if those drainage channels keep going (wherever) and don't suddenly turn into little drainage pipes, they should be large enough to drain all that water from the Suk around the South Pattaya intersection.

If they ever get around to finishing the job that is.

It was noted in the past as well that the city often doesn't turn on the drainage pumps until the water is backflowing up and out of the drainage pipes. You know, instead of turning them on when it starts to rain so the pipes are near empty when all the runoff starts to accumulate.

I know you don't want to run the pumps when they are "dry" but you don't need to wait until Lake Sukhumvit has filled up before starting the pumps.

Jomtien doesn't have the same problem - yet - as it's not completely paved over (yet) so more water goes into the ground. It's also a smaller area than Pattaya and not as built up (yet).
Give it another 20 years though and they'll probably experience the same issues.

[gk10012001]

23 hours ago, redwood1 said:

The beach will be unusable in the daylight hours any more without shade it's just that simple................Unless you rent a chair.............And the Thais hate sun..........So expect to see a beach almost empty of people during the daylight hours from now on...........

I first went there in 2004.  I was aware about the dirty sea water so I did not swim.  But I sure did rent a chair and sit in the shade a few times.  Nothing wrong with a hot day as long as I am in just a bathing suit and in the shade with a bit of a breeze.  could order food such as fried rice with shrimps.  Have a cold coconut, then a beer or even a cold bottle of water.  Nature is good.  Concrete and pavers... too much now

 

  

[Golden Triangle]

For those that don't know, the funds ( according to the mayor ) came from a conglomerate involved in the Eastern Economic Corridor, some from central government as well apparently, so according to Mr Mayor it was not the city's money in the first place to spend where it wanted ie the starving & homeless, as so many people demanded.

 

The large shade trees that were removed, although having been in situ for about 30 years were trees common to Thailand, but were a softwood variety & were considered a danger to people during storms and high winds as large bits were known to break off.

 

So there you have it, I'm not saying I agree with it, just stating facts.

[Mario Cosmopolite]

On 8/17/2021 at 1:40 PM, newnative said:

     Notice not a lick of shade.  The guy in the brown shirt by the light pole is about to collapse from heat stroke.  You know you've got a bad design when even the artist rendering looks horrible.  

And the drain cover in left foreground is in a concrete surround set above pavement level, have a good trip!