What's coming up in the place supposedly being vacated by the Race Course? According to a TOI piece sometime back, underground parking lots will be constructed. However, no mention has been made about the ground level: public space? shops and malls?
Shastri had brought this up in the passing in this comment where he had stated that:
According to this hindu story, there is no mention of an integrated transport hub. Apparently they want to keep the space as a open green space with an underground parking lot
The matter came up for discussion recently in a Yahoogroup, which I thought fit to migrate here
KL posted:
Apparently it has been decided that the racecourse will be shifted "to a location outside the city". There's been occasional press about this issue, but it looks like things are ramping up now. Does anyone know any details about this decision? What is going to take the place of the current race course ?
NS added:
One of the old suggestions was to create a Legislators Home (another one). I dont think they will let anything which helps the public, although parking lot is not a good thing to happen. Probably its TOI's wishlist.
The ideal thing would be to make it a lung space. I had written to the BBMP and the governor last year to make Palace grounds a lung space. They promptly sent a note back saying its under litigation.
Btw- they have annihalated Race course road. All the trees are out. They have also cut all the remaining trees on Hosur Road near the Silk board flyover and the St.Johns road. Madness reigns.
GS added:
It's fairly common around the world to have underground public parking lots with a park (of the green variety) above. But the BBMP will probably cite the higher costs of building a underground lot and then build a mall to make the venture 'self-sustaining' with the promise of 2000 car parks for the public and finally you will end up with 3000 cars turning up at the mall that will end up parking all along Nrupathunga and Race Course roads. And then, it will be time for a Elevated Link Road between Nrupathunga Road and Race Course Road and the story continues... .
VN added:
I hope they dont end up making it a huge mall with the kind of parking that Gopal mentions. But we do need public spaces and a museum / cultural institutional area is wanted. I guess we need to have our voices heard and see if a public consultation process can take root for such projects too. Maybe we can promote a campaign for such a thing.
AN added:
I sometimes wonder why there is no will to create yet another Lalbagh...something which would be a botanists delight.
All of us will appreciate that Lalbagh is a "botanical" garden and not just a lawn with a few trees, which we now are termed as urban green spaces.
We lost an opportunity at the Freedom Park...I don't know if this suggestion is worthy, anyways, my two penny thought.
AS added:
Interesting Idea. I think HasiruUsiru should meet the authorities at BBMP and find out about their plans. They ahve chopped down so many trees, the transplanting could be done there.. instead of spending loads of money on logistics.
Muralidhar Rao
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Use it for Supreme Court Bench / Tribunal Benches / Judicial
Supreme Court Bench in South India
Looks like i am vindicated!
http://www.hindu.com/2008...
Lets start an online Campaign for a Supreme Court Bench in place of the Race Course.
SC @RC: I second it
temple, masjid, church, - - complex
http://mysore.praja.in/bangalore/blog/murali772/2008/06/28/shrine-entrepreneurship
But, thereafter of course, the government has to ensure that no more shrines come up on the roadsides.
Muralidhar Rao
keep it non commercial
commercial useage of the land that involves infrastructure, private parties and lots of money, means the land was cleared for kickbacks!
re-locating the race course, and making a park out of it, or keeping it green is a great idea. I completely support it.
A supreme court too, is a good idea - it can be combined with a park and lake. And at the same time serve all.
But all forces must be used to block the land from vested interests.
User Interaction Designer
Bangalore
lanscaping the bangalore way
our horticulture dept does a decent job in laying out and maintaining parks..maybe it should be given to them to layout a nice garden with nice trees and flowering plants..similar to the island behind the library inside cubbon park..
btw the race couse is such a eye sore..they dont even plant trees/bushes inside the ring..probably cos it will obstruct the view!
Its good riddance!
Serve the creations to serve the creator !
A research institute - town planning and architecture?
in place of race course
ssheragu
much has been said about utilizing race course; I have one suggestion;
before it falls into the real estate business ventures of our politicians, this space can be made into a world class freedom park and named after Tippu Sultan or Kittur Rani Chennamma
this way revenue can be earned and more so the depleting greenery of Bangalore can be preserved and rejuvenated
it can act like a good lung space in the center of bangalore
Srinah Heragu
comments by more HU members
Does anyone know any details about this decision? What is going to take the place of the current race course ? According to an older TOI piece, underground parking lots will be constructed. However, no mention has been made about the ground level: public space? shops and malls? I have a bad feeling that this is something we need to look at urgently.
Ms H added:
VERY URGENTLY needs looking into. We DO NOT need another commercial space/shopping mall in this green space here.
CU added:
i agree -- this needs urgent attention ... my bet is we'll find a big mall /hotel/ theatre complex soon.. earlier when the discussion of shifting was taking place, as I recall, they had committed that it would remain open space ... ha ha.
I am going to play the old Joan Baez song for the bbmp officials ...
keys to paradise and they put up a parking lot
what has happened to the central jail land?
I think we need to start an online database/ clearinghouse for information, it's impossible to keep up with what is happening in this city. A big interactive map .. what is coming up, what is going down, what is getting expanded and who is getting thrown out ... everyone can give inputs like a Wikipedia .. this was actually Prem Chandavarkar's idea .. we need a nice techie type to implement it .. we were told that google maps is willing to host such projects for free ...
member techies, pl respond
HU should really get out there nowadays
Call for inputs from the public / schoolchildren / techies/ housewives etc
to make Race course into a Green Area
Let them treat it as a compensation
for the loss of many areas in Cubbon Park
the loss of many lakes in Bangalore
the loss of many trees in the city
the loss of CA sites and parks to buildings etc
So what is the Green Park use that RC should be put to
One thing is it SHOULD NOT CATER TO LOBBIES
1. Horticulture Lobby ( artificial high maintenance plants and grass with sprinkler watering and spot lighting like an exhibition ....
2. Concrete lobby ( interlocking tiles and ..
3. Granite lobby ( acupressure footpaths and .....
4. Decorators lobby
5. Builders lobby
And not a very English vision of a park with green all year round but varying seasonally
The reason for the COMPLEX idea is from the Vikasa Soudha ( original est 100 crs and finshed at 147 crs)
The congress govt planned it and was inaugurated by the COng -JD(S) colaition
BJP wants to do one better
But we have to get them to compete with the other political parties who gifted a space for PARKS.....
Like the Central Jail Park ( Congress) - 2002-03
VN added:
We should go for a public space that is not necessarily only a garden or lake, but of multiple uses, "excluding shopping" is what is badly lacking and I think we can make a case for it. A museum, open air spaces for street theater and events, park space ofcourse, a place for public debate, etc. The old jail is luckily becoming a "Freedom park" for which an ideas/architectural competition was held quite successfully. We could call for a similar idea competition here but program it carefully so that it is for the people and more . Prem's idea is great and I had earlier sent this link to the Design Trust for Public Space http://www.designtr ust.org/home/ home.html . Anush had volunteered his techie skills to put this together and there are several others in the group who would too, and we have also a website with space available to upload this kind of a website. Kanishka and Ranjitha, am I correct? I dont know much about mapunity, but if that is something we can use...!! It would be a great idea to get a small group together to knit and organize this effort. Why dont we meet up this Saturday at CIVIC or ESG for this purpose - call it the Race Course Action or Public Space Group.
There are a whole lot of skills available in this city. Last weekend I was in Mysore for a Nature Photographer's meet where we discussed how Wildlife Photography could be used to influence something good. This is the era of documentation (read it as photography, video, youtube, flickr etc). A small wildlife documentary was produced to save Kudremukh too. Something like that could be done. One of the ideas they proposed was to organise nature photo exhibition on the streets which are under threat etc. We should have a design trust in Bangalore too with people from all these professional/ hobby interests.
Most of the times, people shy away from the word "Activism".. so we needn't project this as an activist group. It should be more of a Special Interest Group. It was quite evident is the Max Muller's Bangalore City Project. So probably we should plan something on those lines and try to get more participation.
AN added:
As I had suggested earlier and repeat....a botanical garden, the first one for Bangalore is 200 years! The Government can be pushed to do this.
SS added:
A garden or a Lake or any thing green! We should use this as an opportunity to:
1. Compensate for the trees being cut all across the city
2. As a water source to improve underground water source.
Old race course?
Drive safe. It is not just the car maker which can recall its product.
Bangalore Turf Club
Race-Course on Hessarghatta Cross ?
Near the airport?
User Interaction Designer
Bangalore
Clientle of BTC
Museum celebrating bangalore history
Museum, Public Spaces
another sky-scraper?
Comment by a member in the CAF googlegroup:
By the by, it is understood Race Course is giving its place for World Trade Center. Very many eye brows will raise thinking on the possible repercussions, if something similar does happen. Media or News Paper are not covering. Should we be silent witnesses or do something?
Means another sky-scraper. Is that what we want? Any one knows more?
Muralidhar Rao
Have they gone mad?
Seshadri Road is clogged up as it is. This will really hep matters.
Srivathsa
Drive safe. It is not just the car maker which can recall its product.
Medicinal plants park
IMO, Race Course area should be used to house the Southern Bench of the Supreme court and a medicinal park on the lines of the ones in Bhubaneshwar.