HCMC enjoying more green space, community space in urban development

Le Van Tam Park in Da Kao Ward of District 1 (Photo: SGGP)

After a long hard-working day, Huynh Thi Nga (living in Hoc Mon District) is now relaxing with her relatives inside Hoc Mon Ecotourism Park. Since its establishment in the middle of May 2023, the park has become a familiar destination for her family for afternoon exercise and relaxation. She hopes that in the future, more parks like this can be built throughout the city for dwellers to enjoy.

Receiving an investment of VND70 billion (US$2.95 million) from Hoc Mon District, the park is constructed on a surface area of 6.14ha, including a square, a canteen, a scenic area, a swimming pool, trees, and flower gardens. Applying the model of night market, the park is planned to become a new tourist attraction as well as a location to serve cultural – sporting – spiritual purposes for local residents, adopting the Resolution of the 12^th Hoc Mon District Party Congress. The district also develops other public green spaces for the community.

Similarly, for the last few years, to implement the Resolution of the 11^th District Party Congress, District 12 has mobilized social resources to expand its green space and public parks. Accordingly, each ward is assigned to create one new green area, forming a total of 41 such areas until now. Every year, District 12 runs the program ‘Tree Planting Festival in Gratitude to Uncle Ho’ to grow thousands of new trees.

Without many existing public parks, Thu Duc City has to focus on developing green space via erecting mini parks inside residential areas. This plan has been wholeheartedly supported by local dwellers there since they are now able to enjoy community activities safely in those new parks instead of unhealthy passive activities like watching TV at home.

Children are playing in a mini park in EHomeS residential area (Thu Duc City) (Photo: SGGP)

Thu Duc City aims at having one million new trees planted and 11 public parks created by 2025. Therefore, besides running campaigns among state organizations, the city also calls upon the cooperation of local residents. As a result, six new parks have been formed, with over 751,000 new trees being grown (accounting for 75 percent of its target).

In 2019, District 7 had a ratio of 1.6m² of green space per person. Despite this satisfying figure, the district still tries to increase more green areas so that this ratio can reach 2m²/person by 2025, a rise of 27.16ha in total. To fulfill that goal, District 7 has proposed that investors of commercial housing projects in the district allocate specific areas for parks in their own project.

In the vacant land lots of the district managed by the State, District 7 Public Service One Member Co. Ltd. and the People’s Committees of related wards are asked to grow trees and build playgrounds for children.

Secretary of District 7 Party’s Committee Vo Khac Thai informed that the district has several canals, so the wards along these canals are assigned to maintain sanitation there as well as planting new trees to improve the urban beauty in general while preventing encroachment. Thanks to that guideline, another 18.6ha of green space and 22 new parks have been formed, many of which have a large surface area of around 20,000m².

Obviously, the Resolution of the 11^th HCMC Party Congress, which greenlights the mobilization of social resources for the synchronous growth of urban infrastructure, has created favorable conditions for the development of green space, green energy, green traffic, and environment protection in the whole city, aiming at the ultimate target of green infrastructure.