HCMC’s District 3 plans to turn tourist attractions into pedestrian streets

SGGP 27/11/2020 19:21

The Party Committee and People's Committee of HCMC’s District 3 have submitted building projects of pedestrian streets on Nguyen Thuong Hien Street and Ho Con Rua (Turtle Lake Fountain) area in the district for the consideration at a working session with Secretary of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of HCMC Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen on November 26.

Attending at the meeting was also Deputy Secretary of HCMC Party Committee and Chairwoman of HCMC People's Council, Nguyen Thi Le together with leaders of departments and units of the city.

The project in response to the HCMC action plan for urban renewal for the period 2020-2025 is expected to create outdoor mass culture, shopping, leisure and entertainmen areas for local and international visitors, reaching goals of tourism development, according to Director of the HCMC Department of Construction, Le Hoa Binh.

Speaking at the event, Deputy Secretary of HCMC Party Committee and Chairwoman of HCMC People's Council, Nguyen Thi Le highly appreciated outstanding achivements of District 3 in taking care of disadvantaged people and mobilizing residents to donate land to widen alleys.

Secretary of HCMC Party Committee, Nguyen Van Nen also expressed his deep impression on results in the last five years. Accordingly, the District’s authorities mobilized 1,425 households to donate more than 8,050 m2 worth over VND400 billion (US$17.2 million) to expand 37 alleys.

The narrow street, Nguyen Thuong Hien stretching for over 1 km in the District 3’s center is well-known for hundreds of street food stalls that sell many delicious foods at reasonable prices, including Banh Trang Tron (Rice paper salad), Banh Trang Nuong (Grilled Rice Paper), tea milk, fresh juices and more. The food street is aslso introduced to gourmands on foreign travel magazines.

Meanwhile Ho Con Rua also known as Cong Truong Quoc Te (International Construction Site), a roundabout connecting streets of Vo Van Tan, Pham Ngoc Thach and Tran Cao Van is one of the most attractions in HCMC. In 1878, a water tower was built by the French at the location of Ho Con Rua today to serve the needs of drinking water for residents in the area.

No one know for sure exactly when Ho Con Rua were built. But some documents claim that it was designed by architect Nguyen Ky and built in 1965-1967. During the 1970s and 1974s, Turtle Lake Fountain was restored and embellished. The work includes five concrete columns, which is 34 m high with the shape of five hands spreading out like petals supporting a pistil, and a traffic circle with a diameter of nearly 100 meters.