When Cua Lo town implemented its plan to demolish 209 kiosks and several hotels and guesthouses east of Binh Minh road to build a Cua Lo beach that meets the requirements of being "modern, unique, distinctive, friendly, and economically efficient," there were concerns and even skepticism. Now, Cua Lo town has provided an answer through the public release of the detailed construction planning project at a scale of 1/500 for the forest park east of Binh Minh road.
The planning project clearly states that the forest park east of Binh Minh road has a coastline length of approximately 4.4km and a total land area of 735,850m².2It will be divided into 5 functional zones, which are 5 beach club areas with diverse architectural and landscape styles and themes, in order from North to South. These include the Caribbean Beach Club Zone; the Nordic Beach Club Zone; the Persian Beach Club Zone; the Hawaiian Beach Club Zone; and the Vietnamese Beach Club Zone.
One very noteworthy point mentioned in the project is that, within the total land area of 735,850m²,2The land allocated for public squares is 13.8%; land for parks and sports facilities is 33.93%; land for technical infrastructure is 2.67%; and land for landscaped walkways is 50,035m².26.8% ratio; sandy beach land 314,304m²2The ratio is 42.71%. In addition, the maximum building height in the entire forest park area is 2 stories; the building density is approximately 2.6% (maximum 3%); and the total built-up floor area is only about 34,500m².2It is noteworthy that these parameters, along with the diverse landscape mentioned above, show that in the future, Cua Lo will be close to nature, with unobstructed views of the sea. And a beach that is "modern, unique, distinctive, friendly, and highly economically efficient," as Cua Lo town aims for, will be ensured.
Sharing his personal thoughts with the Head of Urban Management Department of Cua Lo Town, Hoang Nang Hiep, he said that although the planning project had only recently been announced by the town and the press, it had received much attention and spread quite widely on social media. However, alongside the praise and enthusiasm for what the project presented, there were also concerns and worries, such as about the implementation time and the space allocated for the community…
When asked, in his role as both a professional and a manager, how he evaluates the project and what his thoughts are on the concerns of society, he replied that the consulting unit had invested heavily in research to produce a coastal planning project that is quite new and unique compared to other Vietnamese beaches in general. With a length of 4.4km of Cua Lo beach, they have gathered, arranged, and connected many famous beach styles from around the world, creating richness and uniqueness; giving tourists visiting Cua Lo many choices to enjoy. However, Mr. Hoang Nang Hiep acknowledged that it would be very difficult to find an investor with enough dedication and capacity to implement the entire plan.
He stated that a construction density of 2.6%, or a maximum of 3%, is a requirement set by Cua Lo town for the consulting unit when they research and develop the project; and this is also a commitment of Cua Lo town to the people in the area. However, to achieve the content of the project, the investor would have to spend a very large amount of capital, up to thousands of billions of VND. With such a construction density, it means that the business space for the investor is very narrow, making it very difficult to recover the capital. So which investor would be interested and dare to undertake it? If there is not a capable and dedicated investor to implement the entire project, then the option of dividing it into sub-areas for bidding will have to be considered. This would likely attract many investors, and the implementation of the plan would have a chance to be accelerated. But in this situation, the difficulty lies in how to select the right and sufficient investors with dedication and capacity to carry out the project together? In addition, will the connection and synchronization between the five zones be perfect?
Regarding community spaces, Mr. Hoang Nang Hiep noted that the current project, especially through the renderings and diagrams, is illustrative in nature and lacks proper technical proportions, thus failing to present a clear picture. He explained that Cua Lo town has a very clear stance: the sea surface is reserved for community use and will not be handed over to investors. The current project already shows areas on the beach such as continuous walkways where tourists can stroll without obstruction. However, not all tourists have the financial means to access these recreational areas. Therefore, these tourists need resting places, such as grassy areas for camping or benches to enjoy the sea view…
Listening to the thoughts and discussions, and speaking with him, the fact that society is spreading opinions and providing feedback on the planning project should be seen as a welcome development, regardless of the perspective. This shows that Cua Lo beach is remembered by society and that changes are anticipated soon… He said that Cua Lo town also shares this view. During the period of gathering opinions from officials and residents in the area, the town's leaders also connected with the Chairman of the Vietnam Urban Planning and Development Association, Tran Ngoc Chinh, officially asking him to come and help organize a workshop to gather feedback from leading Vietnamese architects. Doing all this is also with the hope that the detailed construction planning project at a scale of 1/500 for the forest park east of Binh Minh road will be perfected, and Nghe An will soon have a modern, unique, and friendly Cua Lo…
