CityNews – In August there was a city-wide protest http://www.chiangmaicitylife.com/citylife-articles/breathing-space-how-one-abandoned-piece-of-land-has-brought-the-city-together/ against the Treasury Department’s plan to turn 9 rai of lush green land in the heart of Chiang Mai into a 900-unit apartment complex. Following a national uproar over the misuse of this land and intense campaigning by numerous sectors of the society, the department has now announced that they will be gifting the land to the people of Chiang Mai.
On September 10th, there was conference between Chiang Mai Governor, Pawin Chamniprasart, the Treasury Department and the representatives of affected communities and schools at the Chiang Mai International Exhibition and Convention Centre to discuss this issue.
Following the meeting, Chakkrit Parapuntakul, Director General of the Treasury Department announced that they will no longer use this piece of land for development, but will find another suitable parcel of land elsewhere. They also pledged to gift this piece of land to the people of Chiang Mai. CityNews will keep you posted on what is to become of the land and how it will be managed, but the general consensus at this point is to turn the land into a public park.
