Walking space must be a cultural destination: Ha Noi leader

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A right and successful direction

At a recent meeting to review the pilot outcome, Chairman of the Ha Noi People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung affirmed that the opening of the walking space was a right and successful direction. Over 700 articles relating to the pedestrian-only space have been published on the mass media so far, which demonstrates its huge attraction to Hanoians and tourists, both at home and abroad.

According to Chairman of the Hoan Kiem district People’s Committee Duong Duc Tuan, the city has piloted the installation of seven automatic water selling machines and 27 free Wi-Fi transmitters, and arranged six booths displaying souvenirs and handicraft products and a mobile car selling refreshers. Since the space was piloted on September 1, a large number of domestic and foreign tourists as well as local citizens have visited and participated in various activities in the space, reaching 3,000-5,000 people in daytime and 1.5-2 million people at night. The number of internationals and overseas Vietnamese staying in Hoan Kiem Lake has increased rapidly by nearly 1.4 million arrivals as of November 2016, a 13.7% surge year on year.

Piloting continued to radically handle shortcomings

At the meeting, Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Chung affirmed that the city would continue piloting the walking space around Hoan Kiem Lake and surrounding areas from January 1 to June 30, 2017, seeking to radically handle shortcomings before the official implementation. The opening time will remain unchanged, from 7pm on Friday to 12pm on Sunday, aiming to create a habit for visitors. The space will also be opened on holidays, except for the Lunar New Year as people return to their hometowns for Tet, leaving Ha Noi streets quiet.

The issue of concern is the way to make the walking space more attractive and become a popular destination of citizens and tourists. Chung insistedthat all activities in the space must move towards developing it into a spiritual and cultural destination, not a place for service trading activities. Therefore, cultural activities will be strengthened in the time ahead to meet the demand of the people. In addition to existing cultural activities, Ha Noi will implement the cherry blossom festival; organize festivals featuring ASEAN and European cuisine; and hold performances of intangible cultural heritages of provinces across the country. The city will also rearrange the outlets with appropriate items for a cultural space, while assigning the Hoan Kiem district authorities to build a master plan on walking streets, renovate sidewalks and flower parks, and purify Hoan Kiem Lake water.

By Vien Nhu