The proposed change of use of the Mahalaxmi Racecourse in Worli has prompted the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to request public comments and recommendations, perhaps leading to the establishment of ‘Mumbai Central Public Park,’ an estimated 120 acres in size.
A new regulation will be added to the Development Control and Promotion Regulations (DCPR) 2004 after the full process, which includes a public hearing, is finished. The Mahalaxmi Racecourse can now be used for the Central Park project thanks to this modification. The Mahalaxmi Racecourse will be the only establishment covered by the BMC’s proposed regulation, and no other clubs or gymkhanas falling under the civic authority will be covered.
On August 22, the BMC published a notice informing the public of their intention to change the use of the Racecourse. Submissions must be made by September 22 at the latest. A senior civil servant announced that following the receipt of criticisms and recommendations, a hearing would be held and the planned plan will be modified in light of the information received. The concept to create a park on 120 acres of the 300 acres of Racecourse property was previously approved by the state government.
Roughly 300 acres will make up the proposed “Mumbai Central Public Park,” of which roughly 120 acres would come from the Mahalaxmi Racecourse and about 175 acres from the Mumbai Coastal Road project. A 30-year lease on roughly 91 acres of the Mahalaxmi Racecourse’s 211 total acres was signed in the presence of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde by The Royal Western India Turf Club Limited (RWITCL). As a result, the BMC purchased 120 acres of this property.
The entire 211-acre Mahalaxmi Racecourse land was leased to RWITCL for more than a century. Despite several legal, regulatory, and administrative obstacles, the BMC persistently attempted to recover the site for public use once the leasing agreement ended a few years ago. Senior civic officials stated that these initiatives had at last paid off, enabling the BMC to execute Chief Minister Shinde’s vision of an internationally-standard “Mumbai Central Public Park.”
Source: Lokmat Times
