March_1967 — Page 23

View of city-scape from river outlook

city is required, and the only way this prerogative is ensured is with city-planning.

It is only after critical problems of building standards, zoning and traffic control are discussed that we can turn to the pleasures of park development and the places where man takes his leisure. Inherent in any civic design would be the consideration for the eventual placement of these amenities in the city.

This element is no less important to man's well-being than respectable house or decent working environment. The open spaces must be where they will be used: small parks within the city centre and larger ones in the predominantly residential areas.

It is in this respect that I ask about the future of the Klongs. Are they obsolete in the Bangkok of today or can they provide a useful end if they remain?

Historically, canal cities used their waterways as lines of communication. In Bangkok this is no longer so. The economic rational will suffice for Amsterdam and Venice but not here, for little use is made of the canals as a transportation medium. The argu- ment for their retention lines in other benefits.

Architecturally, canals are

are boun- daries, enclosures and vistas. They are natural parks whose banks offer a place of refuge from the pressures of street activity.

An expedient measure in Bangkok would be to fill in the Klongs and provide more expressways into the centre of the city. Economically, this may be a sound idea but the city does not need more roads that bottle-neck at the centre.

It may be worthwhile to consider the Klongs as part of the park pro- gramme in an effort to save them for their intrinsic value. Canals can pro- vide what formal parks cannot, that is, places for leisure that are not isolated from the central areas of more serious endeavour. Commercial districts and canals can function and co-exist without endangering efficiency of either, whereas formal park in this location cannot give you this advantage.

the

the

Water, be it in fountain, lake or

Far East Architect & Builder March, 1967

canal, is a valuable and previous as- set to the city. An all-too-quick de- cision to erase the Klongs is not realis- ing the potential that they contribute to the city design.

The river could also be incorpor- ated into a better city scheme. The wholesale removal of buildings to provide for a grand promenade is not necessary. What is possible though is an occasional penetrating of the wall of structures that line the shores to provide outlets from the street and make the river more ac- cessible to the public.

As a further advantage the "pedes- trian ways" would visually connect the river to a larger segment of the interior streets and aid in alleviating

the apparent density along the peri- phery of the city.

In retrospect, I have defind the im- age of what I think Bangkok is and marked some of its assets and liabili- ties. I would wish that the stating of my impressions may be a catalyst in generating an awareness that stop- gap measures do not result in good cities.

The proposals of a master-plan and larger involvement and action of gov ernment agencies. whereby tide of growth may be stemmed and put to positive use, are rational suggestions. They are not romantic notions, but as proved elsewhere in the world, the most practical and beneficial means to ensure a city's future.

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Suggested penetration into wall of buildings that line the river. This protected pedes- tian way can be created with a minimum loss to commercial space

Example of park development along Klongs. Utilisation of space for public amenities such as restaurants, play areas and rest pavilions

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