BMC to unveil landscaping plan for coastal road’s open spaces today

All the landscaping will be on the land side of the coastal road, contrasting with the seaward-facing promenade. The largest landscaping areas will be located at the Amarsons interchange at Breach Candy, followed by Mahalaxmi, Haji Ali and Worli

MUMBAI: The BMC will today officially unveil the landscaping proposal for about 70 hectares of open space flanking the newly opened coastal road. For a city whose greenery and open spaces have gradually been decimated over the years, this reversal is significant.

BMC to unveil landscaping plan for coastal road’s open spaces today

Stretching from Priyadarshini Park on Nepeansea Road, where the coastal road tunnels emerge from Marine Drive, the open space areas will extend to Worli, where the road connects to the Bandra-Worli Sea Link via a bridge. All the landscaping will be on the land side of the coastal road, contrasting with the seaward-facing promenade. The largest landscaping areas will be located at the Amarsons interchange at Breach Candy, followed by Mahalaxmi, Haji Ali and Worli.

M M Swami, chief engineer (in-charge) of the coastal road department said that the BMC had divided the landscaping into three sections and precincts, namely the Green Shore, Nature’s Cove and Park Line. “The Green Shore will be from Priyadarshani Park to Breach Candy Hospital,” he said. “The second section will be from the hospital to Lotus jetty, and the third will extend from Lovegrove nallah to the Coast Guard office in Worli. The three zones have different themes and have been earmarked for different activities.”

The Green Shore will mainly comprise a green zone with plantations while Nature’s Cove will have artificially created water bodies like ponds as well as amphitheatres. Park Line will have theme gardens like butterfly parks. The new waterfront development will integrate the coastal road’s 7.5-km continuous promenade from Breach Candy to Worli with the existing Worli promenade.

The overall spatial arrangement within these precincts will have views of the sea, opportunities for recreation, and will recreate an urban forest adjoining existing high-density development. AECOM is the design and project management consultant for this, the largest coastal reclamation greening project in Mumbai.

Project manager Vipul Surana said that the new waterfront development in India’s financial capital included a seven-km public promenade with 60 hectares of parks. “As a first step, a concept landscape master plan was prepared, engaging a wide array of stakeholders who laid emphasis on a variety of features,” he said. “These include creating naturalised spaces, extending the greenery to the promenade area, ensuring strong pedestrian connectivity to the park and promenade (walk, cycle, universal accessibility), 24x7 access to the parks and promenade, and providing a range of programme activities based on mostly leisure and water, and some based on culture and play.”

The amenities include drinking water, public toilets, seating, shade areas, wifi, and solar charging. The landscape programme focuses on celebrating the city, ensuring commitment to the environment and sustainability, enhancing natural ecosystems and strengthening access to the new waterfront.

The tender for landscaping will be invited by June-July this year, and the deadline for completion will be 15 months. “Work may start by September-October this year and will be completed by December 2025,” said Swami. “The design will be finalised by Thursday and then the drawings, tender documents and the estimated cost will be finalised.”