JVPD residents and architects propose alternatives to parking lot beneath Pushpa Narsee Park

The land is centrally located for the entire JVPD and MHADA residents which can accommodate 1000 cars. This proposed car park by residents shall also be beneficial to adjoining existing Kaifi Azmi Park as well as the ongoing Prem Nagar metro station

Mumbai: The creation of a parking lot beneath Pushpa Narsee Park in the Juhu-Vile Parle Development Scheme (JVPD), announced by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in its budget 2023-24, met with stiff opposition. On Sunday, JVPD residents along with prominent architects like Nitin Kilawalla and Samartha Das had a meeting and made a presentation on alternatives to constructing a parking lot.

Mumbai, India - Feb 19, 2023 : JVPD Residence Meeting for alternative to contraction parking lot beneath at Pushpa Narsee Park, Juhu, in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, Feb 19, 2023. (Photo by Vijay Bate/HT Photo)

According to their proposal, the BMC yard along Irla Nullah from 6th to 9th NS Roads in JVPD Scheme is suitable land for the parking lot. This piece of land measures 10,000 sq.m and is a perfect rectangle in shape – making it highly efficient for a parking lot.

The land is centrally located for the entire JVPD and MHADA residents which can accommodate 1000 cars. This proposed car park by residents shall also be beneficial to adjoining existing Kaifi Azmi Park as well as the ongoing Prem Nagar metro station.

Architect Nitin Killawala of G7 Architects & Planners made a presentation at PN Park and said, “Any civil construction under existing garden uprooting ancestral trees is against sustainable planning. PN Park has been an iconic public park for over six decades.”

Killawala explained that car parks can never be efficient in a triangular plot such as PN Park. “Whatever number of parking slots accommodated under 7,500 sq metres of PN Park can be accommodated within 5,000 sq. meter if it is a rectangular box under the road. Thus saving costs, execution, and time, that too without disturbing the garden,” said Killawala.

Architect Samartha Das from PK Das & Associates said that from the municipal market, the yard plot is a clean rectangle currently utilised for utility activities which are under-utilised.

“Geographically, it is at the heart of the Juhu scheme. Every road from 6th to 10th meets the park. By conservative calculations, we can fit about 350 cars on one level. So, if you build a multi-storied parking lot without going into the basement and paying extra money you can park 1000 cars in that parking lot. Why do we want to touch our parks? Nobody is arguing that there is a parking problem but the agenda is clear. We want parks out of this discussion. Let us look for impervious surfaces that are being built which are roads and parking facilities and service yards to promote the idea of public parking.”

Killawala added that there was also a redundant road between P N Park and JNS playground proposed as a basement car park where additional about 70 cars can be parked for markets and schools in the neighbourhood.

Das said that the areas marked in grey in the development plan (DP) should be considered and BMC should stay away from the greens and blues. This policy was also pushed through the DP which citizens had objected to but it was discarded and not adhered to in the past. Through the meeting, residents have formulated a letter which will be sent to Iqbal Singh Chahal, municipal chief, MLA Ameet Satam, K west ward garden department. “This is symptomatic of what can follow in future. This isn’t about a park in the Juhu scheme and Bandra but is about deciding the fate of parks in the city at large. We must give respect to the idea of parks not just as a green open space but for multi-functional progress,” said Das.

The draft letter broadly expressed their concerns around two fields- ecological concern and the actual viability of this location.

This open space has been maintained as a park since the year 1971 and after 50 years of its existence. The park is currently used by hundreds of neighbourhood residents and it is home to countless large rain trees that have been around for an even longer time.

The letter states that if the said proposal goes through, this will mean the destruction of the large rain trees that currently occupy the park in order to facilitate the construction of the park.

“The entire JVPD Scheme area is a flood-prone zone, and by the construction of a parking lot at this location we will be letting go of a large catchment sponge that will further add to the flooding woes of the neighbourhood. The park also helps maintain air quality levels,” the letter stated.

Regarding viability concerns the letter stated that the park is a triangle in shape – which makes it highly impractical to develop for parking facilities – and even if it is planned, it will be highly inefficient and hence of much lesser car carrying capacity as is being promised.