Khlong Toei smart community project forced to slice off 10 storeys
Port Authority of Thailand (PAT)’s smart residential project at Khlong Toei Port in Bangkok needs a major change to building plans to comply with the land utility law, said PAT deputy director Somchai Hemthong on Monday.
“The original plan was to build four 20-storey apartment buildings for residents of communities around Khlong Toei Port, but the law stipulates that buildings located on a secondary road must not exceed 10-storeys,” he said. “Therefore, we will change the plan and build six to eight 10-storey buildings instead.”
The Khlong Toei Smart Community project will develop 58 rai of land around Khlong Toei Port with apartment buildings containing 6,048 residential units, plus offices, government buildings, a public health office, market, school, public park and parking space for residents. It aims to provide standardised accommodation for residents of Khlong Toei slums and is part of PAT’s long term initiative to turn Bangkok Port into a smart port.
The development project launched in 2019 with a completion date of 2038 and a budget of THB9.85 billion. PAT is currently conducting an environmental impact assessment (EIA) study and estimates construction could start by 2023.