<p>Bengaluru’s popular haunt, Church Street, presents a picture of contrasts. Home to some popular pubs and restaurants, it has a road full of potholes and garbage and no footpaths. Then there is haphazard parking, an overflowing sewage line and hundreds of rodents for company.<br /><br /></p>.<p>But all this may change for the better. The state government has said it would develop the 750-metres-long street in the next phase of Tender SURE (Specifications for Urban Roads Execution).<br /><br />Earlier, architect Naresh V Narasimhan had drawn up a redesign plan of Church Street on the Paris model. The idea was to have a two-way road with cobble stones and concrete besides special streetlights, pedestrian-friendly footpaths, streaming music and benches. But the plan didn’t materialise for lack of funds. Its estimated cost was Rs 8 crore.<br /><br />Free of charge<br /><br />“It’s almost six months since I submitted the design to the BBMP free of charge. But the Palike is just sitting on it. I spent more than two months on designing this project,” he said. According to Narasimhan, his redesign plans for City Market, Residency Road, Brigade Road and Nanjappa Circle also evoked a poor response from the civic authorities.<br /><br />“The politicians and bureaucrats appreciated my work but did nothing,” he said. Bengaluru Development Minister K J George said the government would include Church Street under the TenderSURE project. “The government is considering developing 25 roads under this project and the work may begin in a month,” he told Deccan Herald.<br /><br />Rs 8 crore, a large sum<br /><br />George, however, didn’t support spending a large sum of money (Rs 8 crore) on developing a single road.<br /><br />He said the Church Street Association had promised to contribute half of the funds required for redeveloping Church Street but failed to keep its word.</p>
<p>Bengaluru’s popular haunt, Church Street, presents a picture of contrasts. Home to some popular pubs and restaurants, it has a road full of potholes and garbage and no footpaths. Then there is haphazard parking, an overflowing sewage line and hundreds of rodents for company.<br /><br /></p>.<p>But all this may change for the better. The state government has said it would develop the 750-metres-long street in the next phase of Tender SURE (Specifications for Urban Roads Execution).<br /><br />Earlier, architect Naresh V Narasimhan had drawn up a redesign plan of Church Street on the Paris model. The idea was to have a two-way road with cobble stones and concrete besides special streetlights, pedestrian-friendly footpaths, streaming music and benches. But the plan didn’t materialise for lack of funds. Its estimated cost was Rs 8 crore.<br /><br />Free of charge<br /><br />“It’s almost six months since I submitted the design to the BBMP free of charge. But the Palike is just sitting on it. I spent more than two months on designing this project,” he said. According to Narasimhan, his redesign plans for City Market, Residency Road, Brigade Road and Nanjappa Circle also evoked a poor response from the civic authorities.<br /><br />“The politicians and bureaucrats appreciated my work but did nothing,” he said. Bengaluru Development Minister K J George said the government would include Church Street under the TenderSURE project. “The government is considering developing 25 roads under this project and the work may begin in a month,” he told Deccan Herald.<br /><br />Rs 8 crore, a large sum<br /><br />George, however, didn’t support spending a large sum of money (Rs 8 crore) on developing a single road.<br /><br />He said the Church Street Association had promised to contribute half of the funds required for redeveloping Church Street but failed to keep its word.</p>
