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.
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).
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.
Free of charge
“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.
“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.
Rs 8 crore, a large sum
George, however, didn’t support spending a large sum of money (Rs 8 crore) on developing a single road.
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.
