For two decades, Kochi has been awaiting a new corporation office. Legal delays, technical issues, and multiple revisions in the project budget estimate had hampered progress.
The long-standing civic need was finally fulfilled on Tuesday, with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurating the new building. “It will be fully functional in a couple of weeks. We are in the process of shifting everything from the old office,” says Mayor M Anilkumar.
Notably, the base plan for the building was conceievd by the legendary architect Kuldip Singh, who had designed the Marine Drive.
Located on a 1.5-acre site near the Goshree Bridge on Abdul Kalam Marg near Marine Drive, the building comprises a basement and six floors. The modern council hall accommodates 82 councillors and 25 officials, with a separate 640sq.ft area designated for the public and the media.
Other facilities include a mini-conference hall, office spaces for the deputy mayor, standing committee chairpersons and other officials, along with a public service centre.
Designed to be disability-friendly, the building features lifts, a parking area, a nursing room, and a waiting area, among other amenities.
Highlighting Kochi’s rich heritage, the premises include artistic installations featuring a sculpture of the ‘Queen of Arabian Sea’, and inscriptions of notable figures such as Edappally Raghavan Pillai, Changampuzha Krishna Pillai, Vailoppilli Sreedhara Menon, G Sankara Kurup, Dakshayani Velayudhan, Robert Bristow, Lord Wellington and Prof M K Sanoo on a city map.
Models depicting the city’s prominent landmarks such as the Cochin Shipyard, Water Metro, Bolgatty Palace, High Court and Mangalavanam have also been installed. The upper floors of the building offer a scenic view of the backwaters.
Two decades
Construction of the new building began in 2006, but estimate revisions, legal disputes with contractors, and issues such as waterlogging in the basement and leakages led to repeated delays in completion. The new office will be functional in a couple of weeks.