VADAKARA:The filthy old Koyilandy bus stand site will soon wear a new look. The Municipality is planning to give a facelift to the developing town by rebuilding it into a shopping mall.
Municipal chairperson K Santha said the proposed shopping mall, a multi-crore project to be implemented in a phased manner, would be a major leap in the infrastructure development sector in the municipality.
“With the launch of the new municipal bus stand, the old bus stand is functioning merely as a bus waiting centre and the building is in a state of decay. So the civic body has mooted a proposal to reconstruct it into a shopping mall. The proposed eight-storey building would have enough space for business establishments, entertainment and cultural activities and it would be completed in a phased manner on 60 cents of land at the existing bus stand site,” she said.
It will have multipurpose theatres, escalators connecting all the floors, parking space for vehicles, common area and state of the art facilities.
Standing Committee (Public Works) chairman T K Rajesh, said that Koyilandy town is fast developing and the civic body’s priority is to ensure infrastructure facilities.
The strategic location of the mall is expected to attract more business establishments and it will help the civic body earn a considerable revenue from monthly rent, he said.
According to him, the Municipality is planning to take loan from banks and other financial institutions to meet the expenses of the multi-crore project. Representatives and officials of the Municipality have discussed the pros and cons of the project.
National Institute of Technology (NIT) has been asked to submit a detailed master plan for the same, the chairman said.
“We are soon expecting the plan and it would be submitted before the government for its approval. NIT is expected to submit their plan this month, after which steps would be taken to obtain loan to start the work on the project.
The civic body expects to earn a considerable revenue from the annual rent collected from shops and other establishments that will be set up in the mall, the chairman said.
As an initial step of the project, the existing building would be demolished soon.
Before that, all shops functioning in the building will be rehabilitated. Of the 32 shop owners, around 15 have to be rehabilitated and the municipality has already chalked out a temporary space near the Municipal stadium to run their shops, he said.
“Tenders have been invited seeking expression of interest to demolish the old building and the procedures would be completed by the month-end,” he said.