Contest announced for drafting 2040 General Ulaanbaatar Plan
The Ulaanbaatar Mayor’s Office is encouraging the public to send proposals and plans for a contest to draft the General Ulaanbaatar Plan through 2040. “We’re developing the General Ulaanbaatar Plan through 2040 for the 379th anniversary of the capital to be held on October 29...
The Ulaanbaatar Mayor’s Office is encouraging the public to send proposals and plans for a contest to draft the General Ulaanbaatar Plan through 2040.
“We’re developing the General Ulaanbaatar Plan through 2040 for the 379th anniversary of the capital to be held on October 29. Settlement areas were determined last year. Rural to urban migration was also stopped. Ulaanbaatar will have two centers and eight sub-centers. We will accept public opinion for the next general plan,” said Mayor of Ulaanbaatar S.Batbold.
The total jackpot is 40 million MNT and the entity with the best proposal for the general city plan will receive 20 million MNT of the total cash prize.
MAYOR UPDATES ON CITY PLANS
Mayor S.Batbold gave the following clarification on city projects after announcing the contest for General Ulaanbaatar Plan through 2040.
You’re carrying out a project to relocate the city municipality. Is it true that the city is spending 17 billion MNT on this project?
The development work required for relocating the city center is going well. We’re planning to move before the end of the first quarter of 2019. The preliminary financing for the new administration building was approved at 17 billion MNT by the Ulaanbaatar City Council in September.
The new administration will consist of three buildings. One of them will be occupied by the City Council, Mayor’s Office and office for the mayor’s team. The second will consist of agencies and the third building will be a center for public services. It will take two years for them to be built.
The financing will be settled by selling real estate under the city ownership. The Khangarid Palace will be auctioned openly along with the fourth city administration building, where Ard Bank used to be located. Moving to Yarmag isn’t the same project to move the city administration. It actually is planned to start decentralization in the city.
Our 3,000 public workers provide services to 10,000 to 15,000 customers a day.
There are many countries that moved their city administration, government, ministries or agencies to decentralize the city. We believe that this can avert 30,000 to 40,000 vehicles that come to the city.
Smog season has begun. The budget for decreasing air pollution is much larger than the budget for mortgage loans. What is your opinion on this?
The government is seeking antismog solutions. The National Air Pollution Reduction Committee is also enthusiastic about it. The best solution is housing.
Housing requires considerable investment and time. What should be done in the meantime?
We’re doing everything we can. We’re discussing a huge budget we’ve never had (for air pollution) before for next year. This budget will solve many things. One of them is the development of improved fuel.
A newly set up company called Tavan Tolgoi Tulsh will produce 200,000 tons of improved fuel and it has started trials. Another 200,000 tons will be produced by another private company that will also be founded soon. The city has provided land for their offices. The remaining 200,000 tons of improved fuel will be supplied by the companies that have been doing it to this day.
These 600,000 tons will become ready by September 15, 2019.
The government has issued a decree to ban raw coal in Ulaanbaatar starting next spring. People preferred coal over fuel (briquette) because they burned faster and were affordable. Therefore, we’re demanding better quality of fuel. We demanding a kg of improved fuel to be cheaper than a kg of coal or a sack of coal.
Has related legal adjustments been made for the ban?
It’s the 10th item on the list of things to be discussed at the fall session of the government. The first discussion will start soon. Passing the bill will most likely create a favorable legal environment for the public.