New Din Daeng flats on the way
A foundation stone will be laid to formally begin construction of the new Din Daeng flats on Dec 19, edging tenants of the old Din Daeng flats closer to their dreams of living in more secure and livable homes.
Social Development and Human Security Minister Adul Sangsingkeo and officials of the National Housing Authority (NHA) inspected the site yesterday on the corner of the Vibhavadi Rangsit and Din Daeng roads to ensure the area is well prepared for the foundation stone-laying ceremony.
The location of the new flats is not far from the old ones.
There are four phases of the housing project. The stone-laying event is for the first-phase of construction involving several buildings, according to Pol Gen Adul.
The first building in the first phase has 28 storeys with 334 rooms. Construction will take around 18 months, the minister said.
Once the first building is completed, tenants at Numbers 18-22 Din Daeng flats will be the first people to move there, Pol Gen Adul said.
The new Din Daeng flats project, which will accommodate a total of 19,958 families, is part of the Din Daeng rehabilitation programme initiated by the government in 2000 to restore the Din Daeng community.
Early this year, experts agreed to demolish the old apartment buildings for safety reasons following an inspection of the 50-year-old buildings.
The government reached a deal in February to relocate the tenants to new flats.
The old flats will be demolished under the plan and the residents moved.
Somneuk Thongsang, 78, a resident of the old Din Daeng flats whose family is among the first batch of residents who will relocate, said the project is a dream and she cannot wait to move to her new flat.
“I don’t earn much money and I have three kids to raise. We live hand to mouth.
“Having a decent house in the city to live in is a dream come true,” she said adding their current home is in poor condition.
Ms Somneuk makes a living as a seamstress. She and her children moved from a police flat to the Din Daeng flats many years ago following the death of her policeman husband.
Pol Gen Adul said yesterday he will submit a proposal to the cabinet next year to build the next phases of the Din Daeng flats, adding he has held talks with the NHA to make Din Daeng community a special residential zone.