The future’s bright, the future’s green
Experts want govt to tax private sector to fund initiatives that utilize idle spaces and give capital more of a Singaporean feel, writes Supoj Wancharoen
Bangkok has been compared to Singapore in many respects. The Lion City clearly has an edge in terms of security, economic strength and overall development while Bangkok trumps most rivals in terms of culture, excitement and a fun-filled lifestyle.
However, when it comes to their conservation and use of green space, Singapore is hard to beat.
Singapore boasts 66 square metres of green space per capita compared to a measly 6.18 sq m in Bangkok, which also contends with heavy smog, mass congestion and a high rate of non-communicable diseases. The latter are responsible for up to 70% of deaths in the city.
To address these health concerns, the National Health Commission Office (NHCO) and Thai Association of Landscape Architects co-hosted a forum entitled “Public Space, We Can!” on July 4.
The forum was aimed at gathering ideas to help scale up the use of public space in the city for the betterment of residents and tourists.
“Many tend to think public space development isn’t something that concerns them. They may consider such projects as not really being of much use to them, even a waste of taxpayers’ money,” said Yossapol Boonsom of Shma Co. He is also a co-founder of the non-profit organisation, Friends of the River (FOR).
His research has shown him numerous places with strong potential to be developed into usable areas including stateowned land, private plots, paved areas and libraries.
In addition to this there is a total of 75,320 rai sitting under the city’s expressways. Most of the plots are deserted but some have been transformed into sports grounds, multipurpose spaces, pop-up stores or even flood-prevention zones, he said.
“The biggest obstacles in turning unused plots into public spaces are insufficient funding, and a lack of participation by the private sector and local community,” said Mr Yosapol.
Such problems can be addressed by forming a network to find out what local residents want and need the most, he added.
Asst Prof Peeradorn Kaewlai, a lecturer at the faculty of architecture and planning at Thammasat University in Bangkok said it was essential the private sector get involved.
He described some of the development projects buoyed by a private partner as “semi-public” spaces, for example zones that connect a department store with a public area.
“In that case, the department store could benefit by seeing a surge in customers who spillover from visiting the public space,” he said. In order to attract private-sector partners to jointly invest in a public space development project, the government should consider incentives like reduced land and building taxes, he said.
He said he had identified over 268 locations in the city with a “hidden” potential for development.
Because land prices in the capital are sky high in some areas, notably business and tourist districts, a sound business outlook is also required by the heads of development teams, said Adis Israngkura from the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida).
“It’s already difficult to seek permission from state agencies to use public space under their jurisdiction, especially when the request is being made by a forprofit organisation or company,” said Mr Adis, who also advises the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI).
Funding is another issue. He recommended a change in tax policy to generate more revenue for state coffers that could then be diverted to developing public
space. He said commercial projects in these areas should pay more tax.
“Real estate projects by a public park or along the electric rail system benefit from being in close proximity to the associated green spaces but the taxes they pay aren’t any higher than similar businesses in different parts of the city,” he said.
“In business districts, the government is spending significantly more of the state budget to develop public utilities such as electricity and public transport, while businesses in those areas pay the same tax rates as their counterparts elsewhere,” he added.
He recommended introducing a “betterment tax”.
This is a tax the state collects on a plot it has somehow improved. One example would be if building roads, metros or airports with public money leads to an appreciation in land prices in the vicinity, then landowners would enjoy a generous windfall.
For the electric rail system, if more revenue is earned by collecting the betterment tax then government officials could spend it to double the number of routes available there.
Otherwise, customers say ticket fares should be subsidised so people won’t have to pay the increased commuting cost.