Central Park!

Me and Ashlesha decided to spend some time at the central Park this evening to understand more about the social logic of open spaces in our city. Central Park is a city level open space in the new town of Navi Mumbai. It is placed in Kharghar next to a Krishna temple ( ISKON) and opposite to the Golf course. Our first observations of course were that it is gated and has no entry fee. And yes we had a baloonwala and the bhelpuriwala right there thus retaining the informality! It has an expansive parking area. Today being a holiday it was filled with people of all ages, kids and adults all alike enjoying being in this vast open space. 

So back to our question, What makes a public space successful in this city? Is it the scale? Is it the amenities, like parking, public toilets? Is it the natural settings? Or is it the mere existence of a city level open space? One thing about the city and the country is that we are full of people and we like being in the open. Be it a tobacco shop, a small tea corner, a community garden next to the house or a city level public space, we are full of people. This does not stop us from appreciating the goodness of the park. It is indeed an interesting place to be with an impressive amphi theater, play area for kids with innovative play equipment  good air and brightly lit as the sun sets. 

Comparing Central Park to several parks and open spaces in cities across India like Bhopal and Hyderabad; we realize that there have been constant efforts to create good public spaces across the country. The problem is as time passes, it becomes hard to maintain. Is it the economics or lack of interest. We don't know! Be it the lumbini Park or the lake side at Bhopal, why do places lose the dynamism they posses. Why go that far? What happened to Sagar Vihar and Sarovar Vihar. These were once beautiful edges of the city. 

So is the success of a public space really a design issue, a social issue or a political issue? We are still wondering? What really makes a public space successful?