The new city will be built by adding 450 acres on the city’s western sea front using dredged material from the new Colombo South Harbour being built next to the existing port.
Basic infrastructure is to be completed in three years with Lanka Hydraulics Institute, which provides hydrographic and modelling services, and the Moratuwa University being also involved in the planning.
“We’re standing on reclaimed land that was once the sea,” Wickrama told reporters, standing at the end of a three-kilometre breakwater projecting out into the sea, during a media tour of the new port project last week.
"It is still not officially part of Sri Lanka’s map."
Work on the future Colombo port city will start by the year’s end, Wickrama said.
“Because it will be a planned city we can include all the infrastructure that’s needed and it will help reduce problems in the present city such as congestion, traffic jams, lack of space for parking and pollution.
“We will plan for all that – like roads and sewage and then investors can come in.”
The Marine Drive, a road running parallel to the main Galle Road leading to the city from the south, will be extended from the Colpetty municipal ward where it has stopped right into the city centre on land reclaimed from the sea, providing another approach road into the city.
I see no reason why they didn't allocate some extra space for this purpose despite adequate space is available in this place.
Hopefully there will be demand and it will no be a gost own, saying that he reclamation better be solid so there will be no sinking and it should take into aount the marine wildlife.
The future of environment and global warming is a factor so that if and when water levels rise there should be in built planning for that. Some say water leels may rise by 20 to 30 feet if polar ice melts and Sri LAnka is in danger if so.
The estimated demand will be a maximum of 1,220 m3 per day, with about 1,000 m3 per day required during construction. Although there is a water Although there is a water shortage in Colombo, the National Water Supply and Drainage Board confirms that with the completion of the Kalu Ganga project in 2008, the demand for water supply to Colombo and the CSH operation, including the operation of new facilities established by the project, will be met.”
So even the CSH project requires completion of a major water supply project for adequate water to be supplied. What about the far greater demand for the new city extension?
this is just what Mumbai did some time back .... the traffic is terrible this is not the way to go about it. we should move to develop the Eastern Northen and Southern parts of Colombo
How many months have we been trying to get the Parliament Road expansion completed? While being unable to get these comparatively small project, we're trying to start more and more larger projects...
Great Project, would make Colombo look like a truly an international city like Singapore, Dubai, Shanghai, Mumbai. Need some more high rise buildings.
mumbai ?
There may be a good reason why people in LA wouldn’t want to work in high-rise buildings. LA is subjected to earthquakes, so if I live in LA I wouldn’t want to live in a high-rise building. The attitudes of most living in Colombo are changing.
It is difficult to find a house with a small garden in most parts of Colombo city limits. A project similar to above is probably targeted for expatriates and educated and career minded Sri Lankans.
Having said the above, I do have my reservations for many reasons
1. This type of project shall kill an icon of Colombo, the very reason a visit to Galle Face being a very pleasant experience.
2. Wouldn’t it be sensible to develop fort, Pettah and the surrounding area instead.
3. This could end up like another pipe dream.
I would like to bring an example from los Angeles , where I live - the second largest city in USA. But.its high rises are a failure! as Los Angeles citizens in California more prefer to live and work in ground levels as much as possible.
This has failed the business in floors higher than 2-3 levels. In most of the famous highrises in LA some floors were empty for past 50 years!
Considering Sri Lankans still I bet 95% of citizens find it hard to live in highrise condos than living in a ground level house with a small garden. So we must be cautious that the nation is still ground base in thinking. This can bring an utter failure in the future. this is same for most of the Asian countries as well except few like Hong Kong, Taipei, Singapore, where the land is so small comparatively to SL.
Hence we must re-interpret the so called western development of concrete jungles. We must develop more horizontally and yes I agree towards the sea. This could be a new Urban form then.
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