CityNews – Chiang Mai’s ever-vocal netizens have been coming together on social media in order to demand authorities clean up the area around Tha Pae Gate, so that all stalls selling products, food, and even beer which have been set up illegally in the area are moved away.
Facebook page, “Raks Mae Ping,” recently posted pictures of Tha Pae Gate taken in 2007 with a recent one posted as a comparison.
Tha Pae Gate is an important tourist spot as well an iconic landmark of the city, said many posters. The purpose of the area is for public use; ceremonial, important gatherings, celebrations and festivities, they say. However, in recent years the Chiang Mai Municipality has allowed stalls to set up in the area, affecting the image of Chiang Mai.
People are demanding answers from the mayor of Chiang Mai. Questions are very similar to those Citylife posed a few years back when we wrote our cover story Sign City, about the proliferation of signs in Chiang Mai: who allows businesses to use our public space? How much money is collected and where does it go? Under what rules are these public spaces rented out and by whose authority? Why is the municipality not listening to the voice of the public?
We will keep you updated on this matter.