The construction of the No. 5 Le Loi boat dock has not yet begun.

The Thua Thien Hue Component Project (DA) will be implemented from 2022 with 3 bid packages from a loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Accordingly, the project has 3 bidding packages including upgrading transport and tourism infrastructure and upgrading and building new marinas in the province. The project's goal is to increase the tourism competitiveness of secondary tourist destinations through improving infrastructure and tourism service environment. At the same time, it supports the tourism industry of localities to exploit their strengths with specific tourism products to promote and attract tourists.

However, after a period of construction, many items of the bid packages could not be implemented due to site clearance problems and changes in material design.

Specifically, in package No. 12, it includes upgrading the connecting road from National Highway 1A to the southwestern edge of the Hon Chen Palace boundary (Huong Tho commune, Hue city) with a length of 1.2km, a 9m wide roadbed, a 7m wide road surface and a drainage system, and building a 5,000m2 parking lot. Currently, the contractor is constructing the road grade layer to Hon Chen Palace, the cleared section with a length of about 1.2km.

Although it was implemented from July 2022, with a contract value of 18.4 billion VND, expected to be completed by the end of 2023, the progress of this package has only reached 0.76 billion VND. The package is stuck with site clearance work in the parking lot area, there is currently 1 household that does not agree to receive compensation support money, requesting compensation for land and 1 household is supplementing confirmation of land origin in Huong Tho commune.

For package No. 13 to build new and upgrade boat wharves on the Huong River and Tam Giang lagoon, contributing to supporting local tourism development, many wharves have not yet been implemented. Construction started in February 2022 with a contract value of VND 52.98 billion, although the completion date was extended to December 31, 2023, it has not yet been implemented or is under construction.

Specifically, this package includes the construction of 5 boat piers on the Huong River, from Thuy Bang Commune to Phu Mau Commune (Hue City), along with 2 boat piers Vinh Tu and Con Toc in Quang Dien District. All boat piers are invested with complete auxiliary items to serve tourists.

According to the local government, the upgraded and newly built boat dock system, when put into operation, will effectively serve the transportation of tourists by waterway on the Huong River and the Con Toc lagoon area (Quang Dien district). With the new boat dock system designed with synchronous items, it will create favorable conditions to attract businesses to invest in new vehicles, thereby meeting the increasingly high demands and standards of tourists, especially international tourists.

Although the expected completion date has passed, according to the Project Management Board, package 13 has only completed 70.4% of the construction value, and many items have not been able to be constructed. Only Thanh Tien boat dock (Phu Mau commune), Con Toc and Vinh Tu docks have basically completed the items. The remaining docks such as Ho Quyen - Voi Re, Than dock, No. 5 Le Loi, Bao Vinh (Hue city) are all under construction or have not been able to start construction due to many obstacles in site clearance.

For Bao Vinh wharf in Huong Vinh ward (Hue city), a 30m long boat wharf, a 136m2 service house including waiting area, ticket sales and public toilets; parking lot and garden, 152m2 of trees will be built. The construction of this boat wharf will facilitate waterway traffic connection on the Huong River to serve tourists visiting Bao Vinh ancient town. However, this boat wharf has not been implemented yet because the contractor does not have the site (one case has not received compensation).

Mr. Ta Duong Anh Tuan, Chairman of Huong Vinh Ward People's Committee, said that the case of land acquisition and resettlement includes 3 siblings who have not yet agreed to the compensation level and have requested to arrange a resettlement plot for the secondary household. "According to regulations, their request is not for the right subjects, so the land plot cannot be arranged. The ward government has had many dialogues, explanations, and mobilizations, but up to now, this household has not agreed," said Mr. Tuan.

At the boat dock No. 5 Le Loi on the Huong River, in the center of Hue City, according to the design, a 40m long boat dock extending 49m into the middle of the river will be built; a service house with a waiting room, commercial space, ticket sales and a 495m2 toilet. In addition, the existing road to the boat dock will be upgraded with asphalt concrete, 180m long, with a roadbed of 16m and a road surface of 10m wide. However, this item has not yet started construction. According to the Project Management Board, the reason for the delay in starting construction of this item is that in April 2023, the Provincial People's Committee issued an official dispatch proposing to change the road surface material of the road to the dock from asphalt concrete to granite paving.

By the end of October 2023, the Project Management Board will submit the project to the Department of Planning and Investment for appraisal and advise the Provincial People's Committee to adjust the project to implement the next steps. This item is expected to be implemented in February 2024.

Mr. Le Thanh Bac, Deputy Head of the Project Management Board, said that the unit has proposed the Department of Planning and Investment to advise the Provincial People's Committee to direct relevant units to promptly speed up the compensation and site clearance work according to detailed recommendations in the items. For items that have not been implemented or completed, the Project Management Board will propose an extension of the progress. The latest time is June 2024 to complete the remaining items.

Article and photos: HA NGUYEN