Creating an ecological urban space in the West of Hanoi

Clearly define position for development

Quoc Oai is one of the suburban districts located in the western part of the capital, about 18km from the center of Hanoi. In addition, the district has a favorable location as the center of the western districts of the city. In particular, Quoc Oai also has the advantage of being located in the transitional area between the mountains and the plains, the terrain is divided by rivers. In terms of culture, Quoc Oai district has a long history with many valuable relics and scenic spots, craft villages and famous traditional folk festivals.

View of Quoc Oai district. Photo: Tran Dung

According to statistics, Quoc Oai currently has more than 200 relics of all kinds, of which more than 69 have been ranked (31 ministerial-level relics and 38 city-level relics); typically famous architectural and sculptural works from the Le and Ly dynasties such as Thay Pagoda, So Communal House, Can Communal House, Ngoc Than Communal House, Phu My Communal House, Can Thuong Pagoda...; traditional craft villages with 14 craft villages in the list of craft villages of Hanoi, along with traditional folk festivals with many unique cultural beauties, typically the Thay Pagoda festival, Do singing festival, Ham Rong singing festival, Yen Noi wrestling festival...

Head of the Urban Management Department of Quoc Oai District, Ngo Van Hung, said that in order to specify the orientations of the Master Plan for the Capital Construction to 2030, with a vision to 2050 and the Master Plan for Hoa Lac Urban Area to 2030, Quoc Oai District has inherited and selectively promoted the contents of the Master Plan for the Construction of Quoc Oai District, the Master Plan for the Ecological Town of Quoc Oai and related construction planning projects, Quoc Oai District has been identifying the driving forces and development models, thereby proposing appropriate planning targets and solutions for each stage.

Specifically, the district focuses on providing solutions for land use structure, structure and organization of development space in the district to meet the goal of strongly developing the economy in the direction of exploiting services, resort tourism, sightseeing associated with cultural space and traditional ecological landscapes; studying the possibility of developing a logistics center for goods distribution, high-tech agriculture, combined with research, scientific and high-tech training of Hoa Lac urban area, healthcare and other sectors.

In addition, the district will also orient the structure of urban and rural space development. Determine the scope and scale of functional areas in the area. Organize the architectural landscape space of the entire district, areas to create a modern, beautiful, civilized architectural appearance combined with renovation, embellishment and modernization of existing residential areas.

Regarding traffic structure and technical infrastructure, we will study to ensure uniformity, uniformity, and effective exploitation of existing land funds to contribute to local economic and social development, support the conversion of occupations, create jobs for local workers, and be consistent with the urbanization process of the area. In particular, we will focus on preserving and promoting the value of historical and cultural relics, scenic spots, and traditional craft villages, promoting the development of craft village tourism combined with ecological tourism, historical and cultural tourism, etc.

Focus on urban development in a green, ecological direction

Mr. Dam Van Toan, a resident of the New House Urban Area, Quoc Oai town, shared: “I have moved here for 6 years and feel completely comfortable because I live in an environment with lots of green space, lakes, etc. In addition, there is the Thang Long Highway, which quickly accesses the city center. In particular, this place has increasingly complete facilities with a full system of schools from kindergarten, primary school to high school; a system of hospitals invested in by the Government and the Ministry of Health such as the National Children's Hospital, Facility II; National Maternity Hospital, Facility II; other large projects such as the Museum of Nature, etc.

It can be said that the development of green and ecological urban areas in Quoc Oai district still has a lot of room for development as this area is very close to the Ring Road 4 of the Capital Region, as well as located in the central position connecting the inner city with Hoa Lac High-Tech Park. All of these promise to be extremely important fulcrums and conditions for this area to truly develop and take off in the near future.

Discussing the development orientation of the district, Mr. Ngo Van Hung added that according to the orientation of the Hanoi City Master Plan Adjustment Project, the Western area is determined to develop a city within the capital. At that time, Quoc Oai ecological urban area will play a transit role between the central urban area and the Western City. To meet the requirements of urban development, in the Quoc Oai District Construction Planning Project to 2030, with a vision to 2050, it is determined to expand an additional 950 hectares to the South within Quoc Oai District. Of which, the ecological urban area within the district after expansion is 225 hectares. The corresponding population size is 157,000 people.

According to Mr. Ngo Van Hung, right after the Hanoi People's Committee approved the task of the Construction Planning of Quoc Oai district to 2030, with a vision to 2050 in January 2023, the District People's Committee coordinated with the Hanoi Institute of Construction Planning to establish a planning project. The District People's Committee organized a workshop and is continuing to complete the project documents to report to the District People's Committee and implement the next steps according to regulations.

Regarding the difficulties and problems related to planning, Mr. Ngo Van Hung said that the Hanoi Capital Planning for the period 2021 - 2030, with a vision to 2050 and the Adjustment of the Hanoi Capital Master Plan to 2045, with a vision to 2065 have not been approved by competent authorities, affecting the progress of the Quoc Oai District Construction Planning Project. Specifically, the main indicators of the Project have not been finalized, so there is no basis to complete the planning scheme...

"To remove obstacles for the district, the City should first consider allowing the district to study and establish a master plan at a scale of 1/500; approve the location for the construction of the office building and the investment project for the construction of the headquarters of the agencies in parallel with the process of establishing, appraising and approving the Project to adjust the overall detailed planning for the expansion of the political - administrative area, the cultural - sports complex of Quoc Oai district, at a scale of 1/500 (submitted to the Department of Planning and Architecture in Submission No. 346/TTr-UBND dated December 30, 2022 of the People's Committee of Quoc Oai district)..." - Mr. Ngo Van Hung proposed.

 

According to the representative of the Hanoi Institute of Urban Planning, the driving force for the development of Quoc Oai district in the future is the urban railway line No. 5 (Van Cao - Hoa Lac) passing through. Quoc Oai district has great potential for modern urban development following the TOD model around the railway station. From important traffic hubs, forming service models and residential areas, developing urban areas, commercial areas, tourism and logistics in a modern, smart direction...

Source: https://kinhtedothi.vn/kien-tao-khong-gian-do-thi-sinh-thai-phia-tay-ha-noi.html