Mahalaxmi Racecourse | Earmarked space to be developed into public garden, not amusement park: Chahal

“To avoid any confusion that the space is being converted into an amusement park, we want to clarify that the proposal is to develop a ‘Mumbai Central Park’ and no amusement parks. This will be open to the public and will be modelled on the Hyde Park in London or Central Park, New York. People can come and spend as much time here without any hesitation,” he added.

Emphasising on the need for the project, Chahal added that the iconic project had become dilapidated. “Since the lease had expired and repairs can’t be done, the racecourse was dilapidated,” he said.

On the question of the project’s timeline, Chahal said, “The proposal will be sent to Urban Development (UD) of the state government for clearance.”

Earlier this week, a majority of members of the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) gave their nod to a proposal mooted by the BMC which stipulated that the lease of the century-old racecourse would be extended, on the condition that the club hands over 120 acres of the 211-acre racecourse to the BMC.

According to Chahal, the proposal has been floated with an aim to make the privately owned and often unused green spaces accessible to citizens.