Cha-Am Beach Should Be Better Organised, Says Mayor

[Jonathan Fairfield]

Cha-Am Beach Should Be Better Organised, Says Mayor

CHA AM:-- A meeting to consider the monitoring of public areas on Cha-Am beaches was recently held at the Cha-Am Municipality.

Chaired by the Deputy Governor of Phetchaburi Dr. Krai Bunbandan, the meeting had many participants, most of whom were public officers. Those in attendance included Pol. Maj. Gen. Wichanwat Borirakkul, Col. Suradet Prakhenri, Col. Sihadet Disonthichot, the chief officer of Phetchaburi Provincial Office Mr. Jatuphol Piyamputra, the Cha- Am District Chief Mr. Parinya Phothisat and the Mayor of Cha-Am Mr. Nukul Pornsomboonsiri. The Phetchaburi Provincial Office has received complaints from tourists about problems of using public areas on Cha-Am beaches caused by some venders and owners of folding beds on the beaches. The Governor would like to set up a committee to monitor the areas closely.

The committee, chaired by the Deputy Governor of Phetchaburi with the Cha- Am District Chief as the secretary, will be responsible for making all public areas on the beaches well-organised and give the Governor a progress report on a regular basis. At the meeting, the chairperson explained to the participants about law and regulations that could be applied and enforced if necessary, particularly the Article 122 from the Act of Local Administration (Vol. 11) of 2008 which enables the District Chief to work with members of local administrative offices to protect public areas of the country and allow people to use the areas without conflict. In addition, the regulations of the Interior Ministry of Thailand regarding taking care of and protecting public areas of Thailand issued in 2010 also enables the District Chief and local administrative offices to monitor and protect the public areas.

The Cha-Am District Chief, as the committee secretary, informed the meeting participants about some measures that the Cha-Am District Office should put in place together with the Cha-Am Municipality. They are: Street venders on footpaths in the area of the Cha-Am beaches should provide space for people to walk conveniently. They need to dress properly and provide customers with an exact price list. 31 shop owners whose buildings are built on public areas should be informed that their buildings will be pulled down and the officers concerned will also monitor other public areas allegedly trespassed. Other public areas apart from the beaches have been affected.

Concerned officers were asked to probe a legal case in which an owner of a restaurant and an owner of a hotel were involved. Shops and restaurants near Wat Neranchararam Buddhist Monastery should discuss public area management with the Buddhist monks. Finally, the Deputy Governor of Phetchaburi talked about establishment of one more Centre managed by the Cha- Am Municipality on the beach besides the existing one at the municipal office.

The Centre will help visitors and tourists who would like to complain about any problems on Cha-Am beaches. The Cha-Am Municipality, the Cha-Am local police office, the Phetchaburi office of Tourism Authority of Thailand and the Phetchaburi Tourism Business Association will discuss recruiting staff to work at the new centre.

-- Hua Hin Today 2014-11-07

[oztaurus]

What a pity - one of life's simple pleasures is to drive up to Cha-Am beach and eat cheap seafood under the umbrellas.

Now - I am an Aussie and I love our long clean beaches with no traders, touts or disturbances ... but if I want that I will go to Australia and take my own picnic, my own beach towel and my own umbrella. If I want Cha-am - I want Cha-am!

[Longstaff]

From what this article says, the beach area is going to be better organised. I don't see mention of removing the deck chairs or getting rid of all the stalls. As someone who has been abused by a deck chair operator at Cha Am for parking in a public area (which I reported to the Tourist Police) I have little sympathy. My Thai wife was also abused at the southern end of Hua Hin beach by a deck chair operator from whom we'd hired deck chairs during Songkran, for not ordering any food with our beers! Again, I'm unsympathetic if they are getting a tune up from the municipality and police as this simply reflects the number of complaints they've received. Like oztaurus I enjoy a beer under an umbrella on the beach and would be sorry to see these go altogether; but I can do without the aggressive and foul mouthed operators who think the beach is their own and spoil things for visitors and good vendors alike.

[Stargeezr]

I am wondering if the Police and Tourism people have been told to clean up the beach

scenes in Cha-Am and Hua Hin. In a lot of ways it may be a good thing.

I had my motorcycle vandalized when I was at a beach in Hua Hin. The jerks

messed with my carb settings so the cycle would go to high revs, when I started it.

Of course I was told by a guy at the gate that he had a friend who would come and

fix it for 500 baht. Instead I took it to a near by parking lot at a hotel, then got my friend to

put it into his pickup. We went to the friends garage, and in less than one minute, the mechanic

fixed it for free. This beach is near the Hua Hin Market in the south end of the city.

In Cha-Am, my Thai relatives have been hassled while enjoying their weekend from BKK.

I have enjoyed many trips to Thailand, and hope to keep doing so, so I am happy if there

are improvements to the beaches of the places I visit most often.

Stargeezer