That is the request made by Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Van Duoc at the working session with District 1 on the afternoon of March 19.
Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc affirmed: "District 1 is the center of the city, if this area is unfinished, it will affect the overall image of Ho Chi Minh City".
Although District 1 urban area has had many innovations and modernity, there are still areas that do not meet standards.
"District 1 cannot accept places that are deserted like Ga and Gao markets. The golden and diamond lands cannot be wasted" - Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc emphasized.
Discussing the economy, Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc affirmed that District 1's strength is services and trade, in which the night-time economy plays an important role.
"Don't think night-time economy is just about drinking. Although there is food and drink, it must be modern, cultural, creating a space with the identity of the city, built with intelligence, not developed in the usual way" - Mr. Duoc noted.
Therefore, District 1 needs to develop diverse entertainment activities such as organizing typical shows of Ho Chi Minh City, street performance routes, football viewing spaces, or street food areas for children. These activities not only help boost the economy but also contribute to building a night tourism brand for the city.
The Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee assigned District 1 to be the unit to develop the project, invite departments and branches to participate in completing it, and listen to experts in the fields of economics, investment, culture and arts. The city will then call for private investors to participate.
Regarding the implementation space, Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc proposed to pilot the night-time economic model on routes along the Saigon River, from Ba Son Bridge to Nha Rong Wharf, with the highlight being the Square in front of Ben Thanh Market, as well as Nguyen Hue and Le Loi streets.
"These routes need to be carefully studied, to see what items can be exploited to attract investment in developing the night-time economy" - Mr. Duoc said.
In particular, the Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee emphasized the role of the Saigon River in developing urban landscape, representing the river culture of Ho Chi Minh City.
Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc said that a private unit has proposed the idea of building a park and a film studio along the river, combining exploitation on both the water surface and the riverbank, similar to the development model of Singapore.
At the meeting, District 1 Party Secretary Duong Anh Duc - emphasized the need for a legal corridor and a "sandbox" mechanism to remove obstacles and create conditions to attract investment in the night-time economy.
Currently, there are some investors interested in areas such as Thai Van Lung, Thi Sach, Bui Vien Walking Street and Nguyen Hue.
Regarding the project to renovate Ga and Gao markets, Mr. Duc said that the district really wants to renovate to stabilize people's lives. However, due to the low architectural planning quota, investors are afraid of not ensuring profits.
Although many businesses are willing to invest with the condition of capital recovery, after research, they realized that they will suffer losses if implemented according to the current plan. District 1 is waiting for opinions from departments and branches to submit to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee for appropriate adjustments.
The Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee affirmed that the city will support District 1 in removing difficulties, promoting the development of the night-time economy as well as renovating and beautifying the urban area.
