Qatar residents should soon be able to enjoy more than 50 new green spaces in different parts of the country, a senior official at the Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning (MMUP) has reportedly said.
Speaking to Al Raya this week, Mohamed Ali Al-Khuri, director of the public gardens department, didn’t specify a timeline for the opening of the parks.
However, he said that two of the new facilities would be located in Umm Salal and Al Wakrah, and are expected to open “in a few months,” the Peninsula reports.
The official added that the government has been working to respond to the needs of park-goers by upgrading facilities at several existing parks.
“Al-Khuri said public complaints over poor lightning in some public gardens in the evening and non-availability of adequate children’s play areas there would be resolved soon. In addition, the department is working closely with ictQATAR to provide free internet services at all public gardens in the country.”
IctQatar has long provided free WiFi in several parks around Qatar, including the park next to the Sheraton Doha Hotel, Rumailah (which is now closed), Dahl Al Hamam, suburban Al-Wakrah park and Corniche Al-Khor park.
The service is a selling point for many residents who wish to spend time outdoors but want to remain in touch with their friends and family.
Parks galore
Qatar has been working to improve its green space offerings in recent times. Last year, the MMUP announced that four new family parks would open to the public on National Day:
- Onaiza Park, situated in Dafna, near Al Jazi Gardens housing compound, which includes a shaded children’s play area, football pitches covered with industrial turf, shaded seating areas, a cafe, toilets and a water cooler;
- Al Shehaniyah Park, which is west of Doha on Dukhan Road and includes a mosque, football pitches, a children’s play area, basketball and handball courts, seating areas, toilets and water coolers;
- Al Khairaitiyat Plaza, just north of Doha, which has a covered kiddie play area, shaded seating and toilets; and
- Umm Salal Park, whose facilities include a prayer room, children’s play area, cafe, toilets and free WiFi.
Meanwhile, the reopening of a park in Al Khor, which has been undergoing a five-year, QR250-million renovation, appears to be running behind schedule, as its July deadline was missed.
Work also continues on the new Sheraton Park, which is being constructed above a new underground parking garage.
While scheduled to be completed by last December, media reports suggest that it won’t open until September at the earliest.
Thoughts?
Will any of them be dog friendly?
My pooch needs some grass to run around on!
Katie
http://www.onlyindoha.com
Dogs are haram! You should know that.
BS and MIMH are synonyms.
It’s only BS if it’s not true.
As in most religions, Islam and the Koran contradicts itself, however most Muslims consider dogs unclean. (I doubt she is using her dog for hunting)
http://islam.about.com/od/islamsays/a/Dogs-In-Islam.htm
Nope, she’s not a hunter, I’m just looking for a place I can let her off the leash to run around. I think the Pearl is quite pet-friendly, but there’s a lack of places otherwise. It would be great if one or two of the new parks were animal friendly.
Katie
http://www.onlyindoha.com
I do agree. Dogs are the best. Well not that cat like thing you have in your hands…..
Oh MIMH, it must take a lot of effort to be such a contrarian. Lighten up. It’s bad when you even feel like you have to insult my pet… I think you need a freedom beer, as you call them, and maybe some alone time with a laptop that’s got a decent VPN. Have a good evening 😉
The last two paragraphs of that link are quite useful I think:
“In many countries, dogs are not commonly kept as pets. For some people, their only exposure to dogs may be packs of dogs that wander the streets or rural areas in packs. People who do not grow up around friendly dogs may develop a natural fear of them. They are not familiar with a dog’s cues and behaviors, so a rambunctious animal that runs towards them is seen as aggressive, not playful.
Many Muslims who seem to “hate” dogs are really, therefore, simply afraid of them. They may make excuses (“I’m allergic”) or emphasize the religious “uncleanliness” of dogs simply in order to avoid interacting with them.”
I have a Qatari friend who told me he was ‘allergic’ to dogs. Funny, his allergy cleared up when he saw how cute she is.
Katie
http://www.onlyindoha.com
Sad to say, it is true that Dogs are haram here. Dogs are usually frowned upon by citizens.
There were even some who directly threatened dog owners of shooting the dogs if they’re not removed within the vicinity.
Only when owners learn how to clean up after them.
Most dog owners clean up after their pets, which is more than I can say for some of the parents who let their brats off the leash in public places.
To be honest, I could care less whether a park has WiFi or not. Isn’t the point to go and be active, not sit on bench like a couch potato staring at a screen? A much better selling point in my opinion in this region would be if Qatar finally used the super awesome amazing cooling technology it’s been bragging about in all its WC propaganda to make the parks cooler. That would be a great way to show that technology off (if it even exists….). My guess is that the heat keeps people out of the parks more than lack of WiFi.
I like the idea of being able to do some work outside instead of stuck in my apartment. I see lots of people in Starbucks just to use the WiFi – it would be great to get them outdoors instead. I think your idea is a good one, but there is no harm in making the parks WiFi enabled.
Katie
http://www.onlyindoha.com
Cooling technology in the park would be amazing…sounds expensive though…they need to have a massive indoor walking/cycling complex with surround sound/4D images of nature. Or even above ground transparent walking tubes where you can walk around Doha in the air. That would be fun 🙂
This is a good start. In all artificial environment we have here in Doha, we really need some ‘green’ spaces here. Investing in a green environment never goes wrong.
Great initiative to beautify and greenify the city. Free wifi is a nice touch for the many thousands of people who can’t afford mobile internet and for whom a visit to the park is a big part of their social life.
its ictQATAR not IctQatar