New car park for Manama

By MOHAMMED AL A'ALI
A NEW car park complex could soon be built in one of the most congested areas of Manama.
The seven-storey car park is the second approved by the Manama Municipal Council within a month.
It will be built near the old Al Hamra Cinema, an area in desperate need of parking space, to ease congestion, says the council's technical committee chairman Sadiq Rahma.
He welcomed the move, which follows the approval of a similar application by the Sunni Waqf (Endowment) Directorate, to build a car park in Manama's Al Fadhel neighbourhood.
Mr Rahma said that if more businesses put up car parks, then much of the congestion in Manama would be eased.
"The problem has escalated as new businesses open in Manama, while existing ones have expanded, without adequate car parks and roads being developed to meet the increase in the number of people," he said.
"People park anywhere, whether it is on the pavement or in the middle of the road, or even in places where there are 'No Parking' signs."
Mr Rahma said he did not know if the new car park would be rented out to companies or businesses in the area, but he was happy that more parking space would be available for people.
"I don't really know how much the complex will accommodate, but from the designs it will certainly take 100 cars or more, he said.
"The area is classified as a five-storey maximum building height, but this complex has been given two extra storeys as an exception, because we are trying to encourage more.
"Today, for any business or company to open, they need a car park to accommodate their employees and customers and if they don't provide that, then they don't their licences.
"They have another alternative and that's renting a piece of land and making it as a car park, but now they can rent a floor in these buildings.
Meanwhile, the council has initially backed the opening of a new women's and infertility hospital in Adliya, with the stipulation that the proprietor provides adequate car parking.