Vizag Square: A public space in Siripuram for fun activities, small businesses

Visakhapatnam: Heard about tactical urbanism? It is a low-cost addition to civil infrastructure, usually seen in cities to improve neighbourhoods and city gathering places. Visakhapatnam is now welcoming the concept of tactical urbanism, titled Vizag Square, in Siripuram.

Developed by the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC), this will be an exclusive 100-m pedestrian space near Dutt Island in Siripuram.

The pedestrian space has already become a good attraction for the youth, who started shooting reels, dance shows and short films.

Painted beautifully by local artists, Vizag Square will be open for the public to organise social activities, live music sessions and small exhibitions by entrepreneurs. The space has been creatively designed using recycled materials like tyres, old chairs and scooters. It will have small cafes, activities, and food carts.

“Most of the global cities have such squares. This is also based on that. In Vizag, it is the first trial of tactical urbanism at Dutt Island, which we started in an unused space. If the response is positive, more such spaces will be developed in the city,” said GVMC commissioner CM Srikanth Varma, speaking to NewsMeter.

Speaking about the timings, the Commissioner said they are discussing with the police the timings and would decide it after observing the public activity for a few days.

Similar pedestrian spaces were seen in other parts of India developed by a few corporations. The tactical urbanist movement takes inspiration from urban experiments, including Ciclovía, Paris-Plages, and the introduction of plazas and pedestrian malls in New York City during the tenure of Janette Sadik-Khan as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation.

Photo and Video credits: Harish Polavarapu