The construction of a parking lot at Lê Văn Tám Park in HCM City’s District 1 has been delayed for 11 years. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — The HCM City Department of Transport had terminated a contract with the Investment and Development for Underground Space Corporation (IUS) to build an underground parking lot at Lê Văn Tám Park in District 1.

The Lê Văn Tám Parking Site was designated to accommodate 1,300 cars and 2,000 motorbikes.

Although construction of the parking lot must have begun in 2008, the developer has yet to announce its financial sources for the project to date.

In March 2017, the Department of Transport and relevant agencies completed all essential paperwork and the investors promised to start the work by the end of 2017.

However, IUS has not finished the technical design or offered a solution to remove trees, and still has no construction license.

Đông Á Joint Stock Commercial Bank and IUS have been ordered to resolve the loans the former had provided for the project.

The bank has asked the City People's Committee to assist in finding a compatible partner, so that the project can be implemented quickly so that bad debt can be recovered.

Lê Tuấn, director of IUS, said that he wants the city to create conditions to help the company overcome difficulties to continue to implement the project and have the opportunity to pay overdue debts to the bank. The bad debt of IUS is now up to VNĐ 400 billion ($17.14 million).

Besides that, IUS is also working with other banks to seek a VNĐ2.9 trillion ($124.26 million) loan, accounting for 70 per cent of total investment cost of the park, he said.

At the same time, IUS plans to cooperate with a foreign partner to implement the project. IUS proposes that the city extend the term of the contract, Tuấn added.

However, the city’s People's Committee assessed that the IUS investor is not qualified to implement the Lê Văn Tám Parking project and violated the contract when mortgaging the project without the consent of the committee, making it difficult for Đông Á bank to recover the bad debt of VNĐ400 billion.

The committee directed the Department of Transport to announce the termination of the contract.

HCM City plans to have four underground parking lots built by private investors. The other three are Tao Đàn Park, Trống Đồng Stage and Hoa Lư Stadium, also in District 1.

The lot under the stadium will cost an estimated VNĐ3 trillion and have space for 2,550 cars and 2,870 motorbikes.

To cost VNĐ740 billion, the 10-level Trống Đồng lot will accommodate 890 cars and 400 motorbikes.

The Tao Đàn Park facility provides parking space for 1,200 cars and nearly 900 motorbikes, and costs VNĐ896 billion.

Illegal parking on pavements is rife in the city as a result of the shortage of public parking spaces. — VNS