Mae Hia – Green City of Recreation

Thoughts from Thanit Chumsang, President of the Chiang Mai Restaurant and Entertainment Association & Chairman of the Lanna City Planning Architects Committee

Q: As Chairman of the Chiang Mai Restaurant and Entertainment Association, what do you see regarding the potential of Mae Hia as a recreational town?

“The first thing to think about when establishing a restaurant is the customer group. If we go back 10 years, Mae Hia still didn’t have a large restaurant. And the surrounding area is a famous tourist attraction in Chiang Mai, be it for the Chiang Mai Night Safari or Royal Park Rajapruek. Personally, I think Mae Hia is an ideal location for a 1,000 seat restaurant, with 300-400 parking spaces, beautifully landscaped, and open to the beautiful mountain view in the evening. Back then, Mae Hia still had lots of open space, so my partner and I decided to invest here”.

“When considering the growth of Chiang Mai, we can see a steady growth on the south side of the city, with many new housing projects and initiatives, including many large department stores. Mae Hia is developing in this way. Being in close proximity to the airport, Chiang Mai Night Safari and Royal Park Rajapruek, having open space suitable for development, as well as Mae Hia Agricultural Research Center, operated by Chiang Mai University, makes the area appropriate to develop for recreational activities, and helps establish a variety of comprehensive services within the city. Mae Hia is very much ready in this regard”.

Q: As an architect, how do you see the future of Mae Hia’s development? And is it possible that urban development can also help to reduce carbon emissions in the area?

“Mae Hia is a city with a fair amount of open space and green space, with part of it adjacent to the national park. There is Phra That Doi Kham. And, the west side of Mae Hia City is adjacent to Doi Suthep, which is a forested area. The presence of green spaces that absorb carbon and provide a quality living environment is therefore obvious”.

“On the other hand, Chiang Mai-Hang Dong Road and the 2nd Ring Road are areas with traffic, corresponding with the area around the large intersection and area around Mae Hia Municipality, which is dense with residences and shops that emit carbon dioxide. Accordingly, focus should be placed on areas of Mae Hia with heavy traffic. For restaurant proprietors, the Chiang Mai Restaurant and Entertainment Association has organized the project “Chiang Mai Restaurants for Zero Waste” to help reduce carbon dioxide emissions caused by dumping waste, incineration, etc. The project will assess restaurants in the Chiang Mai and Mae Hia areas. Restaurants which qualify and meet the criteria will be awarded as Green Star Zero Waste Restaurant. The project will also meet with Mae Hia Municipality to discuss their participation as well”.

Q: As a marathon athlete, what do you see in the potential of Mae Hia to develop as a city of recreational activities on a national level?

“The fact that Mae Hia has quite a lot of forested and green areas means the area can accommodate all types of running activities, including road running, trail running, and street running. The Mae Hia area can organize running events, such as mini marathon, half marathon, or full marathon, for example, at View Village located in the Mae Hia City area. Mini marathons are held on a regular basis, almost every year. The run starts from the Science Park and continues around the back of Wat Doi Kham, up the temple steps, and back down to the Mae Hia agricultural area. The distance of one running circuit is around 10km. Lots of people are interested and like to run in this area, around 2,000 – 3,000 people per year”.

“As for trail running, Mae Hia City has an area next to Doi Suthep-Pui National Park, as well as forested areas within the city suitable for trail running and which continue into other areas and districts, such as the Last Man routes, which are difficult and steep paths. The running route begins at the Science Park and continues around the back of Doi Kham, then along the paths of Wat Suan Kaew and Phu Ping Krachaniwet Palace, totaling a distance of around 10km or more. This is a pure trail running route”.

“In summary, Mae Hia is a city ready to accommodate recreational activities for health, especially activities related to running and cycling, which Mae Hia is already at a good level in terms of facilities, and so this should be developed further”.