Hanoi’s $500-mln horse racing complex to eat up 300 acres of farmland

By Ba Do, Giang Huy   December 12, 2018 | 01:14 am PT
Rice fields of 120 hectares (300 acres) on Hanoi’s outskirts will be converted to an entertainment complex including a horse-racing venue.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up

This is where the multi-purpose entertainment complex and racecourse project will be built in Soc Son District, according to a Hanoi master plan on socio-economic development to 2020 with orientation until 2030.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 1

The total investment for this project in the outlying district of Soc Son is currently estimated at $500 million. Once approved by the prime minister, construction will start next year. The project is expected to go into operation after 2021.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 2

Most of the rice fields lie in Tan Minh Commune, which is home to 3,600 families, and 70 percent of them earn their living from farming. "If the project can go up soon, it will create more jobs for locals and improve the service sector in the commune," said the commune's deputy chairman Nguyen Duy Thiem.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 3

The commune was informed about the mega project several years ago, but so far it has not received any specific plan for land reclamation and compensation.

"We received a delegation of the city’s officials and representatives from a South Korean firm in March. They came to check the field and make some measurement, but since then we have not heard any more news," Thiem said.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 4

The road leading to the planned project site.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 5

Most of the area is used to grow rice, and a small part for fruits and vegetables.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 6

Once the entertainment project begins, this farm will disappear. The project is expected to offer jobs for 5,000 locals and recruit tens of thousands more for related services, including hotels, villas, shopping malls and parks.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 7

"I’m happy to give up my land for the project. My children will have a chance to work in their hometown instead of having to be far away from home as what they’re doing now," said farmer Nguyen Van Bon.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 8

Hanoi authorities estimate that the complex will raise budget collection by $86 million per year and attract more investors and visitors to the capital city.

Where Hanois $500-million horse racing complex will go up - 9

The project was first researched in 1999. But as Vietnam's legal framework for sports betting and horse racing was incomplete at the time, the city's foreign partner eventually withdrew.

In 2007, the project was revived when the travel company Hanoi Tourist and South Korea's Global Consultant Network asked for the city's permission to research it, and was told by the government that it would be approved once the legal framework for sports betting is completed.

Vietnam's legislative body, the National Assembly, approved a bill legalizing sports betting last year and the government earlier this year promulgated a decree regulating the sports-betting business, throwing open opportunities for foreign investors to build racecourses in the country.

 
 
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