Despite Pattaya’s booming growth, some South Pattaya residents still don’t have running water.
Following a volley of complaints to the Pattaya Mail, a group of homeowners of Khopai Soi 11 got a visit from Sutat Nutchpan, director of the Provincial Waterworks Authority’s Pattaya office and his staff.
He was shocked to find out that numerous homes in the heavily developed South Pattaya neighborhood have not had running tap water for 20 years.
But what he told them next didn’t make the neighbors feel any better: If they want water, it will cost them more than 350,000 baht.
Sutat explained that the water pipe running in the middle of the soi is too small to handle the demand from all the houses now built alongside it. To get water, new pipe would have to be laid to the Soi Khopai intersection, a distance of 210 meters.
The cost would be 700 baht per meter for a total of 147,000 baht plus more than 200,000 baht to rip up and repave the road.
Needless to say, the homeowners don’t have that kind of money and believe Pattaya City Hall should foot the bill as it has to supply water to all residents.
Sutat said the project will be submitted for budgetary approval, but funding would not come until at least until next year.