With their six-month deadline expired, residents along Naklua’s Nokyang Canal are facing forced demolition of their homes for encroaching on public land.
Pattaya Deputy Mayor Vichien Pongpanit led a squad of soldiers to the area on reports that some illegal structures are still blocking the vital flood-control waterway.
In July Pattaya issued demolition orders for 91 houses and cited an additional 25, saying all were built on top of, or partly obstructed, the public canal, worsening flooding in the area. They eventually were given 180 days to remove their structures or face legal action and demolition by the city at their expense.
That deadline expired earlier this month and while Vichien said many structures have been removed, some remain.
Among them was a single-family home at the end of the canal where a wall extended 45 meters past their property boundary and on to public land, preventing water from flowing to the canal. The homeowner had no documents to prove he had been allowed to build the wall.
The deputy mayor said soldiers and officials will inspect the entire canal to determine exactly how many encroachments remain and then lay plans for their demolition.
