by Asharq Al-Awsat Beirut- Lebanon’s electoral law remains at the center of meetings held between different political parties striving to reach an agreement on a structure that is acceptable by all sides. However, discussions on such a draft-law was absent from Wednesday’s cabinet session chaired by Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who said he was optimistic […]

by pri.org

For all its charm, Beirut can be a difficult place to live. The roads are often clogged with traffic, the sidewalks are narrow and it seems as though there’s a construction site on every corner. Most cities have outdoor places where residents can escape the noise and the chaos. But in Beirut, they’re in short supply — and if developers are allowed to have their way, there may be even fewer still. Beirut’s only public beach — Ramlet al-Baida — is the latest battleground in the fight between Beirutis and authorities over public space in the city. On a brisk, windy day at the beach, Mohammad Ayoub, an activist who campaigns for the protection of public land, stands facing a construction site jutting out onto the sand. Vehicles work on the construction of the Eden Rock Resort on the south end of Ramlet al-Baida beach, in Beirut

“All laws and international agreements, the constitution of Lebanon, say that everything on the sand is public space. So it’s strange to find someone who is pretending that he owns the sand,” he sighs. The beach development now under construction is called the Eden Bay Resort, described by its developers in a promotional video as “an exclusive community by the sea.” When finished — all 5,400 square feet of it — this “sanctuary of luxury and refinement” will feature high-end apartments, a five-star hotel, a spa, swimming pool and a jetty for residents to moor their yachts. It will cater to Beirut’s upper class and wealthy foreign visitors, and it will be unaffordable to most Beirutis. This bothers activists campaigning against the development. “Public space is the spirit of the city. It’s where the city meets. It’s where the children go and play, where young people go and do different kinds of activities and develop their talents. Without public space the people will be more stressful and bored. They will not feel like they belong to the city,” Ayoub says. As far as Ayoub sees it, what little public space that Beirut has is under attack.

Across town, the largest and only substantial park in the city is under threat by plans to build a hospital. Farther down the coast from Ramlet al-Baida, a popular picnic spot on the rocks was closed to the public a couple of years back. Even the city’s downtown area is regularly closed off to the public for security reasons. Densely populated, scarce public space Detailed censuses of the population in Lebanon are hard to come by, for various reasons. But a 2013 survey by the Public Health Ministry estimated Beirut’s population to be around 420,000. That’s around 55,000 people per square mile. For comparison, New York City has around 11,000 people per square mile. Manhattan is more dense, at 72,000 people per square mile, but its public space is incomparably more. Map: Manhattan versus Beirut public space Even famously densely populated and built-up cities like New York have far more green and public space than Beirut does. Up-to-date information on Beirut’s public spaces is limited.