Rapid development took Bangalore by storm over the last two decades and converted it from a sleepy town to one bustling with energy and opportunity. But, with development comes sacrifice, and the city, like many others, has lost a lot of its green cover. It is heartening to note though, that the efforts to restore greenery to the city are not isolated and are gaining momentum.
Always setting out with the intention of making a positive difference, The Brigade Group has taken it upon themselves to pick out spots around their projects that may be revamped into green spaces for the general public. One such effort has been the public park located at Malleshwaram 17th cross.This park was a dark and desolate space, with barely space to walk around or relax. It had long since become the haunt of unsavoury elements. This served as the perfect project and after rounds of discussion with the BBMP, this park has been resurrected from dereliction at a cost of Rs.2crore.From the scores of people here each day, the effort has been well appreciated.
SangolliRayanna Park has around 50,000 sqft of lawn space and is completely designed and maintained by the Brigade Group. The park was inaugurated on January 13th 2013 and took approximately 6 months to complete.
SangolliRayanna Park as it is now called opens its massive, well secured pergola ensconced gates to the public each day between 5.30 AM and 10.30 AM and once again between 4.30PM and 8.30PM. Signage all through the park makes navigation easy. The four corners of the park have the busts of 4 influential public figures – SangoliRayanna, Vishweshwaraiah, Subhash Chandra Bose and Mahatma Gandhi.
Mr. M. R. Jaishankar, CMD, Brigade Group says, “ At Brigade our motto is to upgrade the quality of life of people while constructing world class homes. As part of our CSR initiatives, we undertook the redevelopment of the park. The Redevelopement of the park and playground at Malleswaram is our contribution towards improving the life of people here”.
A water cascade to welcome you: At the entrance of the park you will be greeted by what has been dubbed as the crazy pathway for its zig-zag pattern. This walkway leads to a water feature of 30 meters which has water flowing down the length of it. The highlight is the fact that the water used is recycled. It flows down to an underground storage area, treated and brought back up every day. Also, from the pergola styled gates, you find the entire walkway/joggers path done up in interlocking bricks for a smooth and safe walking area.
Music is played all around the park from small, yet powerful speakers that are aesthetically hidden within the landscape design in specially designed artificial mushrooms. There is only one entry and exit point for the public from the safety perspective, though there is another exit in case of emergencies. The entire space is done up with bollard lighting as well as lighting fixtures that are placed below the seats.
Exercise for the elderly, play area for the young: Right next to the play area for children is an open-air gym for senior citizens. This is equipped with two exercising equipments – one, a hand pedal to exercise the arms and the other a non-electric cross trainer. Indulgent grandparents may always keep an eye on their wards while getting some exercise themselves.Clean toilets and drinking water facilities are also provided for. If you are here in the evenings, you may also check your weight on the digital scales at the entrance.
The park space serves as a gathering spot for senior citizens as well as has a dedicated spot for the Laughter Club. Several activities and events are held here, especially in the summer holidays.
A green space – Medicinal plants, seasonal gardens and more:The temperature is the city is gradually breaking past unprecedented figures. But when you step into this park, the green cover is a reminder of the huge difference greenery makes to a city. None of the trees that were originally in the space have been cut down. In fact, they have been trimmed and treated to grow in a healthy manner.
The park has a range of medicinal plants such as Neem, Peepul, Indian Beech, Camel’s Foot tree, Pride of India, Breadfruit, Flame of Forest, Indian Blakberry, Champala, Banyan Tree, Temple Tree, Night Jasmine, Chinese Cherry, Indian Goose berry etc.
The landscaping has been done to include greenery in every possible direction, while being unobtrusive.Temperatures drop a few degrees within the park and it is palpable.
You will find several ornamental trees and shrubs around such as the Mast Tree, Gulmohar, Tree Jasmine, African Tulip, Pink Poui and Golden Bell. Trees like Majestic Ashoka are also present. The garden is home to several varieties of shrubs and hegding.
In the middle of the park you will find a circular shaped seasonal garden that has perennial plants placed in it. You will see plants such as the marigold, phoenix palms, hibiscus plants and oleanders spread out here.
A place to commune: The expanse of the park is peppered with various seating areas. Along the walking paths and jogging tracks, seating areas have been placed in recesses to ensure that neither those seated nor those exercising are in each other’s ways.
There are two other prominent seating areas – one square-shaped with concrete benches and the other circular pergola. There was a structure present here to begin with and the architects of the park have used that as a base to set up the polycarbonate pergola and the seating area. The space is cool and is surrounding by exercising machinery.
Doing their bit for nature with Rainwater harvesting systems:In keeping with its aim of bringing about positive change, the park has a rain water harvesting (RWH) system in place. There are 4 pits placed at strategic locations across the park as per designed capacity. Each of these is connected by drains so that excess water may be used. Water flows down channels built into the ground and spread all across the park. This water accumulates in an underground sump tank where it is treated and then used to maintain the garden and for other requirements around the park. This same water is also used for the water body at the beginning of the park.
The NadaprabhuKempegowda Play Ground – a space to promote sporting activities
The NadaprabhuKempegowda Play Ground is an extension of the park but on the other side of the road. This too, has been redeveloped by Brigade Group at a cost of Rs.3 Crores. It is open to the public for use between 5.30AM and 10.30AM completely free of cost. Provisions have been made for a range of sporting activities, from a skating rink to a 200 meter race track to a basketball and volleyball court. There is also a long jump area and a cricket practice pitch with 2 nets.
Space is provided for karate as well as yoga classes. There is also a children’s play area and a seating gallery to be used during sporting events. The space is regularly rented out by the BBMP to schools and companies in the locality for sports days.
The playground has a tree grove area that has been done up with care. The trees here are placed on a slope and had most of their roots exposed from erosion. With the Geo-mat concept, the roots of the trees have been treated and then held in place to ensure no further erosion takes place. Plants have been added across the entire background to make for a green cover.
About Brigade Group
Brigade Group commenced operations in 1986, and over the last two decades has evolved into a brand that is synonymous with Innovation, Quality, Trust and Customer Satisfaction.
Headquartered in Bangalore, Brigade Group has a network of offices across South India, an office in Dubai, and is represented in the USA by an accredited agent, Legion Real Estate. Brigade Group’s portfolio includes residential, office, retail, hospitality and education.
Over 20 million sq.ft. of developed real estate, across over 100 projects, Brigade has emerged as one of India’s leading property developers, and is constantly setting new benchmarks in the real estate industry.
For more information, please visit www.brigadegroup.com
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