'Don't convert Menteng stadium into park'

'Don't convert Menteng stadium into park'

The city administration has decided to convert the Menteng Soccer
Field into a city park that would also include cafes and jogging
tracks. The move, however, has drawn opposition from noted public
figures and scholars who believe that the stadium should be
preserved for its historic value. The Jakarta Post interviewed
residents to get their comments on the proposal.

Choki, 32, is an insurance company employee in Central
Jakarta. He lives with his wife and children in Petamburan, also
in Central Jakarta.

I have a son and I want him to grow healthy and fit. I think
it would be great for him to play and exercise in a big sports
center, like the Menteng soccer field. Such a stadium will
encourage him to do more sporting activity.

I am afraid that if we just let the administration turn the
Menteng field into a park or business center, they will do the
same with other centers in other parts of the city. They think
that they can just do whatever they want without any resistance.

We must fight hard before they change the center. It will set
an example for the next time that they want to turn a sports
center into a park, mall, or office building, and let them know
they will face a tough battle.

Dian, 34, is an employee of a property agency in South
Jakarta. She lives with her husband and daughter in Cijantung,
East Jakarta.

I am suspicious about the motives of the city administration's
decision to turn the Menteng stadium into a park. I don't think
they have sincere intentions to turn the sport center into a
park.

I think they just want to fool us, because why all of a sudden
do they want to do this? There is nothing wrong with the
environment in Menteng. I see that the area is green.

The real purpose, I think, is to turn it into an office
compound or mall to get more benefit, but to avoid public
resistance they keep saying that it's for a park.

Moreover, where else could they get free land that could be
turned into a business center? Imagine, how much is the price of
land in Menteng? It is a huge project for officials at the
administration with huge amounts of cash already in their faces.

--The Jakarta Post