Karachi's most awaiting food street and entertainment complex 'Port Grand' is finally inaugurated on Saturday May 28th 2011. The complex offer visitors a world of its own in an enclosed area cut off from the craziness of city life.
The 13-acre world-class facility has been designed & built in collaboration with top international architects and designers, who employed latest technology and building techniques to deliver a state of the art facility. Some 40 outlets are being made operational at this stage while more will be opened soon.
The food enclave runs along the port where you can view the sea while sitting on green benches lined across the fresh green turf. The three spaced-apart metal barriers from the water could, however, be tempting for adventurous children. You can even see the cargo being loaded and unloaded from the ships that arrive from all over the world. The food street ends close to a point where you can see ships harboured at the KPT Boat Wharf. The land for the project was leased by the KPT for 30 years on a Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) agreement. Work on the billion-rupee project started in 2005 and it was expected that it would be completed by 2009. However, Grand Leisure Corporation claimed that the delay was caused by the need to completely revamp the Native Jetty bridge which was in bad shape. This caused expenses to shoot up. “Better late than never,” said Firoz. “If we wish to do things the right way there might be a delay but the end product will be something positive.”
The Native Jetty Bridge has been entirely rebuilt to ensure a world-class tourist destination and source of pride for Karachiites that would ultimately attract millions of people from all over the country and beyond.
The area underneath the Native Jetty bridge has been cleaned up and rehabilitated. The few trees that existed at the site have been preserved. The 150-year-old banyan tree, for example, has been untouched. The Napier Mole Bridge has been repaired and the corporation installed an irrigation system for the tree to give it an even longer life.
Parking for over 800 cars with complimentary valet service, pristine public restrooms, plenty of pedestrian friendly walkways are additional attractions. The entry fee for the Port Grand would be Rs. 300 per person out of which Rs. 200 would be redeemable at different food outlets and shops inside the project.
