Tag Archives | municipality

Beirut Just Got Its First Bike Lane

By Rami on April 23, 2017 in Beirut, Traffic

In a public post on Facebook, Jawad Sbeity the owner of Beirut by Bike shared some photos from Waygand street showing the setup of the first bike lane in Beirut.

It wasn’t clear where exactly does the lane start and where does it end, nor the streets that will cover or when will it be finalized, nevertheless it’s definitely some good to those who take their bikes around the downtown.

However, the only and most important concern remains whether driver will acknowledge this bike lane or not. Waygand street gets quite busy during the day with some shops there have valet parking service and most of the time you find cars parked on the right lane which narrows the road… so whether you like it or not drivers will have no option but to drive over that bike lane especially during rush hour. Still, neither Sbeity nor the municipality can be blamed for that, but rather the lack of urban planning that should have provisioned wider streets around Beirut.

Anyway, let’s see how long will this lane live on!

Municipality of Jounieh is Banning Colored Baby Chicks

By Rami on April 2, 2017 in Animals, Law

Dyeing chicks for Easter has been a tradition for ages now but I have always hated it. Not only because the used dye is toxic, but also because it turns the small chicks into seasonal gifts for children to enjoy an then quickly abandon after a short time.

And in a country where animal cruelty is rarely prosecuted, it’s good to finally see somebody doing some effort to stop this practice. The municipality of Jounieh posted on their Facebook page today that they are banning mobile vendors from selling colored chicks around the city.

I’m pretty sure if more municipalities did the same then it will only take a single season to stop those who dye baby chicks from doing it.

Update:

Ziad Chebib the governor of Beirut also banned the selling of baby chicks in Beirut.

New Parking Tariffs in Beirut

By Rami on July 2, 2016 in Governmental, Law

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Due to the disproportionate tariffs set by parking owners across Beirut, governor Ziad Chebib and the municipality recently issued a new decree setting the maximum fees you should pay for private parkings around the city after dividing it into 4 regions as shown above, and the new tariffs are as follows:

First region (Blue):

from 0 to 3 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
5,000 L.L.
8 to 10 hours:
6,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
7,000 L.L.

Second region (Green):

from 0 to 4 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
5,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
6,000 L.L.

Third region (Yellow):

from 0 to 3 hours:
2,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
3,500 L.L.
from 8 to 10 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
5,000 L.L.

Fourth region (Red):

from 0 to 4 hours:
2,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
4,000 L.L.

As for covered parking spaces, the following tariffs apply:

First region (Blue):

from 0 to 3 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
5,000 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
6,000 L.L.
from 8 to 10 hours
7,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
8,000 L.L.

Second region (Green):

from 0 to 4 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
5,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
6,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
7,000 L.L.

Third region (Yellow):

from 0 to 3 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 3 to 5 hours:
3,500 L.L.
from 5 to 8 hours:
4,000 L.L.
8 to 10 hours:
4,500 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours:
5,500 L.L.

Fourth region (Red):

from 0 to 4 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 4 to 7 hours:
3,000 L.L.
from 7 to 10 hours:
4,000 L.L.
from 10 to 14 hours
4,500 L.L.

Note that the time is rounded up to the nearest hour after 10 minutes.

I’m not really sure how serious will the municipality be about obliging parking owners to abide by the set tariffs, but the chart will at least help you know whether you’re being ripped off or not!

Horsh Beirut Now Open To The Public All Weekdays

By Rami on May 27, 2016 in Activities, Beirut

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Following the opening of Horsh Beirut to the public for once per week last year, Nahnoo announced last night on Facebook that a decision was taken for the pine park to be open to the public all weekdays as of June 6th 2016.

I’m not sure whether it was the governor of Beirut Ziad Chbib or the municipality who authorized it, but it’s definitely a much needed step to let people enjoy this beautiful green space. I just hope the municipality will allocate enough and adequate personnel to ensure the cleanliness and security of Horsh Beirut, otherwise I’m pretty sure it won’t take long until people ruin it.

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Horsh Beirut will be open from 7AM till 2PM on weekdays, and from 7AM till 7PM on weekends.

Beirut Madinati – Some Things Are Easier Said Than Done

By Rami on May 5, 2016 in Elections, Politics

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Beirut municipal elections will take place this weekend and I’m definitely voting for Beirut Madinati against the traditional coalition of ruling political parties that has been winning since 1998 and did absolutely nothing significant for the city.

I honestly didn’t care much about Beirut Madinati’s campaign at the beginning and didn’t even feel curious to know their candidates assuming they’re a bunch of attention seeking activists, but later noticed how wrong I was after they unveiled their list and showed how serious they are about their agenda.

However, that doesn’t mean I see them as perfect as some people portray them on social media, not due to anything they did wrong, but simply because some points in their electoral program don’t make much sense to me.

Affordable Housing

With the skyrocketing prices nowadays, it’s no longer easy to buy an apartment in Beirut. I’m an authentic Beiruti, I was born and raised in this city and never imagined that I will be living anywhere else, but I was unfortunately forced to move to Aramoun when I got married due to the prices increase after 2006. So talking about affordable housing in Beirut definitely relates to my problem and thousands others like me. Beirut Madinati is addressing this issue by promising affordable apartments.

Now let’s get real for a moment, the real estate market in Lebanon is a free one and the set prices follow the rules of supply and demand. It’s quite simple, there’s a huge demand for apartments in this city and little supply of constructed units so it only makes sense for the prices to be high. The only way for the municipality to provide these affordable apartments is by financing their construction itself and sell them at cost price, and in order to satisfy half of the demand the municipality will eventually have to turn into one giant construction company.

I simply don’t see it feasible to do. Apartments are also so expensive in many other cities around the world and you don’t see neither municipalities nor governments intervening, on the other hand the transportation system is enhanced so that people can adapt to living in surrounding areas. And this brings us to the next point…

Transportation

Beirut Madinati wants to enhance the transportation system around the capital by introducing new bus lines and reorganizing the already operating buses, micros buses, and taxis.

This is seriously much needed in Beirut, and I would give up using my car during weekdays if there was a reliable system to get me in and out of the city. But I highly doubt the Beirut Madinati people have previously tried using public transportation and know how the buses around Beirut work because they apparently think their plan is going to be easy to implement.

Truth is that the transportation system in and out of Beirut is actually ruled by mafias. Those who use it know better about the clashes that happen between drivers over a certain line, and how the departure time of each bus is set deliberately by designated agents on the road in order to maximize the number of passengers. Needless to say, these mafias are backed by political parties, and everything that works the same way is very hard to fix. The ongoing case of illegal internet is the biggest example about that.

Do you seriously think the “van ra2em 4” gang is going to abide by any new system? Dream on.

Green Areas and Parking Spaces

This is not exclusive to Beirut Madinati, actually every candidate is promising more green areas and parking spaces around Beirut. Beirut Madinati is going the extra mile of promising a green space for each neighborhood in Beirut.

I seriously would like to know how on earth are we going to create a new green space in Tarik El-Jadida, Mar Elias, Ras El Nabeh, Basta, and other neighborhoods where there are barely any lot left that is large enough to accommodate a 150m2 apartment building. It would be good to support these promises with a map showing the locations of the parks to be.

As for parking spaces, I think it would be enough to just claim back the hijacked spaces from valet parking thugs in several areas of Beirut. That alone would be a major achievement for the new municipality.

I’m still voting for Beirut Madinati

Yes I do have some reservations over their electoral program, hell I even disliked some of their candidates, but I’m voting for them because I’m bored of the same party ruling the city for 18 years now with no significant achievements.

I’m voting for Beirut Madinati neither for an affordable apartment in Beirut, nor a better transportation system, I actually lost hope that things would get better in this corrupt country, I just want them to come in power because we have the right to try someone new and see how they are going to manage the available resources and proceed with new projects for the better of our city.

And you also have nothing to lose, it isn’t like the previous council did wonders to you, so give other people a chance and vote for Beirut Madinati.

Beirut Hippodrome in Danger of Closing Down?

By Rami on March 23, 2016 in Lebanon

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I was a bit surprised to read this news on several news outlets reporting that Beirut Hippodrome is facing financial difficulties and is in danger of closing down due to lack of funding by the municipality of Beirut.

According to the report, the mayor of Beirut Bilal Hamad is reluctant to invest additional money in the racecourse because betting that is prohibited in Islam takes place there, which sounds quite absurd to me. Regardless if a religion prohibits a certain practice or not, if it is legal by the law then no one should be allowed to keep people from practicing it, otherwise it’s definitely a case of abuse of power.

Better yet, Hamad said he will authorize additional funds to Beirut Hippodrome only if it was turned into what he calls “Beirut Central Park” consisting of a golf course and a riding school. So he basically wants to shut down the racecourse and turn it into a second park just like Horsh Beirut where no one is allowed most time of the week.

If things continued to go downhill for the Hippodrome, then it won’t be weird to read about some development company taking over it someday and starting some mega structure there, just like the resort that was planned in Ramlet El Bayda a couple of years ago.

At a time when we still can’t figure a permanent solution for our garbage, I know this is isn’t a priority but governmental institutions should really consider maintaining places like Beirut Hippodrome before they deteriorate further. I recently came across the below photo of the Sports City Stadium on Facebook and it looked absolutely awful, notice the missing seats in the stands area. We deserve a bit better than that for our tax money!

The one Lebanese town that feels like the rest of the world

By Rami on June 13, 2013 in Lebanon

power generator

Believe or not, Kherbet Selem, a small village in south Lebanon, now enjoys 24/7 electricity after it used to suffer from up to 12 hours power cuts!

The municipality there simply bought its own diesel generators that switch on automatically when the power cuts, and the village is now having 24/7 electricity for the first time in history. So basically that’s the only place in Lebanon that feels like the rest of the world!

Meanwhile, our government has been failing to fix the electricity sector in Lebanon for more than 20 years now, and will definitely keep on doing so for at least the next 200 years.

No fire arms sign in Dekweneh

By Rami on September 11, 2012 in Lebanon

Looks like someone who’s disgusted of the armed clashes around the country (just like the majority of us) is putting up “No fire arms” signs around Dekweneh, but it seems like the municipal police there is unsurprisingly taking them down.

I believe there should be more of these signs nowadays in Tripoli and Al-Mikdad street in Dahyeh!

via Beirut with funk