sudheer

Good discussion - thanks for the links. One of them confirmed my earlier statement that CRZ-III areas (Kottivakkam - Neelankarai) got re-classified as CRZ-II, paving the way for more development (whether it is good or bad is another discussion) - and my thinking is that this may eventually extend to Uthandi - as these "powerful" folks' beach houses do not stop in Neelankarai. BUT ARZ rules would still apply, as CRZ-II classification does not mean that >0.8 FSI will be allowed - hence my contention of this "could" result in a low density housing region. As you stated, the question would be regarding commercial related approvals - would such development be granted 1.5 FSI ? I have not interacted with CMDA folks, hence not sure how they view tourism related projects, as well as other commercial stuff. But there is a lot of commercial stuff along the ECR upto Injambakkam/Sholinganalur - ie. the link road to OMR - very less empty land with frontage on the ECR, and even if you go off ECR, many houses coming up - I was there in November - every year I see more development. After that OMR link road, development seems to taper off, but not too bad - upto Mayajaal - so then the question would be, what kind of approvals would be given in this Akkarai to Uthandi belt, by CMDA (Chennai Corp. if it is below certain sq ft, Gr+1).

Then moving south of the CMA boundary, you are right - DTCP does not seem to be interested in approving individual houses (ie. in Kanathur and beyond) and instead have stated openly, that we need to deal directly with panchayat approvals only - which someone told me also seem to have a "DTCP ring" to it - as there was some documentation referring to DTCP when panchayat approval was obtained (I know that I am being vague here - but anyway, all the houses there are being built this way only - with NO direct interaction with DTCP - so it is not going to be easy to demolish all those houses in the future (as long as they are <1.5 FSI, etc - even if CMA extends to Kanathur). Yes - I too am not aware of any DTCP approved layouts there.

But my situation is a little different - I am getting approval to build a resort - which falls under the tourism category - hence will be dealing directly with DTCP - MLPA to be exact, who will be forwarding my application to the DTCP office in Chennai (ofcourse there is a whole bunch of NOCs needed - including from the panchayat - which is all going to make 2011 interesting for me :-). Govt has clearly marked ECR for tourism development - infact offering incentives as per Jan 2010 news (exactly a year ago). I have also gone through the latest DCR document (dated June 2010) of that area in detail and have read every para multiple times, to better understand the rules - there is no consideration for ARZ after Uthandi ; ONLY CRZ.

Environmentalists will enter the picture only if the development is less than 500 mts from the HTL (actually this may not be strictly true in the future, as the "500" number may vary from region to region as a "hazardous line" is determined - especially in the CRZ-I regions - where it may even become "1000", if they decide that it is a dangerous / "more" eco sensitive zone) - that is why, I have been asked to get my plot cleared through a CRZ NOC, even though it is 1 k.m. from the beach. In some places, ECR runs around 500 mts from beach - such as in Pattipulam (a bit south of Nemeili) - so question is, would they be allowed any approved development, or would those owners just go ahead with a green signal from the panchayat, as ECR frontage does offer lot of development opportunities. What about Kovalam though - that has been crowded along the coast for a very long time - will they still be CRZ-III in the long run, although there are no empty plots along the beach ? Once the Siruseri park kicks in and other OMR developments mature in the Kelambakkam area (prob 4 or 5 years ??), Kovalam & Muttukadu may see more action (I also keep hearing about some Sports City, etc coming up further south) - but then I saw a lot of empty land after the toll gate - so as you say, we need to see what kind of "organized" development happens in that part of ECR versus the unapproved stuff.

You may be also right about "low density" not being possible in the long run, as 2 ground plots may not be affordable for a single house in the ARZ belt - did you also get the impression that there is not too much open ground upto VGP, with ECR frontage ? If the govt can spearhead a controlled / organized development plan along the ECR, it would do much to boost the tourism industry of Chennai. And as you very well said, if the growth is unorganized / with a bad infrastructure, we may lose this wonderful opportunity to have a coastline to be proud of. I heard recently from a Neelankarai resident that someone recently found that a neigbour's septic tank does not have a concrete floor - so "everything" is oozing into the water table - hence water is not as "sweet" as before - if it is true, that house owner must be a moron - after all, he must be also having a well there. What attracted me to ECR a decade ago, was the water, with all the lush vegetation and yet, so close to the beach.

nabishek

Sudheer,

The CMDA DR says for Beach Resorts in CRZ III, one needs minimum 0.5 hectare land and applicable FSI is only 0.33 with maximum height as 9m for G+1 building (refer Annexure II on Pg.91).I am not sure whether DTCP rule is any different.

http://www.cmdachennai.gov.in/Volume...sh_Sep2008.pdf

You mentioned some latest DCR document (dated June 2010).Is it DTCP handbook?can you share where to get a copy of it or any link if available?It will be very useful for all of us.

I wish you success for your venture.All the Best.

sudheer

I have sent you a PM. I don't have a link to it - it is a scanned copy that an architect sent to me last year. FSI of 0.33, etc only applies to areas under CRZ. If the plot is above 500 mts from HTL (which may change in the future as we discussed), then CRZ rules do not apply - hence it would be back to regular FSI. Infact one private agency (who helps coordinating all the paperwork with govt agencies) claimed that I can get 2.5 FSI if I have x mts frontage on the ECR (I forgot, but I had only 35 feet ECR frontage) - not sure how true that is.

amarendra

Following is the yahoo group for Royal Sea View Compound ECR KanathurReddykuppam owners....

http://in.groups.yahoo.com/group/royalseaview

blogger

Hi Ramki, others knowledgeable in ECR beach side plots beyond mahabs, looking for a beach side property beyond Mahabs in a gated community. Do you have any recommendation. What is the price range and what should I watch out for. Thanks for your help.