More than 400 residents have signed a petition calling on the Housing Development Corporation (HDC) to cancel the announcement to sell car parking space from the Vinares towers.
On November 25, HDC opened 154 parking spaces for bidding - 76 slots were inside the towers and 78 were outside the towers.
The starting price for the parking space inside the building is MVR 650,000 while parking space outside starts at MVR 2000. HDC is estimated to earn at least MVR 50 million through this sale.
Parking slots were sold from the streets of Male' for the first time when President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu served as the Mayor. It contributed to the worsening of traffic problems in Male'.
As the population in Hulhumale' Phase 2 increases, parking spaces are becoming more limited. The petition addressed to HDC highlighted several issues and called to stop the sale of parking spaces.
It noted that rates for Vinares parking space are higher than the rates in premium areas and private real estate buildings in Hulhumale'. It stressed that only a few people who live in Vinares can afford the parking spaces.
They called on HDC to lower it to the current market rate.
The petitioners also expressed concern as the high price of parking space can create the opportunity for people who do not live in Vinares apartments to purchase parking space from the towers.
They also stressed that the ground floor cameras in Vinares towers were not working while there were no cameras placed in the area designated for parking. Other points highlighted in the petition include issues with the walkway and driveway for the towers.
