HUA HIN — Thailand’s first manmade beach and huge artificial lagoon is raising eyebrows among residents facing a critical water supply problem.
MahaSamutr, a new luxury property development in Hua Hin was reportedly visited by the police this morning after local residents filed a complaint over its possible misuse of water, according to Matichon Online. The recently opened private club has filled a 72,000sqm lagoon while tap water service was disrupted in many households last week, and the reservoir supplying the club is critically low.
A local water resources official providing the development said that while there were distribution problems last week, it had nothing to do with the mega development.
“It was because our pipes were broken,” said Puttipat Teeravetvikul of the Pranburi Provincial Waterworks Authority. “There was a problem, but it was not related to the project.”
Puttipat said he was not aware of the inspection this morning.
MahaSamutr, billed as Asia’s first Crystal Lagoon and artificial beach, is 4 kilometers from the real beach in Hua Hin. It’s the main attraction of a 2.3 billion baht housing development that sits on 120 rai (19.2 hectare) surrounded by mountains. It’s owned by Pace Development Corporation PLC. The luxurious recreation area is also exclusive: Only those who buy a villa or are invited to buy a membership starting at 500,000 baht are allowed inside.
MahaSamutr’s Hua Hin office could not be reached for comment. A spokeswoman at its Bangkok sales office said they were unaware of the inspection but believed everything about MahaSamutr was legally compliant.
On Feb. 23, MahaSamutr said on its official Facebook page that the lagoon’s water is directly supplied from the Pranburi Provincial Waterworks Authority, which is a different source than used by Hua Hin residents.
Some remained unsatisfied by the explanation.
“My house is in Huan Hin is right next to the MahaSamutr Project. Last week water did not run for the whole week,” wrote Facebook user Mint Cho under MahaSamutr’s post.