The re-development plan for the Crawford Market, which is one of Mumbai’s prized heritage structures, has created a huge controversy. Battle lines are being drawn between the heritage activists and the “pro-development” lobby.
Clearly, the Crawford market redevelopment has to be has to be done in a very sensitive way. It is close to VT and has the potential of being a great tourist city plaza and shopping area. Design should be the number one issue including the functional purposes. The shopping centre should meet the needs of shoppers , with good parking and taxi stand facilities. FSI is only a tool to assist in achieving the best possible design for making the project viable. However the number one concern should be design and the committee should include a group which understand the dynamics of Retail and Heritage.
