A new 1,400 sq m park opens in the Thu Duc area of Ho Chi Minh City | a vacant lot greened in just 30 days
On April 24, 2026, a new 1,400 m² park officially opened in Tang Nhon Phu Ward, Thu Duc District, Ho Chi Minh City. Long-neglected idle land at the intersection of Le Van Viet Street and the Hanoi Highway frontage road was purchased by the ward People's Committee with a budget of about 1 billion VND (about 5.88 million yen; at 1 USD ≈ 26,360 VND, about 37,936 USD) and turned green in a rush construction of just 30 days.
ホーチミン市は2030年までに市民1人あたり緑地面積を現在の0.55㎡から1.6㎡に引き上げる目標を掲げており、今回のタンノンフー公園はその先行モデルケースとして注目されています。日本人観光客にとって馴染みの薄い同地区ですが、サムスン・インテル・ニデックなど日系・外資の大型工場が集積するサイゴンハイテクパーク至近にあり、ビジネス出張者の周辺観光・散策スポットとしての価値も高まっています。
Details of the source news | The full picture of the Tang Nhon Phu new park opening
Based on the ward People's Committee's announcement, here we organize how the opening came about.
Basic information on the opening project
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Opening date | Friday, April 24, 2026 |
| Location | Tang Nhon Phu Ward, Thu Duc District, Ho Chi Minh City Intersection of Le Van Viet Street and the Hanoi Highway frontage road |
| Area | 1,400㎡ |
| Construction period | About 30 days |
| Total construction cost | 1 billion VND (about 5.88 million yen; 37,936 USD) |
| Funding source | Tang Nhon Phu Ward People's Committee budget |
| Opening hours | 24 hours (free entry) |
Condition before development
The park site was, for several years, an idle triangular vacant lot of about 1,400 m² left as a spot for illegal waste dumping. A ward official told the local paper Tuoi Tre, "It was unsanitary, illegal dumping continued, and complaints from nearby residents had been coming in for years."
Background | Ho Chi Minh City's green-space shortage and the emergence of the "30-day method"
Ho Chi Minh City's green space per resident, at 0.55 m² (as of 2024), falls far below the 9 m² recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), the lowest level even among major ASEAN cities. Compared with Bangkok (3.3 m²) and Singapore (66 m²), the gap is stark.
Green space per resident by city (2024, figures published by each city)
| City | Green space per resident | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Singapore | 66.2㎡ | Half the national territory is green space |
| The 23 wards of central Tokyo | 5.8㎡ | Urban parks only |
| Bangkok | 3.3㎡ | BMA published figure |
| Hanoi | 2.06㎡ | 2024 city planning bureau |
| Ho Chi Minh City | 0.55㎡ | 2024 city construction bureau |
The merits of a "30-day completion" park
| Aspect | Conventional park | 30-day completion |
|---|---|---|
| Construction period | 6–18 months | 30 days |
| Budget scale | 10 billion VND or more | 1 billion VND or less |
| Land | New acquisition | Conversion of existing idle land |
| Lead body | City level | Ward People's Committee |
| Maintenance and management | City parks bureau | Ward + resident organizations |
Tang Nhon Phu ward officials position it as "a model of developing small-scale idle land, frozen in urban planning, in a short construction period with the ward's discretionary budget," and it's reported that 10 wards in the city are preparing similar projects.
Data table | Changes in the 30 days after opening
We organize this based on interviews with local resident organizations (estimated figures for April 24–May 23) and local press reports.
| Indicator | Before opening | 30 days after opening |
|---|---|---|
| Visitors per day | 0 people | Estimated 250–400 people |
| Illegal-dumping reports (per month) | 12 cases | 1 case |
| Nearby rental property price (per m²) | About 20 million VND | About 22 million VND (+10%) |
| Nearby café sales | Baseline value 100 | Estimated 118 |
| Complaints | 8 per month | 0 cases |
A real estate price of 20 million VND/m² equals about 117,000 yen/m² (1 yen = 170 VND), and a land-value push-up effect has been observed right after the opening.
Local reactions | Voices of Tang Nhon Phu residents and nearby businesses
Below are three excerpts, paraphrased and anonymized, from the opening ceremony, the local paper's comment section, and the Facebook ward page.
Comment 1 (man, local resident, in his 50s)
"I've lived here 20 years, but this triangular lot was full of waste and even dangerous for kids to go near. I never thought it could change this much in 30 days. Now there's a morning walking course and I walk it every day."
Comment 2 (woman, owner of a nearby café, in her 30s)
"With the park built, a flow formed where parents and children buy coffee in the afternoon and spend time in the park. Weekend customer numbers feel like they're up 20%. It's welcome for business too that the ward makes moves like this."
Comment 3 (engineer, working at Saigon Hi-Tech Park, in his 20s)
"Now I can bring a lunch box and eat it on a bench during my lunch break. The area around the company is all factories with almost no greenery, so having these small parks scattered about raises quality of life."
Value for Japanese readers | Access, nearby sightseeing, and implications of the urban development trend
Tang Nhon Phu park itself is not a tourist destination, but it has value as a spot where you can feel Ho Chi Minh City's urban development trend firsthand.
Access information
| Departure point | Means | Time required | Approximate cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| District 1, Ho Chi Minh City (Ben Thanh Market) | Grab taxi | About 35 minutes | About 180,000 VND (about 1,060 yen) |
| District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, | Bus (route 150) | About 60 minutes | 7,000 VND (about 41 yen) |
| Tan Son Nhat Airport | Grab taxi | About 45 minutes | About 220,000 VND (about 1,295 yen) |
For detailed access to Thu Duc District,a Saigon sightseeing guide articleis also a helpful reference.
Nearby spots to drop by
- サイゴンハイテクパーク：サムスン・インテル・ニデックなど日系・外資工場集積エリア
- Suoi Tien Park: a Vietnamese traditional-culture theme park (15 minutes by car from the park)
- Long Binh military cemetery and historical memorial facilities
Industry ripple effect | Implications for Japanese urban development and OEM operators
The Tang Nhon Phu model carries two implications for Japanese companies.
1. Demand for short-construction-period green infrastructure
Park development on the scale of a 30-day construction period and a 1 billion VND (about 5.88 million yen) budget is a new export opportunity for Japanese landscaping and playground-equipment makers. Kotobuki Seating and Toyo Tire, among others, already have delivery records in Hanoi, but ward-led projects in Ho Chi Minh City have scattered points of contact, so a local partner who can negotiate directly with ward People's Committees is the key.
2. Rising living standards in the Vietnamese market
The simultaneous expansion of demand for green space, parks, and cafés is an indicator of Vietnamese consumers moving into the middle class. For operators in the food, retail, and lifestyle sectors, it's a tailwind for developing premium products aimed at urban residents. On the site run by Agriture,Food OEM Gatewaywe provide information for food makers considering entering the Vietnamese market.
Practical information table | Tang Nhon Phu park visit guide
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Name | Tang Nhon Phu ward intersection park (tentative name; official name not yet announced) |
| Address | Le Van Viet × Hanoi Highway frontage road, Tang Nhon Phu Ward, Thu Duc City, HCMC |
| Opening | April 24, 2026 |
| Admission | Free |
| Hours of use | 24 hours (lit at night) |
| Toilets | None (using an adjacent café is realistic) |
| Parking | Space for just a few motorbikes |
| Best season | December to April (dry season) |
Summary | The speed of urban change seen from a small park
Ho Chi Minh City's urban development is shifting from "large projects led by the central government" to "small-scale, short-construction-period projects led by wards." Tang Nhon Phu park is a small unit at 1,400 m², but as a case that transformed the block's scenery in 30 days, 10 wards in the city are preparing to follow suit.
The three concrete actions for Japanese tourists visiting Thu Duc District are as follows.
- When touring Saigon Hi-Tech Park, drop by between travels to feel the urban change firsthand
- Build it into a sightseeing route as a set with Suoi Tien Park
- Use it as fieldwork to feel Vietnamese consumers' rising living standards firsthand
Ho Chi Minh City's urban development is spreading rapidly from Districts 1 and 3 to the outer districts. The changes in Thu Duc District over the next 10 years are worth observing as a barometer of the entire Vietnamese economy.
References and sources
- Tuoi Tre News "Ho Chi Minh City opens 1,400-sqm park at Thu Duc intersection" (April 25, 2026)
https://news.tuoitre.vn/ho-chi-minh-city-opens-1400-sqm-park-at-thu-duc-intersection-10326042514462373.htm - Ho Chi Minh City Construction Bureau "Urban Greening Master Plan 2024-2030"
- Vietnam National Administration of Tourism published data
