It's official: Street art park has been locked down and closed in Da Nang, Vietnam

Not that long ago I wrote about a wonderful addition to our community where some people had unofficially, and I presume without permission, set up a street art park on a small plot of land. The land wasn't being used and the construction nearby it has been on hold for years. When the park got set up people started doing their graffiti there instead of on random locations. The end result was a tiny little cafe that got set up and people would come by and watch the street artists do their craft. People would drink cheap coffees, take photos, and talk to one another. The amount of illegal tagging that was going on in the area also declined.

Then some nefarious people in the area started to dump garbage on the lot and it was evident that most of this garbage was from nearby construction projects that were too lazy or cheap to dispose of it properly. The park was soon completely overrun with garbage and then some posts appeared in the dirt around the park, indicating that soon it was going to be walled off. Well it has finally happened.

What was once a wonderful thing that kept the community cleaner and actually discouraged illegal tagging and also encouraged higher quality painting is now an area that isn't going to be used at all.

It wasn't particularly lovely or anything but it was just something for people to do that wasn't the usual massage place, overpriced beers on the beach, or touristy restaurant. Locals and foreigners alike were turning up to sit on a plastic chair in the shade to watch people do something that not very many people have the talent to do.

And all it took was a few assholes dumping their garbage to ruin all of that.

It took less than a month for the lazy and selfish people of this area to ruin something that was wonderful. The little makeshift cafe that was in the middle of it all has been removed and now there is a sign that has been put up on the fence.

It really pisses me off that people who only think of themselves can ruin something so quickly. This had the makings of becoming an actual tourist attraction that wasn't just the usual crap. It was being embraced by nearby hotels and restaurants and even though it was only there for a short while, people from all over the area were coming by to either participate by making art, learning from the "experts" that were already there, or just to sit and have an iced coffee and watch. It was something different and fun and it was ruined in less than a month.

It's a damn shame. Because of a few people who truly don't give a damn about anyone other than themselves the owners of the land really had no choice but to seal off this area. I presume it will never be opened again.