Wood Yard Street fades into obscurity

Visakhapatnam: Each lane of One Town areain Visakhapatnam has thousands of stories to its name. But the once-posh neighbourhood — harbouring hundreds of historic monuments, houses of architectural excellence, conventional gold, cloth, footwear and furniture shops and some old-world charm — has slowly faded into obscurity.

The Wood Yard Street located in the same area, is one of the colonies withering away with the passage of time. For a residential colony that sprang up about eight decades ago, the outlook of the area hasn’t changed much either infrastructurally or economically. The damaged roads, decayed drains, the stench emanating from a garbage transfer station in the vicinity and pollution from the neighbouring port are the major issues of the locality.

Sakala Surya Rao, an old-timer of the area, explained the history of the colony. “The area used to be covered with large canopied casuarina plantatiosn and other mixed vegetation until the 1950s. Very few residents were living in concrete buildings such as Goli Bhaskahara Rao and Abbayi from Kakinada. Some enthusiasts used to play football in the name Morning Star Football Club in the open area. The area got the name from the same wood yard.”

Regardless of the historic significance, the colony is lagging behind in development in many fronts. The area is also a home to hundreds of shipping companies and allied service providers.

“When a proposal of an outer harbour came up in the 1960s, a sea bridge was also mooted from One Town to Yarada. But the plan has not materialised due to so-me objections. The government giving permission to five bar and restaurants in the locality, from Seahorse Junction to harbour road, has added to the problems.”