Hundreds of Ciputra residents have signed and sent a petition to the city People's Committee protesting the additions proposed by Nam Thang Long Urban Area Development Company.

The firm's proposal seeks to amend its original plan, which comprised five buildings of five to 47 floors, increasing it to eight buildings ranging from 45 to 68 floors.

It means more floors will be added to existing buildings besides the construction of new taller buildings.

A 13,400-square-meter parking lot is to be turned into a commercial building with underground parking.

The developer also proposes to convert a 55,000 sq.m plot meant for a commercial area, a garden and roads into one that will have trade space, offices, hotels and high-rise housing for nearly 3,000 people.

Ciputra in the districts of Tay Ho and Bac Tu Liem is a high-class urban area developed by Nam Thang Long, a joint venture between Vietnam's Urban Infrastructure Investment and Development Corporation and Indonesia’s Ciputra Group.

Nguyen Thi Xuyen, a representative of the residents at Nam Thang Long residential area, said at a public meeting that not a single resident approved of the changes.

Do Duc Du, a resident, said the changes would double Ciputra’s population without any changes to infrastructure, which would be overloaded. That also means Ciputra would no longer have ‘high-class’ status, he said.

Xuyen said, "We strongly suggest that the Hanoi People's Committee should not amend the plans for the Ciputra urban area because it serves the interests of the developer, not the community."

City authorities had approved in principle some changes sought by the developer. But they also emphasized that the developer should first assure infrastructure would be adequate and get the consensus of the community.

A representative for the developer Nam Thang Long told VnExpress that the company was unable to reach consensus with the residents at many meetings.

The company, therefore, informed relevant agencies that it had given up the plan to convert the 55,000 sq.m plot meant for a commercial area, a garden and roads into one that would have high-rise housing as a segment, the representative said.