Plans to have commercial billboards in key public parks in the Capital Governorate in Bahrain have been blocked by municipal officials.

Officials said the proposals would ruin the beauty of the garden's natural landscape and the decision was made to protect the facilities from turning into a commercial zone.

The Manama Municipality's investment committee has conducted a study on the effects of having such billboards in community projects and would present its findings in the coming months.

"There are calls to have commercial billboards to increase municipal revenue and there is huge interest from many investors to take the governorate's parks and gardens," said Manama Municipal Council vice-chairman and committee vice-chairman Mohammed Mansoor.

"Two opposing views exist and that's allowing investors to set up billboards at parks and gardens and others who believe that public facilities' view and beauty should be protected and that commercialisation would cause more harm than benefit."

Mansoor, who is also the council's financial, administrative and legislative committee chairman, said that many investors were only interested in big parks and gardens.

"The demand is always to have billboards in Al Andalus and Salmaniya Gardens that are linked to each other with a bridge because they are the two nicest in the governorate," he added.

"Those two parks are special and we can't allow anyone to set up tonnes of advertisements in them because it would make the place ugly, despite their strategic location.-TradeArabia News Service