The Social Development and Human Security Ministry and the Finance Ministry are jointly pushing forward a public-private partnership (PPP) project to develop a 649-rai model city branded as the "Happiness Social City".
The plot is owned by the government and located in Bang Lamung district in Chon Buri province.
The cost of the PPP development project is estimated at 16 billion baht, said Patcharee Arayakul, permanent secretary for social development and human security.
The next step is to invite interested private parties to invest in this project and propose investment conditions for consideration by the Social Development and Human Security Ministry, said Mrs Patcharee.
The private sector's investment proposal must generate sufficient revenue to support the ministry's target groups, namely the elderly and the poor, she said.
According to the urban development plan, the ministry's criteria for the use of the area have four prongs: covering a unified target group under a central clubhouse that provides medical services and vocational training, a service centre offering social welfare services for the elderly, a commercial service area for meetings and service businesses, and a senior housing complex.
Mrs Patcharee said the senior housing complex under the Happiness Social City project needs to undergo an estimate of rental prices per unit to be in line with existing economic conditions and consumer purchasing power.
Companies interested in investing in the project through a PPP will have to find a way to reduce the project's cost to accommodate low-income earners, she said.
The senior housing complex will have options for a long-term lease from the state to rent units. Tenants must be at least 60 years old to meet the primary leasing qualification.
Previously, the Treasury Department stated this complex would set the long-term rental price at no more than 1 million baht per unit, with some 3,000 units in the entire project.