Chiang Mai: A district in this northern province wants a Japanese-themed tourist attraction struck from the nation's top-10 cultural must-see sites, and is threatening to file a suit with the Administrative Court.
Chaloem Sanpaeng, mayor of tambon Choeng Doi in Doi Saket district, said he was prepared to petition the court to bar the Department of Cultural Promotion (DCP) from including Hinoki Land on the list, after the DCP issued a notice recently saying it should not be missed.
Hinoki Land, about 140 kilometres from Chiang Mai city, is a replica of a tourist attraction in Japan.
It comprises a wooden castle and village, which was built at a cost of 1.2 billion baht on 83 rai of land in tambon Si Don Yen in Chai Prakan district.
Locals have been left wondering why on earth a Japanese-themed attraction that only opened in October deserves to be counted as a leading Thai cultural site, Mr Chaloem said.
He said Chiang Mai has many more deserving tourist attractions that should replace Hinoki Land on the coveted list.
Mr Chaloem named Doi Suthep mountain and Ho Kham Luang Lanna-style architecture as just two examples.
"The DCP is a department under the Culture Ministry that is supposed to promote Thai culture," he said. "So we can't agree with this decision."
He claimed he would not have objected if the decision to list Hinoki Land had been made by the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, which is tasked with promoting tourism and not culture.
Sa-ne Saichai, head of the Culture Ministry's Chiang Mai office, claimed that neither his office nor the provincial cultural council had nominated the privately owned park for a place on the list.
The DCP said it based its selection on how popular the tourist sites are among Thais nationwide.
Mr Sa-ne said a public forum may be organised to seek a way to resolve the controversy as many Chiang Mai locals strongly oppose the move.
The cultural council will then summarise and forward those opinions to the ministry, he said.
Located about a 2.5-hour drive from Chiang Mai airport, the park, also known as Ban Mai Hom in Thai, is owned by Anirut Chuengsudprasert, who is said to love the fragrance of hinoki, or Japanese cypress.
Its centrepiece, Hinoki Castle, is made from this wood. Visitors must pass a number of red torii gates -- traditionally used to mark Shinto shrines -- to get to the castle, which offers panoramic views.