Pattaya officials and soldiers began demolishing a string of illegal bars and bungalows on Cozy Beach for encroaching on public land and illegally pruning trees.
Banglamung District Chief Chakorn Kanjawattana and soldiers from the 14th Military Circle in Chonburi raided the area July 1 in an effort to bring order to the 1-kilometer beach off Kasetsin Road at the foot of Pratamnak Hill.
Officials found 18 vendors set up along the winding staircase used to access the beach, some of whom said they’ve been doing business there under umbrellas for 30 years. Speedboats were moored wherever they liked and, at the base of the foothill, small wooden buildings and shacks had been erected over a span of 100 meters of public property.