It was originally planned to build a road along one of the canals at the river's upper reaches; however, the project was strongly opposed by local residents because of the inconvenience it would cause them, and was abandoned.
這塊土地除了興建一條馬路，打通高雄市精華區的交通外，還有八十多公頃，可做為公園綠地及興建國宅使用。若以建地每公頃六千萬元計算，這筆錢高達五十億台幣，遠大於愛河濬泥的工程費。然而民眾反對。因為如果五號船渠被填掉，就必須通過市中心埋設地下汙泥管。