Assurance over global city project

By : Sharanjit Singh


Datuk Patrick Lim leaving the Penang Island Municipal Council building after a closed-door meeting with residents who had raised queries about the project.
Datuk Patrick Lim leaving the Penang Island Municipal Council building after a closed-door meeting with residents who had raised queries about the project.

GEORGE TOWN: The RM25 billion Penang Global City Centre (PGCC) project will abide by all guidelines, requirements and by-laws.

Equine Capital Bhd executive chairman Datuk Patrick Lim, who gave the assurance, said whatever concerns raised about the project by residents would be dealt in a systematic and proper manner.

He said the company had been transparent about the project right from the time it bought the Penang Turf Club land in 2002.

“I know that the PGCC is one of the most scrutinised projects and we have gone through every step of due process and further.

“We have nothing to hide and everything is on show. It is not like we are building a waste treatment or a nuclear plant at the PGCC,” he said.
Lim also allayed fears about the density of the PGCC project and said the company had engaged consultants to address the issue.

“We hear, understand and respect the concerns that have been raised.

“We will address them and not take the easy way out … This is our commitment,” he said, adding that the infrastructure and public amenities at the PGCC would be put in place from the beginning to deal with the density issue.

On concerns that many old trees in Jalan Scotland would have to be felled, Lim said he was mindful of Penangites’ love for trees and everything would be done to preserve them.

“We have planned for the expansion of the road in such a way that it will cut into our land to avoid felling the trees,” he said.

Lim was speaking after attending a two-hour closed-door meeting with some 16 representatives from the Residents Association of Jesselton (RAJ) and Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) president Datuk Zainal Rahim Seman.

The meeting was arranged following concerns raised by the residents, who would be directly affected by the project which will be right at their doorsteps.

Representatives from several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) here, including those from the Consumers Association of Penang, Penang Heritage Trust and Malaysian Nature Society, had also turned up at the MPPP building but did not attend the meeting.

The NGO representatives claimed that the project was being steamrolled through and imposed on Penangites without an open public consultation.

RAJ secretary Datuk Kee Phaik Cheen said while residents did not object to development, questions were being raised about the scale of the PGCC development.

The PGCC project will be carried out by Equine’s associate company, Abad Naluri Sdn Bhd.

It is being marketed as one of the world’s first zero-carbon cities where pollution will be kept to a minimum. The site will contain two iconic towers.

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Nod for RM25b plan soon

By : Phuah Ken Lin

GEORGE TOWN: The blueprint of the RM25 billion Penang Global City Centre (PGCC) is expected to be given the green light by the authorities next month.

Penang Island Municipal Council president Datuk Zainal Rahim Seman said the developer of the project had submitted the layout plans recently.

“In view of the size of the project, it will take some time for our building department staff to thoroughly vet the plans,” he said after attending the launching of the council’s new slogan “Excellence is Our Culture” and an information booklet on its operations.

In his speech, Zainal urged council staff to keep abreast on building guidelines of complex development projects such as PGCC and Penang Outer Ring Road.

Zainal also lauded the zero carbon emission concept of PGCC, adding that he planned to make it a pre-requisite for future projects.

“The idea of making the surroundings pollution-free should be emulated by developers of all massive projects,” he said.

The project, to be undertaken by Abad Naluri Sdn Bhd, will be built on the existing 104ha Penang Turf Club land in Batu Gantong here.

The land has been acquired by Abad Naluri, an associate company of Equine Capital Berhad for RM488 million from Penang Turf Club in 2002 and will take 15 years to complete the project.

It will house two iconic towers, a performing arts centre, upscale retail shopping outlets, a convention centre, high-end condominiums and parks.

Under the master plan, Abad Naluri’s proposed Central Park and Penang Hill will be linked by pathways to the existing Municipal Youth Park and Botanic Gardens to form an enlarged public park — the Penang Metropolitan Park.

The project was launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at the Equatorial Hotel here on Wednesday.

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