Closure of Taman Tasik Titiwangsa from Jan 2017
Taman Tasik Titiwangsa will be closed to the public from January 2017 to December 2018 to carry out the River of Life (RoL) project. In a statement by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), it said the project will involve the entire park. The upgrading works at Taman Tasik Titiwangsa is for the comfort and ease of visitors in the future, the statement read. Contractors will commence work by installing hoarding at the park and the public are advised to refrain from visiting the park for safety reasons. (The Star Online)
Location of the Malaysia Vision Valley (Image from Lifestyle@9)
Malaysia Vision Valley project to be launched by 1Q 2017
The Malaysia Vision Valley project is expected to be launched by the first quarter of 2017, seven years after it was initially unveiled in 2009. The massive project, which will be led by Sime Darby, is a public-private partnership development covering up to 108,000ha, sprawling from Nilai to Port Dickson, Negri Sembilan. Sime Darby owns about 40% of the land. Previously known as Sime Darby Vision Valley, the project originally had an estimated gross development value of RM25 billion to RM30 billion. The project was revived when it was announced in the Budget 2016 that the government will develop Malaysia Vision Valley with an initial investment of RM5 billion. The project is expected to generate investments of more than RM417.6 billion by 2045, and is expected to see greater traction with the recent signing of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail, which will have one of its stops there. (The Sun Daily)
Rent-to-own scheme for PPR next year
The Ministry of Urban Wellbeing, Housing and Local Government will implement rent-to-own scheme for the People’s Housing Project (PPR) starting 2017. The rent-to-own scheme is meant for house buyers who were eligible for PPR but failed to secure loans from financial institutions, and targeted to help those in the B40 (bottom 40% income group) own a home. The scheme would be implemented for PPR houses in Kampung Hassan, Lembah Subang 2 and Ladang Seliau, with other projects to be decided by the Cabinet at a later date. The rent-to-own scheme was open to Malaysian citizens above the age of 18 whose household income was less than RM 2,500. (Daily Express)
Singapore group building RM5bil hospital complex in JB
A Singapore private healthcare group is building a RM5 billion healthcare facility in Johor Bahru that will incorporate a medical school. Thomson Medical hopes that lower prices at this hospital will encourage Singaporeans to cross over for their medical treatment, according to a report in The Straits Times. It is just a five-minute drive from the Causeway. The cradle-to-grave concept envisages a community hospital, a school for would-be doctors and nurses from Singapore with research facilities, a specialist centre, and residences for the elderly. Work on the main hospital, which can house up to 500 beds, is expected to begin next year, and scheduled to be operational by 2020. The entire project is expected to be fully complete in 10 years. (Free Malaysia Today)
Felda buys 37% stake in Eagle High
Felda has signed a deal with Rajawali Group to acquire a 37% stake in Jakarta-listed Eagle High Plantations, one of Indonesia’s largest palm oil companies, for US$505.4 million (RM2.3 billion). The acquisition will give Felda access to more than 320,000 hectares of landbank in Indonesia (about 4.4 times the size of Singapore). Felda said the stake acquisition was in line with its long-term goal to become among the world’s largest palm oil groups. The acquisition is also expected to strengthen bilateral ties between Indonesia and Malaysia. (New Straits Times Online)
HSR land acquisition likely to be done late next year
Land acquisition for the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore high speed rail (HSR) project will most likely take place by the third quarter of next year, following a public display of the alignment by the middle of the year. MyHSR Corp Sdn Bhd is the agency tasked with overseeing the bilateral project. It is now looking for plots of land measuring 50m wide for the final alignment from Bandar Malaysia, which will be built on the site of the Sungai Besi airfield, all the way to Iskandar Puteri in Johor. A mix of private and state land will be acquired, though a lot of them run through plantations. The final alignment must allow a non-stop journey from Bandar Malaysia to Jurong East to be completed within 90 minutes. (The Star Online)
MPSJ extends deadline to legalise renovations
The Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) is extending the grace period for another six months for houseowners to submit building plans if they have illegally extended or renovated their homes in Subang Jaya. Next year will be a trying time with the GST and possibility of a general election, hence people should take advantage of this grace period and make their house extensions legal. MPSJ had given houseowners a one-year grace period to submit their plans, beginning March 1, 2016. Those who had not submitted renovation plans to the council are exempted from the penalty, which is 10 times the processing fee, but are still required to pay the plan processing fee. (The Star Online)
Second stop-work order for Section 17 project
Another stop-work order has been issued to the developer of a mixed development project in Section 17, after cement rained down on morning market traders on Saturday. The first stop-work order was issued in April this year when part of the fixtures almost fell onto the road, which was saved only by the safety nets installed. A row of 128 morning market traders sits right below the construction site. Despite having a roof built by developers to shield the market, some cement still penetrated and part of the roof is now damaged. Meanwhile, the project’s public relations consultant Shalini Sockalingam explained that the incident was caused by a cement spill and they are still investigating the matter. (The Star Online)
