The master plan for the RM3 billion Straits City in Penang, the flagship development by Singapore Exchange-listed The Straits Trading Co Ltd and Malaysia Smelting Corp Bhd (MSC), has been revealed.

Straits City is a 16.19-hectare (ha) mixed-use development in Butterworth’s excellent seaside core business district. It has residential, retail, hotel, and commercial components.

According to MSC group chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Patrick Yong, the company possessed around 5.58 hectares (ha) of land in the development area, which is where its old tin smelting factory is located.

“We are in the process of moving and it takes time especially because of Covid-19, we lost two years…we are doing the cleaning up,” he said at a press conference after the topping-out ceremony of the Straits City development yesterday.

Straits Trading holds a 52 per cent stake in MSC, the world’s third-largest integrated tin producer.

According to Yong, the smelter is nearing the end of its operation.

Straits City, which aims to be the beacon of smart and sustainable integrated development in Penang, is scheduled to be fully constructed by 2038, said Eric Teng, CEO of Straits Developments Pte Ltd.

“As it stands in our planning, the parameters we are looking at is around RM3 billion in terms of the gross development value (GDV) but we are in the process of reviewing it, especially after the two years of Movement Control Order,” he said

The first phase of the development will contain a 23-story four-star hotel with 3,885.48 square metres of net lettable retail space. The GDV for the first phase is projected to be RM250 million.

The hotel will have 343 rooms, a retail platform, and meeting, incentive, conference, and exhibition facilities, according to Teng.

Teng said the phase one properties will open in the third quarter of 2023.

The hotel operator will be finalised by the third quarter of this year, he said.

A few big international hotel operators, he claimed, have been shortlisted.

Teng said that once the first phase of construction is completed, the other phases will commence, comprising retail, business, and residential buildings.

He also said that smart technology, like artificial intelligence-driven security systems and Internet of Things solutions, would be used to improve the quality of life in Straits City.

To limit the use of automobiles and promote walkability, Straits City will include green elements such as pedestrian-link bridges, walkways, and cycling pathways that connect the various parcels within the development.

Straits City is located next to Taman Selat, which was developed in the 1980s by Straits Trading.

It’s a timely development, coming on the heels of Malaysia’s ambitious ambitions for Butterworth and Seberang Perai, the Greater Butterworth region.

Butterworth is expected to increase to 1.2 million people by 2030, representing 55 per cent of the state’s total population, according to the State Government’s Vision 2030 plan.

Source: NST Online

Ikano Centres has officially unveiled ‘Klippa’ as the name of its retail destination and mixed-use development, which aims to be the cultural heart and hub for the growing Batu Kawan township. Ikano Centres is part of Ikano Retail, which owns IKEA stores in five countries as well as shopping centres that are anchored by IKEA. This is Ikano Centres’ first northern region presence.

Conveniently located with direct access to the Second Penang Bridge and seamless connection to IKEA, Klippa will offer a unique retail experience with an integrated shopping centre spanning 1.6 million sqft of Gross Leasable Area (GLA) and housing over 300 brands. Ikano Centres is also exploring additional commercial and residential opportunities to add to its meeting place, which will be developed in a phased approach to meet Batu Kawan’s growing community of students, families, and professionals at the neighbouring Batu Kawan Industrial Park (BKIP).

The first phase of Klippa was launched in December 2019 complementing a great day out at IKEA Batu Kawan with 20 brands over 80,000 sqft of GLA. Next, a unique F&B drive-thru was introduced in November 2021. Its first tenant was a McDonald’s drive-thru providing more dining options for the community. Klippa also intends to drive the local arts and culture scene in line with Penang State Government’s vision to bring arts and culture to Batu Kawan and fulfil the synonymity of Penang with street art.

Adrian Mirea, Shopping Centre and Mixed-Use Director at Ikano Centres said, “As we continue to strengthen our presence in Malaysia, we want to introduce the Ikano Centres retail experience to communities in the northern region to mirror the success of our meeting places in central and southern Malaysia. Klippa means rock or friend in Swedish, and is the perfect word play to describe Batu Kawan. With Klippa, we aim to be the rock in this growing community and to transform Batu Kawan into a successful commercial and leisure hub in Penang. The emphasis of this meeting place development is to provide visitors in the region a holistic customer experience, enhanced with convenience for all their shopping, dining, entertainment and leisure needs. In addition, Klippa will also create 5,000 job opportunities for locals to uplift the social-economic well-being of Penangites.

Arnoud Bakker, Commercial Director at Ikano Centres said, “We look forward to welcoming more partners that share the same community-spirit, to further build a retail destination that Malaysians and tourists will want to visit. Since its opening, the first phase of Klippa has enjoyed a 98% lease rate, with established tenants such as IKEA, Harvey Norman and McDonald’s who have given us the motivation to continue developing and creating spaces for our communities. As we grow, we will continue to evaluate the needs of our customers in North Malaysia and design our Klippa meeting place accordingly.”

Bakker added, “We are also working closely in collaboration with Aspen Vision City (AVC) and our partners at the neighbouring Batu Kawan Industrial Park to position Klippa as the place where people can live, work and create memories together.”

Klippa will have the right combination of tenants to serve the different needs of its targeted consumers. In addition to the list of key tenants in operation, Klippa will soon host new openings of essential offerings and food and beverages with brands such as TMG Plus Supermarket, Mr DIY, Mr TOY, KFC, Tealive drivethru, A&W drive-thru, Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Kenny Rogers, Zus Coffee, Chicago Chicken City and a petrol station with an integrated drive-thru Starbucks.

As part of its name reveal week, Klippa will be organising the latest edition of its artisan Creative Spark bazaar, partnering with EKHA to organise a series of upcycling workshops. At the same time, in conjunction with the relocation of the Penang Container Art Festival graffiti artwork to Batu Kawan, Klippa will be hosting a fun run called “Klippa Art Run” this 31 July 2022 and interested participants can register online from 17 May onwards at https://bit.ly/KlippaArtRun2022.

A proposed gated and guarded residential development by Thunderflash Realty Sdn. Bhd. at Bukit Mertajam. Located along Jalan Bukit Minyak, just a mere minutes drive to AEON Big hypermarket at Bukit Minyak. It’s about 5km away from Bukit Mertajam Town Center, 10km to Penang bridge.

This development will offer 65 units of 2-storey terrace and 2 units of 2-storey semi-detached houses.

The project is still pending approval, more details to be available upon official launch.

Project Name: (to be confirmed)
Location : Bukit Minyak
Property Type : Residential
Total Units : 65 (terrace), 2 (semi-detached)
Built-up Size: (to be confirmed)
Land Tenure : (to be confirmed)
Indicative Price : (to be confirmed)
Developer: Thunderflash Realty Sdn. Bhd.

DISCLAIMER: This article is solely based on research done using publicly available data. This is not an advertisement. Any claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a project or service should be verified with the developer, provider, or party in question.

Homestays in Penang are allowed to operate as long as they are issued a licence to operate by the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry, says Jagdeep Singh Deo.

The state Local Government, Housing, Town and Country Planning Committee chairman said he had no qualms with homestays as long as they were given authority to operate.

“The problem now is the short-term stay at the apartments or condominiums.

“We don’t allow other people to come and stay at your next door for one or two days just like in a hotel.

“There are so many hotels here in Penang.

“I will recommend the state to ban short-term stay as I am taking care of the people in the housing scheme,” he told reporters after attending the launching of The Pawsible magazine in Gurney Plaza today.

Jagdeep noted there were plenty of problems with the number of homes offering short-term stays before the Covid-19 pandemic.

“As more sectors are resuming, we expect more complaints to come in as more people in the apartments are expected to be disturbed by the short-term stay.

“We are now looking at it,” he said.

Source: Buletin Mutiara

The much-awaited Gurney Wharf project, an initiative of the Penang government, will be gradually opened to the public when it is safe to do so as it enters the construction phase following a ground-breaking ceremony at the Gurney Drive today.

Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the project, costing an estimated RM200 million, would have several components which are divided into Priority One and Priority Two. The project is expected to be fully completed by 2025.

Priority One, he said, is basically a green park that would start from Pangkor Road and that would not require much physical building. It is estimated to be completed in 12 months.

Priority Two, which will have a multi-storey car park, an iconic hawker centre and a jetty waterfront among others, is expected to be completed in 24 months or slightly more, he said.

“Priority One and Priority Two will take place concurrently. The project is expected to be fully completed by 2025.

“The roof of the iconic hawker centre is a very challenging structure. We want to have an iconic product that will blend with the environment and promenade.

“When the consultant and architect run wild with ideas, the challenge is for the engineers to design, and the contractor to execute,” Chow told a press conference after the ground-breaking ceremony that was officiated by Penang Governor Tun Ahmad Fuzi Abdul Razak.

He said the Gurney Wharf would be a big drawcard, attracting an even bigger crowd than the Esplanade seawall project that was packed with people after its official opening yesterday.

He said the project is in line with the Penang2030 vision of a ‘Family-Focused Green and Smart that Inspires the Nation.’

“The main intention of the state government is for the project to benefit and be enjoyed by the people of Penang from various age groups to carry out social and family activities.

“We hope that with a project like this, it can strengthen family ties and improve the quality of life and productivity of the locals.

“In the meantime, the state government also took note of the matters arising and I am sure the stakeholders in this project are aware of the situation, including ensuring the protection of the environment and the sea.

“It is hoped that when this project is completed, it will be another new attraction to the state as well as increase high quality added value, especially in contributing an economic spillover to the residents of the Gurney Drive and the people of Penang as a whole,” Chow said in his speech.

Chow said the state government understood the current challenging situation faced by the contractors due to the escalating material costs and would deal with the issue when the contractors highlight it to the state government.

Chow and state Housing, Local Government, Town and Country Planning Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh said the decision to build the Gurney Wharf project began six years ago in 2016 when Lim Guan Eng was then the chief minister.

“When the project was mooted, there were quarters which were against it but when a survey was later conducted, 95% of respondents agreed to its implementation,” Jagdeep said in his speech.

“This project would have been completed by now if not for the delay caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. But it is going to happen.”

Jagdeep had previously said that among the facilities to be built under Priority One are a children’s playground, skate park, viewing deck (south vantage point), public toilets, pedestrian promenade, trader’s kiosks, recreational park, landscape areas and open space car parks.

Under Priority Two, the features include additional landscaping areas, more recreational parks, a hawker centre, a viewing deck (north vantage point), public toilets, more trader’s kiosks, multi-storey car parks, open space car parks, a beach area and boardwalk, water water garden, and the drainage system.

Source: Buletin Mutiara