GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Government has denied claims that it is “the darling of developers” at the expense of the public, especially those in need of public housing.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said more stop-work orders had been issued by both the local councils since 2008 compared to previously.

He said this proved that the state government was “more stringent in upholding the rule of law, demanding strict compliance with technical requirements and more unforgiving than Barisan Nasional”.

“Under Pakatan Rakyat, the Penang Municipal Council issued 259 stop-work orders from 2008 till 2012 which is nearly seven times more than the 38 stop- work orders issued for the same period (between 2004 and 2007) under Barisan.

“The Seberang Prai Municipal Council issued 11 stop-work orders from March 2008 until May this year, whereas not a single stop-work order was issued from 2003 till March 2008 by the Barisan government,” he said.

Lim said the state government was business-friendly, provided rules were complied with.

Dismissing allegations that property prices in the state rose due to increased land premiums, he said the land conversion rates were the same as they were under the previous Barisan administration.

He said the rise in property prices was due to rising public confidence in the state government’s competency, accountability and transparency administration as well as market forces.

“To ensure sufficient affordable housing, the state government has allocated a minimum RM500mil to build 18,000 affordable homes.

“Unlike in Johor, where a bungalow in Iskandar costs RM3mil and can be bought by foreigners including Singaporeans, Penang has imposed a limit on all property purchases by foreigners beginning July 1,” he said in a press release yesterday.

Lim said he was responding to claims allegedly made by Barisan against the state government recently.

Source: The Star

Scott Residence, a residential development by Red Rock Hotel Realty, strategically located along Jalan Macalister. This 22-storey building comprises 62 residential units with size ranging from 2,035 sq.ft. onwards.

Property Project : Scott Residence
Location : Macalister Road, Georgetown, Penang
Property Type : Luxury Condominium
Tenure : Freehold
Built-up Area: 2,035.ft. onwards
Total Units : 62
Indicative Price: RM560psf onwards
Developer : Red Rock Hotel Realty Sdn. Bhd.

DEVELOPERS who opt to build 87 housing units per acre (0.4ha) on Penang island will now have to allocate 15% of their projects for units priced between RM200,000 and RM300,000.

This is an increase of 5% as the previous requirement for such units for that plot ratio was 10%, said Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) councillor Felix Ooi Keat Hin.

He said developers who take up the plot ratio were able to build more units and, as such, they needed to also build more affordable ones too.

“It is an initiative by the state to build more affordable housing,” Ooi said at a full council meeting at the City Hall in the Esplanade, Penang, yesterday.

He said developers who opted for that plot ratio also had to allocate 5% of their project for units priced RM200,000 and below, and 5% for units priced between RM300,000 and RM500,000.

MPPP Public Health Standing Committee alternate chairman Ong Ah Teong said Alunan Matrik Sdn Bhd had been awarded the tender to manage the use of electronic bunting on street lamps.

He said the award was made through an open tender conducted in June last year.

He said the company would be allowed to put up 100 panels on selected street lamps for which they had to pay the council RM720 per panel a year in addition to a RM10,000 deposit for all 100 panels.

“The company have to comply with regulations set by the council such as a ban on alcohol advertisements,” Ong said, adding that the e-buntings would be up in July.

When contacted, Alunan Matrik marketing vice-president Patricia Pee said the e-bunting was an initiative by the company to go green as there would be no ink and paper wastage.

Source: The Star

GEORGE TOWN: After recently acquiring 21.3 acres in Tanjung Bungah for RM185.6mil, SP Setia Bhd is now looking at an adjacent 14-acre site.

SP Setia Property (North) divisional general manager Datuk S. Rajoosaid the group was now in an advanced stage of negotiation to buy the property.

“We expect to ink the deal soon. The two properties are an integral part of the group’s business plan to launch about RM2.5bil worth of properties on the island this year and in 2013,” Rajoo said.

“Land on the island is becoming scarce. Since SP Setia wants to continue playing a dominant role in the property market on the island, it is seizing every opportunity to expand its landbank, capitalising on attractive deals,” he said.

SP Setia’s business plans for Penang include the launch of residential and commercial properties worth over RM638mil in the second half of 2012.

In 2013, besides the RM1.1bil project in Tanjung Bungah, SP Setia will also launch a RM175mil condominium project in Sungai Nibong, and the Wave and Breeze condominium projects for Setia Pearl Island, with a gross development value (GDV) of RM350mil and RM300mil respectively.

“In the second half 2012, the key projects include the RM250mil Setia Triangle, the RM335mil Setia Greens 2, and a RM53mil condominium project in Teluk Kumbar,” he said.

The Setia Triangle project on 6.8 acres in Setia Pearl Island comprises two-, three-, and four-storey shop offices with built-up areas of 3,000 sq ft, 4,500 sq ft, and 6,000 sq ft respectively. Each unit will be priced between RM1.95mil and RM3.6mil.

“There will also be a residential component comprising a 225-unit condominium, priced between RM575,000 and RM1.2mil,” Rajoo said.

The Wave consists of 535 condominium units priced from RM300,000 to RM750,000, while the Breeze comprises 450 units with a price tag of RM500,000 onwards.

“The scheme in the Teluk Kumbar development comprises 98 condominium units with built-up areas of 1,000 sq ft and 1,4000 sq ft, priced between RM500,000 and RM700,000.

“To date, we have launched over RM1.1bil worth of residential properties in Setia Pearl Island. Once the Setia Triangle, Wave, and Breeze are launched, the GDV for Setia Pearl Island will rise to RM2bil,” he said.

Rajoo said SP Setia had also recently acquired two pieces of land in Balik Pulau for RM38mil, where the group planned to develop both landed and high-rise properties.

He added that the group’s projects in Penang should generate about 15% of the its revenue for the fiscal year ending Oct 31.

Source: The Star

PENANG will see its first hotel with water chalets opening soon in Teluk Kumbar.

State Tourism Development and Culture committee chairman Danny Law Heng Kiang said that the hotel with water chalets was among three new hotels that will be opening in the near future.

“The other two hotels will be located in George Town and Bayan Baru,” he said.

He said that tourism was increasing in the state and the hotels were being built to meet the demand.

“We have been aggressively promoting Penang food and culture in other countries and the results are showing with the increased number of tourists in the state,” he said.

He said the most number of tourists coming to Penang were from Indonesia followed by Singapore, China, Japan, United States of America, Taiwan, Australia and Thai- land.

“With the opening of these new hotels, we expect to see a higher increase in tourists,” he said.

Source: The Star