GEORGE TOWN: The state government will not run away from problems faced by the people such as the issues of affordable housing, traffic congestion and civil services, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said.

He said the state had allocated RM500mil to ensure affordable homes were made available to Penangites.

“To deal with traffic congestion, we have open tenders on a proposal to construct three bypass highways and a sea tunnel costing around RM8bil,” he said in his speech at the DAP Chinese New Year open house at Penang Chinese Town Hall on Jalan Mesjid Kapitan Keling yesterday.

On Nov 15, it was reported that the proposed traffic alleviation projects are a 6.5km sea tunnel connecting Gurney Drive to the northern side of Butterworth, a 4.2km road from Gurney Drive to the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway bypassing the city centre, a 4.6km road linking Bandar Baru Air Itam to the same expressway and a 12km dual carriage road from Tanjung Bungah to Teluk Bahang to pair with the existing coastal road.

Source: The Star

La Ferringhi, a residential development located next to Eden Fairway Condominium, within the establish township of Batu Ferringhi, Penang. It comprises 20 units of 3-storey terrace house.

Property Project : La Ferringhi
Location : Batu Ferringhi, Penang
Property Type : 3-Storey Terrace
Tenure : Freehold
Total Units : 20
Built-up Area : 2,750 sq.ft.
Land Area : 1,335 sq.ft. onwards
Indicative Price : RM 1,318,000 onwards
Developer : Tat Boot Development Sdn. Bhd.
Contact No: 012-407 9900

GEORGE TOWN: Hunza Properties Bhd is launching about RM650mil of residential properties in Kepala Batas in Seberang Prai and Tanjung Bungah on Penang island this year.

Group executive chairman Datuk Khor Teng Tong told StarBiz that residential properties worth about RM300mil in gross development value (GDV), comprising double-storey semi-detached, terraced, and low-medium cost houses, had been planned for Kepala Batas.

“We have already started work on the houses and will launch the properties for sale in the second half of 2012,” Khor said. “After the launch, the group will still have about 350 acres of undeveloped land-bank in Kepala Batas, which will be used for residential development.”

In Tanjung Bungah, Khor said the group would launch Alila 2, a 265-unit condominium project, in the second half of this year. It would have a GDV of about RM350mil.

“The condominium units will have built-up areas ranging from 1,700 to 3,000 sq ft,” he said.

On the group’s proposed mixed-development project with an approximate GDV of RM6bil to RM7bil on a 16.2ha site in Bayan Baru, Khor said the group had engaged two internationally renowned architect consultants to advise on the master plan.

He said the group had just acquired a 2ha land to develop 1,000 low-cost homes for the households currently occupying the over 16.2ha site. “We have initiated steps to obtain approval from the local authorities to develop the low-cost homes.”

Khor also said the group was targeting to complete the Gurney Paragon shopping mall in November 2012.

“So far we have committed to lease out about 45% of the over 700,000 sq ft of nettable area of the shopping mall,” he said.

On the preservation of St. Joseph’s Novitiate building in Gurney Paragon, now known as St. Jo’s, Khor said the group had spent RM10mil to restore the heritage structure and a further RM3.5mil to transform it into a new dining and entertainment hub in Penang.

“Hunza will work hard to continue to bring in established names that have yet to set up a presence in Penang to open their businesses in Gurney Paragon,” he said.

Khor said the multi-purpose hall of St. Jo’s would be used for hosting events such as meetings, conventions, and weddings.

St. Jo’s was completed and formally opened in 1918 by the De La Salle Brothers, who pioneered education in Malaysia and around the world.

SOURCE: The Star

THE Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway in Penang is finally set to have three lanes on both sides of its entire stretch.

A bottleneck near the Batu Uban marine police base which reduces the three lanes (on each side) to two is undergoing a road-widening project that began this month.

Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the RM3.7mil project was undertaken as a corporate social responsibility initiative by IJM Corporation Berhad.

“This expansion and upgrade essentially resolves a 10-year-old problem of a 2km traffic jam caused by the road narrowing from three to two lanes.

“By widening a 400m stretch on each bound, the state hopes to reduce this traffic congestion problem that has haunted motorists, especially the industrialists and workers at (the Free Industrial Zone in) Bayan Lepas,” he said.

He was speaking during a symbolic ground breaking of the project yesterday.

Lim added that the project was announced in August last year, but plans at that time included only the widening of one side of the road which was not satisfactory to the state.

“We felt both sides should have three lanes each and went back to the drawing board.”

IJM Land general manager (northern region) Toh Chin Leong said the upgraded project would also include the rebuilding of an overhead pedestrian bridge along the 400m stretch and the building of a U-turn at Persimpangan Bertingkat Gelugor.

“The existing pedestrian bridge will be demolished and a new one with a higher clearance of 5.4m will be built.”

On the new U-turn, he said a new acceleration/deceleration lane would be built to ensure road users could make the turn safely.

“With this U-turn, motorists from George Town who are heading in the direction of Bayan Lepas will no longer need to drive all the way to the Bayan Mutiara Interchange or use the narrow Jalan Hajjah Rehmah in Jelutong.

“This will save motorists about 3.5km each way if they are headed to places like Tesco, E-Gate and Green Lane,” he said.

Toh said preparation works had already begun on the project and construction would kick into high gear after the Chinese New Year, adding that the whole project was targeted for completion by Sept 1.

Free Industrial Zone Penang Companies’ Association (Frepenca) president Horst Rosenmueller, who was also present, lauded the project, saying that it would benefit thousands of people working in Bayan Lepas.

“There are many workers travelling daily from the island to the mainland and back so it’s very important to open up this bottleneck.

“I am happy because it (the traffic congestion) was a pain for our employees in the FIZ who are stuck in jams every morning and evening,” he said.

Source: The Star

Callisia 2, a residential development located within Bandar Cassia township in Batu Kawan, Penang. It comprises 246 units of double storey terrace houses with built up area ranging from 2,016 sq.ft. onwards. This is a relatively new township but it is expected to benefit from the completion second Penang bridge by end of 2013.

Property Project : Callisia 2
Location : Bandar Cassia, Batu Kawan, Penang
Property Type : 2-Storey Terrace
Built-up Area: 2,016 sq.ft. ownards
Land Area: 1,474 sq.ft. (22′ x 67′) onwards
Tenure : Leasehold
Indicative Price: RM350,000 onwards
Total Units: 246
Developer : Global Oriental Berhad