Sunway Cassia @ Batu Maung – Phase 2, an intimate neighbourhood nicely tucked away in Batu Maung, close to the Second Penang Bridge. Sunway Cassia is a green haven, thoughtfully conceived to offer you a healthy and ecological setting to live and enjoy life. It’s a holistic lifestyle perfect for your family.

Other Phases:

• Sunway Cassia – Phase 1
  
• Sunway Cassia – Semi-D (Final Phase)

Property Project : Sunway Cassia – Phase 2
Location : Batu Maung, Penang
Property Type : 3-Storey Terrace
Tenure : Freehold
Developer : Sunway City
Contact No: 04-643 9898

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has said the decision was made after public consultation and it also took into view that BHB had sent a letter of defamation to one of its assemblymen over public remarks in defending the interest of his constituents where the proposed reclamation was to take place.

Some view Lim's decision as one that was right and indicative of the state government's preparedness towards listening to the public, but investors are saying that such a stance could put their future commercial interests at risk.

Some investors were worried that the state government's latest move may be an indicator of how it will react in all future deliberations between commerce and being popular.

Recent issues have put the state government's transparency into question.

Among others, it did not inform the public that the state had inked a concession deal with SP Setia Bhd for the RM300 million subterranean Penang International Exhibition and Convention Centre (sPICE) project. It was only after pressure was exerted on the state that it was forced to divulge details of the project.

Individuals and special interest groups can also attest to writing to the state with questions and concerns on any potential plans to develop Penang Hill, only to find Lim failing to allay concerns or even respond to questions on the future of Penang Hill and whether there were plans for massive development there.

Months after George Town was listed on Unesco's World Heritage List, four property developers with projects in the city's heritage core and buffer zones were told to scale down the height of their projects.

They were told to do this as George Town was at risk of losing its World Heritage Site status because the height of their projects had exceeded a 18-metre or five-storey restriction.

BHB, along with Asian Global Business (AGB) Sdn Bhd, Eastern & Oriental Sdn Bhd and the Low Yat group, had received approvals to build above the 18-metre and five-storey limitation ahead of July 8 2008 when George Town was included on the World Heritage List.

BHB is not the only firm to be adversely affected by the state government's directive.

In the case of AGB, the company had to halt works on its proposed heritage restoration project known as the Rice Miller when the Penang Island Municipal Council did not renew its lapsed planning permission and withheld the building plan.

The company, at the time, had alleged that it was not informed by the council of the height restriction affecting its project when planning permission was given in 2007. The project has since broken ground.

It was in September last year that Lim confirmed that the state and BHB were in advanced stages of negotiation and that it would announce details of the solution and compensation later.

He had also confirmed a media report that BHB would be allowed to reclaim land as part of compensation for having to scale down its Royal Bintang Hotel project from 12 floors to five.

These were inconsistencies, elements hated most by investors when making their investment deliberations.

SOURCE: Business Times

Out of topic a little, but I think many are interested to know why it was a bad jam along Tun Dr. Lim Chong Eu Expressway this morning.

These photos are forwarded by one of the reader:

PETALING JAYA: Mah Sing Group Bhd will focus on lower-priced and smaller units of serviced apartments in the next two years to cater to demand of the young population.

Managing director/chief executive Tan Sri Leong Hoy Kum said the property developer would also offer lower-priced strata landed units.

“We are targeting to achieve sales of RM2.5bil next year and, in order to do this, we will adjust our product mix, in line with today’s sentiment and needs,” he told StarBiz.

He said the group had a sales target of RM2bil for this year. As of September, it had already achieved RM1.74bil in locked-in sales, he said, adding that the company had a total of 30 on-going projects. Last year, the company enjoyed RM1.5bil in sales.

“We are still positive on the sector for the next year and we hope, despite a prolong European debt crisis, there will be a soft landing. We believe the demand for properties will continue to be buoyant because we have a young population and there is a lot of rural-urban migration,” he said.

Leong said property purchase was very much driven by two factors – job security and sentiment.

The country’s savings rate and healthy employment market are the other factors contributing to the strong property sector.

“Beginner homes below RM500,000 will meet buyers’ needs,” he said.

The company will be offering residential properties ranging from landed with gated and guarded communities, smaller serviced apartments and small and versatile offices on commercial titles for the coming Star Property Fair from Nov 25 and 27. It will be promoting its projects in Icon City in Petaling Jaya, Icon Residence in Mont’Kiara, M City Jalan Ampang, Garden Residence in Cyberjaya and Kinrara Residence in Puchong. Although the company is promoting its Klang Valley projects, the group is also active in Johor, where it has five projects and another five in Penang.

“We see continued demand for landed residential properties in good location, especially in gated and guarded schemes. Investors know that land is scarce and construction cost will always continue to rise, although in manageable doses. It is inevitable that properties in good locations will continue to appreciate as well, and astute buyers will want to lock in their investments at today’s prices,” he said.

In today’s market, he said, prices of high-end homes were expected to soften a bit.

“We expect mid- to high-end unit to be popular. Semi-detached units priced at about RM1.4mil or thereabouts will be in demand. For bungalows it will be those RM3mil or thereabouts. The location, accessibility and the availability of amenities are other contributing factors to the success of a project,” he said.

At the same time, the company is also replenishing its land bank. It recently purchased a piece of land in Rawang of about 90ha for RM92mil.

SOURCE: The Star

GEORGE TOWN: The Penang government has decided to go back on a land reclamation deal with Boustead Holdings Bhd, which was part of a compensation mechanism for the latter, after it scaled down its Royale Bintang Hotel project in the heritage core zone.

Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the state government will discuss the issue with Boustead to avoid a legal recourse.

"After much public consultation, the Penang state government has taken cognisance of the views of the residents of Putra Marine, Gold Coast and Bay Garden and decided not to pursue the land reclamation at Bayan Bay to Boustead.

"This decision by the Penang state government is also pursuant to the legal notice of defamation sent by Boustead to Pantai Jerejak state assemblyman Sim Tze Tsin over his public remarks in defending the interests of his constituents, which the state government views with displeasure and as a form of pressure exerted on the state government.

"As the state government only submits to the people of Penang, to pursue the land reclamation deal with Boustead under the shadow of the legal notice of defamation sent by Boustead to YB Sim is wholly inappropriate.

"Boustead will still be required to comply with the World Heritage's building height control of 18m within the heritage core zone in George Town. The form of compensation to be paid and whether it should be paid is still subject to further negotiations with Boustead," Lim said at a press conference on Monday.

Boustead had agreed to submit a revised building plan for approval from the Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP) which will not exceed the required height in consideration of the state government/MPPP agreeing to Boustead to reclaim up to 100 acres (40ha) or as sufficiently needed to provide for a minimum of 50 acres of net saleable development land area along the coastal area off Queensbay on a freehold basis to be formalised via a reclamation agreement.

This was supposed to be in lieu of monetary compensation sought by Boustead for having to scale down its 12-storey hotel to five storeys (18m), following the inscription of George Town as a Unesco World Heritage site in July 2008.

A signing ceremony was initially planned on June 27 this year for Boustead to enter into an agreement with the state government and MPPP.

"In that agreement, strictly without prejudice, I must emphasise, Boustead had agreed to revise the building plans of the hotel project by reducing from 12 storeys to five in exchange for compensation in the form of the reclamation project.

"However, I postponed the signing ceremony over the objections of Boustead, as I wanted to listen to Pantai Jerejak assemblyman YB Sim and the views of the residents in the surrounding affected areas," Lim added.

The project approved by the previous state government originally comprised the development of a 12-storey four-star hotel with 293 rooms and the restoration of a three-storey Heritage Building at No 1 & 2 Weld Quay, Penang on a 1.195-acre site.

Planning approval was obtained from MPPP on April 9, 2007 and building plans were approved on Feb 15, 2008.

"I must say this project was approved by the previous state government despite the fact that it had already submitted to Unesco that the limit of five storeys within the heritage enclave would be imposed.

"They were breaking their own promise, which they made to the international organisation and when the World Heritage site status was granted, this became an issue.

"This state government felt that since the commitment had been made, it had to be honoured," Lim added.

Before the land reclamation deal was initiated, Boustead had sought RM60 million in compensation claim from MPPP.

The Royale Bintang Hotel is among four projects affected by the Unesco ruling in the core zone of the World Heritage Site in George Town.

There are no problems with the other three projects, namely Asian Global Business Sdn Bhd's (AGB) Rice Miller Weld Quay Development in the core zone which has been rescaled to 18m in height, Eastern & Oriental Bhd's annexe building of the E&O Hotel in the buffer zone which has also been reduced in height and Low Yat group's project along Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah.

SOURCE: The Edge Property