PENANGITES appear to have been sleeping better these days, thanks to several groups of unsung heroes who help police to combat crime.

The biggest so far seems to be the 1,800-strong Penang Island Voluntary Patrol Unit (PKSPP) which was formed two years ago.

From a mere 30 members to its present strength, the unit is hailed as a force to be reckoned with, assisting cops to help keep criminals at bay.

And the man behind it, lorry salesman Sunny Lim, seems unperturbed over the huge jump in membership in just two years.

?I?ve always felt that there are a lot of people out there who want to help the community but never had the chance (to do so). Our unit gives them that opportunity,? he said in an interview.

In fact, voluntary patrol teams and other community policing groups were commended by Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Ismail Omar for their efforts in helping the police to keep the crime rate down.

During a high-profile policing programme and walkabout at Air Itam market last Thursday, the country?s top cop said police would enhance its relationship with volunteer patrol teams and other units to tackle crime.

Penang police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Wira Ayub Yaakob had also attributed the state?s record-breaking drop in crime rate by 27.1% last year to community policing.

Lim said he got the idea to set up the PKSPP in 2009 while volunteering as a Rela and Rukun Tetangga member.

?Our surveillance began within the Komtar area and slowly, we expanded to the whole island,? he added.

The PKSPP covers 21 districts in the state but its Jelutong community policing unit conducts patrols from 10pm to 2am (Monday to Thursday) and from 11pm to 3am (Friday to Sunday). The public can contact the unit?s hotlines at 017-650-9500 or 012-473-8105.

Lim said the members carried out voluntary patrols on their motorcycles during their free time and used walkie-talkies to communicate among themselves.

?Members have to pay for their own safety vest and walkie-talkie which cost over RM500,? he said.

He said they did not carry any weapon except for torchlights and defend themselves by means of teamwork and quick thinking.

?As a safety precaution, each team would patrol with no less than four volunteers and accompanied by a policeman.

?Despite safety being the priority, there have been instances where volunteers were injured while trying to help victims of crime,? he added.

Lim recalled how the volunteers once apprehended a man armed with a foot-long knife about two years ago.

He said the team noticed a man loitering suspiciously around 10pm at a housing area in Jelu-tong.

?When they approached him for questioning, he suddenly pulled out the knife and started to attack the volunteers.

?They managed to evade the blows and the man tried to escape but he was arrested after being overpowered following a short chase,? he said.

He stressed that the volunteers? main role was to act as the ?eyes and ears? for the police.

?If the volunteers come across any suspect, they will first inform the police.

?We also have a strict code of conduct. We are guided by a set of rules to ensure that volunteers do not misbehave and jeopardise the team?s safety.

?For example, they are not allowed to enter a private property without permission, accept monetary rewards from the public and must obey police instructions at all times,? he said.

Lim said the team?s most common encounter during their patrols was unlocked cars.

?Every night, we would come across five to six cars that were not locked. We would try to identify the owner and ring their doorbell to alert them,? he said, adding that police would also leave a note on their windscreen to remind the owners.

On public opinion, Lim said it is divided at best.

?Some have praised our efforts and even sponsored walkie-talkies, while there are those who are sceptical and think of us as potential trouble-makers.

?This could be due to the lack of public exposure on who we are and what we do, coupled with the fact that we are always out in the streets late at night,? he added.

Lim said volunteers were encouraged to join the unit, especially those serving in the Rukun Tetangga or other volunteer patrol teams.

?With more members, we can respond faster whenever there is a crime and assist the victims,? said the 35-year-old, who also praised the police for supporting them.

George Town OCPD Asst Comm Gan Kong Meng shared Lim?s sentiments and expressed hope that the example shown by PKSPP would further motivate the public to work closely with the police.

?We constantly hold dialogues with the volunteers to give guidance and ensure that they understand good practices and respect regulations.

?The better the volunteers understand and observe the do?s and don?ts, the more effective community policing will be,? he added.

SOURCE: The Star

Villa Primero is strategically located near Carrefour Hypermarket with easy access to North-South Highway and Butterworth/Kulim Expressway at Seberang Jaya Township. Less than 5 minutes drive to Penang Bridge. This is a Gated and Guarded community living with 24 hours Security.

Facilities:

• Modern clubhouse with badminton court
• Indoor gymnasium
• Landscape gardens
• Children’s playground
• Health reflexology track
• Centralized refuse collection

Property Project : Villa Primero
Location : Taman Naluri Indah, Seberang Jaya, Penang
Property Type : 2-Storey Terrace, 2-Storey Semi-D
Tenure : Freehold
Total Units : 81 (Terrace), 14 (Semi-D)
Developer : Metro Jelata Group
Indicative Price : RM 383,000 onwards

GEORGE TOWN: The state government has announced plans to implement two new road projects costing some RM4bil to reduce traffic congestion on Penang island by up to 40%.

Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the first project was a 4.2km inner ring road connecting Gurney Drive to the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway(formerly Jelutong Expressway) using a combination of semi-tunnel and elevated road.

“The other is a 4.6km-long tunnel road linking Paya Terubong and Bandar Baru Air Itam to the expressway,” he said.

Lim said the state was inviting a Request For Proposal (RFP) for the two projects, adding that major contractors were encouraged to submit their designs through the RFP process.

“The projects, which will be awarded via open tender, do not have a commencement date but the state wants the project to be implemented quickly,” he said at a press conference yesterday.

Lim said the state had come up with the projects because roads here were getting more congested due to rapid development.

“I hope the Federal Government and the private sector will support the projects. It may be costly but they are crucial in managing traffic congestion on the island.

“The projects, which came about after a series of studies over two years, will be incorporated into the Penang Transport Master Plan,” he added.

Penang Municipal Council senior traffic engineer A. Rajendran said the two new roads could alleviate congestion by up to 40% along the local road network.

Source: The Star

The most significant feature in Penang’s property market last year was the marked increase in prices in some established housing areas on the island, with single storey and double-storey terraced houses breaching the RM580,000 and RM800,000 respectively.

Double-digit price and rental hikes were noted throughout the state in established housing areas, the Valuation and Property Services Department says in its Property Market Report 2010.

The situation in Penang is a general reflection of the mood of the overall market in the country, with Putrajaya recording a two-fold increase in the volume from 170 units in 2009 to 337 units last year. In ringgit terms, Putrajaya sales saw a three-fold increase from RM88mil to RM375mil. It should be noted that Putrajaya is beginning from a low base, being a relatively new area.

Klang Valley prices and volume of transactions were also robust last year. The only state which experienced a soft market was Labuan, while Malacca saw very marginal growth.

Going back to the situation in Penang, as with other states, the residential sub-sector dominated market activity, capturing 70.2% of the market share, followed by commercial sub-sector with a distant 11.9% share of the market. While agricultural and industrial sub-sectors enjoyed growth, it was the residential sector that saw major movements last year.

On the island, single storey terraced houses in Green Garden recorded an increase of 16.5%, ranging from RM455,000 to RM550,000. Similar houses in Jalan Van Praagh were transacted at a higher range of RM530,000 to RM580,000. Bandar Bayan Baru saw both its single and double-storey terraces charting gains of 16.1% and 20.2% to record RM275,000 to RM340,000 and RM403,500 to RM490,000 respectively.

According to the report, its proximity to Sunshine Square shopping complex, Suntech@Penang Cybercity office blocks and being adjacent to Penang International Sports Arena gave it the extra edge.

Other locations which had notable increases were in Taman Sri Nibong, Taman Sri Mewah and Taman Sunway Banyan. Houses in Taman Sunway Banyan went as high as RM750,000. Other popular areas were Island Glades and Island Park, recording sales between RM560,000 and RM800,000 for its residential units.

In Seberang Perai on the mainland, prices of landed residential units also recorded positive movements, particularly Taman Bertam Perdana (B), Bandar Putra Bertam. It should be noted that prices in Seberang Perai Utama are also gradually moving up.

While landed units recorded a general trend of double-digit growth, high rise residential units are not to be left out. Prices of upscale condominium by the beach increased by 3.6% to as high as 22.2% in Sri Pantai/Gurney Beach Resort Condominium.

In the rental market, growth was recorded in Green Garden and Taman Lip Sin, with rental rates seeing an increase of 12.5% and 11.1% respectively. In the high rise segment, rental growth also saw an uptrend. Two-bedroom flats in MaCallum Streets and three-bedroom flats in Mutiara Heights, and George Town city centre recorded 9.4% and 9.1% increases respectively. Prices of shops were stable with isolated increases noted in choice locations. Since the inscription of George Town as a World heritage Site by Unesco in 2008, the number and value of pre-war shops’ transactions have increased. Institutional buyers have been actively buying up commercial lands in George Town.

Overall, Penang enjoyed a total of 25,986 transactions worth RM9.37bil last year, an increase of 14% in volume and 43.5% in value against 2009 (22,724 transcations worth RM6.53bil). It was one of several top performing states both in terms of value and transactions. – By Thean Lee Cheng

SOURCE: The Star

The built environment in the Klang Valley, Penang and other parts of the country is poised for major changes going by the ambitious infrastructure and development projects that have been planned to boost the liveability and growth potential of our major cities.

Projects such as the mass rapid transit in the Klang Valley and the light rail transit and monorail projects in Penang will certainly herald many new changes in the property landscape.

These infrastructure projects will undoubtedly spawn opportunities for other types of development such as housing, office buildings, shopping malls, industrial parks and public facilities.

With all the big plans under way, there may be a tendency to pay too much attention on building mega buildings and structures, and neglect the basic, simple needs and necessities of the common folks.

Many Klang Valley folks consider it unnecessary to spend too much resources on gigantic structures and projects just to add to the city’s skyline.

In fact, the debate on whether there is a need to build the 100-storey Warisan Merdeka tower in the vicinity of Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, is still on.

Personally, I believe there are many worthwhile projects that can be pursued, such as cultural and art centres that should be planned based on traditional architecture and using local and indigenous designs and materials. They present opportunities to liven up our cities with more holistic activities and showcase the rich local culture and heritage to visitors.

So it makes sense to incorporate Malaysia’s multi-culture and multi-ethnic heritage into the new commercial projects in our major cities.

We must remember that foreign visitors and tourists to the country are here to savour and experience the living heritage of the people in our cities, towns and villages, instead of gazing at the skyscrapers and concrete jungle which they can find in their own countries. In many ways, what they hope to experience is the simple, yet rich and original way of life of the local people.

Likewise, new residential projects should also look into the basic needs of potential buyers and should be functional instead of over-emphasising the aesthetics. There is a growing number of people who want to live in the city centre but find the prices of the property way beyond their reach.

There should be more effort to build smaller “starter” units in the urban conurbations in order to attract and retain young talent and workforce in cities, particularly Kuala Lumpur.

A review of planning laws and incentives should be considered to encourage developers to build more such entry-level properties for first-time homeowners.

These developments can be integrated with some nice lifestyle food and beverage outlets and retail centres.

Since a number of condominium projects have yet to be fully sold or occupied, perhaps the developers can look at redesigning the layout plans and turn some of the overly spacious units to smaller homes.

Developers of such starter homes have reported brisk sales and there is still a long waiting list for these smaller residences.

In fact, there is also tremendous opportunity to further liven up the Klang Valley’s retail landscape with more average size lifestyle outlets and centres.

The plan to link major retail destinations in Kuala Lumpur’s main shopping hub will help promote the city as a favourite shopping destination.

Walking around shopping malls that are well spaced out, safe and not overcrowded has proven to be therapeutic and relaxing.

It is not only the fairer gender who are taking to shopping as a favourite past-time but their male counterparts have also caught up with this habit. Whether it is to look for something to buy or just taking a stroll, shopping complexes have become favourite haunts for many Klang Valley folks.

The scorching sun has made walking a chore these days and setting up shaded pedestrian walkways in major shopping streets will do well to promote the city’s shopping potential.

SOURCE: The Star