Penang has agreed to have some of its LRT stations underground instead of elevated, says chief minister Chow Kon Yeow.

Chow said following the latest presentation by the transport ministry and MRT Corp yesterday, the underground sections proposed would be in the city centre in George Town.

One of the underground stations there would serve as a major interchange for a future undersea train line connecting the island and Seberang Perai.

“(The transport ministry and MRT Corp) have proposed to go underground so as to support a cross-channel link. These underground stations on the island would serve as interchanges (to the undersea train link to Seberang Perai),” he told reporters in Bayan Baru today.

Chow said that under the proposal, the undersea train link would be part of a future phase of LRT lines that would extend to the entire length of Seberang Perai – from Kepala Batas to Simpang Ampat.

In May, Putrajaya announced that Penang’s 27-station LRT project would be fully funded by Putrajaya through MRT Corp, including an extension of the line from Komtar to Tanjung Bungah. The Komtar station will be the main station and is set to be located next to Sia Boey, an old market next to Komtar.

The price tag for the LRT project had originally been estimated at RM10 billion when it was to be self-financed by the Penang government through land reclamation.

Work on the project connecting Bayan Lepas near the airport to Tanjung Bungah is set to start later this year, and is to be completed in five years, transport minister Loke Siew Fook had said.

Source: FMT Online

About The Meg @ Andaman

The first project in Andaman Island, the highly-anticipated prime reclaimed island of Seri Tanjung Pinang Phase 2A by E&O. Features two blocks of 27 and 34-storey serviced apartments with an estimated GDV of RM690 million. It comprises 1,020 residential units with innovative layouts designed to suit young executives and new families.

Find out more about The Meg @ Andaman

Property developers are mainly neutral about the real estate market outlook for the next 12 months, particularly for the second half of 2023 (2H 2023), according to Datuk NK Tong, president of REHDA Malaysia.

According to him, poll respondents have a moderate opinion of the business, economic, and property industry outlook for the coming months, with greater optimism for the first half of 2024 (1H 2024).

“The increase in the number of launches and sales is a positive sign towards a property market that is slowly returning to normalcy,” he said in his presentation on the REHDA Property Industry Survey for 1H 2023 and Market Outlook for 2H 2023 and 1H 2024 yesterday.

“However, true recovery is still out of reach as developers are still struggling with challenges that have yet to be properly addressed, such as material price hikes, cross-subsidisation, and high compliance and utility costs,” he added.

According to the survey, nearly 3/4 of the respondents reported an average 15 per cent increase in their overall cost of doing business in 1H 2023, as opposed to 13 per cent in the previous half.

And 84 per cent of respondents also reported being impacted by the current economic scenario and have opted to take cost-cutting measures in terms of operations (freezing recruitment, offering fewer benefits and perks, as well as reducing salaries) and production/delivery (rescheduling the launch of planned projects, reducing the scale of launches, and delaying projects due to poor demand).

With regards to future launches and outlook for 2H 2023 and 1H 2024, about half of respondents (or 53 per cent) planned to launch their projects in the second half of 2023, with 3/4 of them anticipating their sales performance to be 50 per cent or below.

Most of these planned launches are priced between RM150,001 and RM300,000, particularly in Kedah, Perlis, Melaka, Pahang, Penang, and Perak.

The survey saw the participation of 148 member developers, in which both new launches and sales performances recorded a hike compared to 2H 2022 results.

Meanwhile, the majority of new launches in the first half of 2023, or 62 per cent, were priced at RM700,000 and below.

About 14,392 residential units were launched between January and June 2023, representing a 50 per cent increase compared to the previous period under review (9,426 units; 28 per cent).

Most of the units were apartments or condominiums (7,183 units), followed distantly by two- to three-storey terraces and serviced residences (3,729 units and 1,223 units, respectively).

Residential sales performance increased in 1H 2023, totaling 11,273 units (1H 2022: 5,087 units), out of which 35 per cent were new launches.

Apartments and condominiums performed the best sales-wise at 3,749 units, with serviced residences at a close second (3,688 units), followed by two- to three storey terraces (2,040 units).

Source: NST Online

Jayamas Property Group marked a significant milestone with the groundbreaking ceremony for their second affordable housing project, Aston Minka, nestled in the heart of Bukit Mertajam. The event, held on the Aston Minka site, was attended by the Management Team and Directors of Jayamas Property Group yesterday.

Aston Minka is nestled on a 1.29-acre plot of land along Lebuh Aston, comprising an 18-storey residential tower, the project encompasses 237 affordable units, complemented by a four-level car parking podium. The fifth level is designated for resident facilities.

* FIND OUT MORE ABOUT ASTON MINKA *

The newly sworn in housing and environment state exco Datuk Seri S. Sundarajoo will focus on providing more affordable housing to the B40 group in Seberang Perai.

The first-term Perai assemblyman said the previous housing exco has introduced a lot of affordable housing projects but most of it were focused on the island.

“I noticed that there are a lot of lands in Perai and on the mainland to introduce affordable housing projects,” he told reporters after the state exco swearing in ceremony at Dewan Sri Pinang yesterday.

He said there were also existing old low cost housing that needed to be upgraded.

“I will look into upgrading those projects and introducing new development on the mainland,” he said.

He said he had experience of 37 years as a developer so he is well versed in the housing industry to hold the housing portfolio.

When asked about whether there was conflict of interest due to his previous occupation, he said he has retired from the corporate world about seven months ago.

“I have completely retired, I was not a director of the main board, I was not a director of the Eco World board, I was only a director of one of the subsidiaries, I don’t own any major share to quality to sit on the board of directors, I don’t hold any position in Eco World or SP Setia,” he said.

He said joining politics and running for elections as an assemblyman was a “national service”.

“With my vast experience, I am sure I can do this job well,” he said with regards to the portfolio he holds.

Source: MalayMail.com