The Penang Island City Council (MBPP) plans to make the Teluk Kumbar town into a low-carbon city, says its mayor Datuk Yew Tung Seang.

“Teluk Kumbar is a nice place. Many always come here to enjoy its ambience and nice food, like mee udang.

“We plan to make this place a low-carbon city, workable and cycling-friendly,” Yew, an ardent cyclist himself, said during his speech at the official opening of the Teluk Kumbar Heights Market and Food Complex in Teluk Kumbar today.

Yew continued: “We’ll incorporate the green concept into this complex. We’ve always been here with the community to see to their needs. Hence, we’re happy here today to make this a decentralised and sustainable market.

“Decentralised and sustainable market is the way to go. We’ll look into things with a ‘less is more’ approach to bring benefits to the surrounding areas.”

He said the Teluk Kumbar Heights Market and Food Complex, costing RM1.8 million, has eight market stalls and 16 hawker stalls.

It is expected to open at the end of next month as MBPP is now in the process of interviewing applicants.

Yew said the nearby markets include the Fishermen’s Market in Sungai Batu, a private market and a morning market in Taman Sahabat.

Also present were state Local Government, Housing, Town and Country Planning Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo, Bayan Lepas assemblyman Azrul Mahathir Aziz, MBPP secretary Datuk Adnnan Mohd Razali, and MBPP councillors Harvindar Singh and Nicholas Theng Jie Wey.

Jagdeep commended Yew for his initiative to make the place eco-friendly, which is in line with the Penang2030 vision for a ‘Family Focused, Green and Smart City that Inspires the Nation’.

“Congratulations to the mayor, developer and architect for such a beautiful market. I fully agree with the mayor’s suggestion to make this complex a green building. I also notice that it has already adopted the rainwater harvesting technology.

“This is an important project that has been successfully developed. There are four flats in this vicinity with several thousand people living here.

“I am happy that the market complex is easily accessible and is for the convenience of the residents here,” Jagdeep said.

Jagdeep, however, urged the public to adhere to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) as the Covid-19 cases continue unabated.

He warned that the Penang Island City Council and Seberang Perai City Council (MBSP), together with the police, would not hesitate to close any market infringing the SOPs.

Since the pandemic occurred early last year, Jagdeep said the local authorities have shut down 16 markets – eight on the island and eight on the mainland – after several Covid-19 cases were detected.

Azrul said he was thankful to Jagdeep and MBPP for establishing a new market complex for the Teluk Kumbar residents.

“There a lot of newcomers now staying in Teluk Kumbar and I am happy that this new market will provide them the necessary service. This is one of the very good markets I have seen,” Azrul said.

Source: Buletin Mutiara

The Malaysian Institute of Estate Agents (MIEA) has debunked the notion of property value moving towards half-price as was reported in a local daily with the heading, “Houses at half-price, anyone?”

President Chan Ai Cheng said the two properties mentioned in the publication were isolated cases and should not be used as a yardstick for the property market in the country.

“The majority of developers do offer discounts but not as dramatic as reported. In a recent poll conducted by MIEA with real estate practitioners who are on the ground and know exactly the happenings revealed no such evidence,” she said in a statement.

She said developers have no intention of reviewing their selling prices as demand is strong, especially in established localities and in new well-planned townships.

“Though admittedly the growth rate over the past three years has been less than five percent due to the challenges in the property market, the key takeaway is that the Malaysian property market is resilient,” she added.

Source: TheEdgeMarkets.com

A researcher has described Malaysia’s housing policy as something that is stuck in an “identity crisis” from which it can emerge if policy makers decide whether to view a house as an asset or a necessity.

Lillian Wee of the Research for Social Advancement (Resda) think tank said the government, in giving priority to people who can afford to buy property, was shutting out those who could not or did not want to, thereby creating unequal opportunities.

Not enough attention had been given to the growing rental market, she said, noting that this was one of the issues that had been exacerbated since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“A lot of the government’s policies during and before the pandemic have prioritised home ownership and people who can afford loans or multiple houses,” she said.

“As such, those who cannot afford to take on loans or put down large downpayments are left out. These include people who choose to rent for work, mobility or lifestyle reasons. There is a lack of assistance for these people to lease affordable homes and, during the pandemic. little has been done to help them with their payments.”

Wee said housing must be viewed as essential and should therefore be made more affordable and accessible to those who need them.

“Malaysia is urbanising rapidly, with people moving from suburban and rural areas to places like Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang and Johor. However, these are the areas where housing prices are the highest and housing inequality is at its worst.

“There is a problem if someone from the M40 cannot afford to buy or rent a house in Kuala Lumpur, since it’s not just people from the T20 group that work there.”

She said this was typified by the building of 14,094 low-cost homes last year, well short of the National Affordable Housing Council’s target of 100,000 units annually.

“Instead, we are seeing a surge in homes that cost more than RM600,000, out of reach for most of the people the government should be looking to provide for.”

During the pandemic, with record unemployment and wage cuts, the lack of affordable housing has become more apparent.

Wee said Malaysia needed to ramp up the supply of affordable housing by offering incentives to developers to reinvest their profits to fund them.

She also said renters should get more protection, and called for moves to balance the legal power between landlords and tenants, which currently strongly favours the former.

Source: FreeMalaysiaToday.com

Rural parts of Penang island were hit with flash floods yesterday following a downpour in the afternoon, with more than 2,500 people in about 500 homes affected.

The floods began after intense rainfall which lasted for about an hour in Bayan Lepas, Balik Pulau and Teluk Bahang from about 3pm yesterday.

State transport and infrastructure committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said the floodwaters rose to about 0.5m in certain areas but fortunately, there were no casualties. There have also been no evacuations so far despite relief centres being already prepared to take in flood victims.

He said rainfall was recorded as high as 274mm at Bagan Air Itam in Balik Pulau, with rivers rising 2.8m to 3.5m, the highest being Sungai Burung in the same town.

Zairil added that existing rivers will be deepened as a short- term measure while a study of flood hotspots will be carried out to determine drainage capacities in the long-term.

The areas affected are:

Bayan Lepas – Kampung Nelayan, Kampung Sulup, Kampung Paya, Rumah Murah Kampung Nelayan, Sekolah Sri Bayu, Teluk Kumbar, and Kampung Masjid, with 1,015 people in 203 homes affected.

Teluk Bahang – Taman Manggis with 100 people in 20 homes affected.

Pulau Betong – Sungai Burung, Balai Raya Titi Teras, Kampung Paya Kongsi, Taman Seri Indah, Kampung Pulau Betong, and Kampung Terang, with 1,500 people in 300 homes affected.

Source: FreeMalaysiaToday.com

The 57th International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) World Congress & World Landscape Architects Summit kicked-off in a virtual manner this afternoon with Penang used as its backdrop during the live-streaming.

The event, which is jointly by the Institute of Landscape Architects Malaysia (ILAM), International Federation of Landscape Architects (IFLA) and National Landscape Department, Ministry of Housing and Local Government of Malaysia, will be held over five days.

Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, in his address via a pre-recorded video, conveyed his vision of placing Penang at the forefront to inspire others as well as to become a leader in smart city status in Malaysia.

“IFLA2020 with its theme ‘Future Tense’ significantly associates with the Penang2030 vision, and I foresee the importance of landscape architecture as one of the crucial solutions in making Penang a smart city and an ideal living place for its people.

“We need to have various landscape architecture solutions to blend with our unique culture and lifestyle to create a more liveable environment for our family and society to flourish,’’ said Chow.

Chow added that the Penang government, together with the local council (Penang Island City Council) and the private sectors, through their corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, are transforming and rejuvenating the George Town World Heritage Site.

“We have revitalised back lanes, providing people with comfortable pedestrian and bicycle linkages in an urban greenery setup.

“These are some examples of our efforts in achieving a ‘low carbon city’ while ensuring a better quality of life through green and intelligent city planning.

“With this, I am also eagerly anticipating Penang’s new landscape evolution that includes a smart landscape and smart park.

“I welcome more suggestions, ideas and innovations that will contribute to our efforts in improving the sustainability of our city to create a prosperous and ‘future inclusive’ environment for Penangites,’’ said Chow while thanking the organisers for successfully holding the event despite the challenging time.

Meanwhile, the interim Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who officiated the virtual congress though a pre-recorded video, said the event is the commitment portrayed by the Malaysian government to global efforts in strengthening the sustainability of development amidst the pandemic.

“I sincerely hope that this conference can explore new partnership and collaboration between public, private, people and professional stakeholders to achieve our shared goals.

“We have come together to inspire and engage ways on how landscape architecture can contribute to environmental, social and cultural well-being to create a better world for our future generations to live in,” Muhyiddin said.

Among the dignitaries who presented the opening remarks were United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN‐Habitat) executive director Datuk Seri Maimunah Mohd Sharif, IFLA 2020 organising chairman Assoc. Prof Dr Suhardi Maulan and IFLA president James Hayter.

Source: Buletin Mutiara