The Penang government does not have any intention to table an enactment to limit foreigners from buying pre-war buildings in its world heritage zone, state executive councillor Jagdeep Singh Deo said today.

The housing development and town and country planning committee chairman added that it is not possible to table such an act.

“The building owners have the right to sell their properties and this proposed act contradicts the Federal Constitution,” he replied to an oral question by fellow DAP lawmaker Teh Lai Heng in the state legislative assembly here.

The Komtar assemblyman asked if the state government is considering tabling an enactment to stop or limit foreigners or foreign companies from buying up heritage buildings within the George Town world heritage site.

Jagdeep said the state government, through Penang Island City Council and several other agencies including George Town World Heritage Inc, is now studying the possibility of preparing a Rent Regulation Enactment for the heritage zone.

“This study will enable the state government to collate the latest information that included the ownership of heritage buildings according to nationalities.

“The study is to analyse the current situation of the heritage buildings at the heritage site so that the state government can take appropriate steps based on it,” said the Datuk Keramat assemblyman.

Teh then proposed for the state government to consider tabling an enactment to increase the minimum property price for foreign purchase of properties in the heritage zone to RM200 million.

“The current minimum property price for foreigners is RM2 million so I propose that the state consider increasing it to RM200 million only for the heritage zone,” he said.

Jagdeep said the current state government’s housing policy imposed a minimum price of RM2 million for foreign purchases of properties on the island and RM1 million on the mainland.

He said Teh’s proposal is one of the ways to limit foreign purchases in the heritage zone but the minimum price of RM200 million will need to be carefully considered.

“As for the original question on restricting purchases by foreigners, this is under the National Land Code and out of the state’s jurisdiction so we will need to work with the federal government to see if the National Land Code could be amended to limit foreign purchases,” he said.

Earlier, Jagdeep said there have been numerous reports on the alarming increase in rental rates within the heritage zone due to foreign purchases but the state needed to complete its studies first before taking the next step.

“The Penang chief minister and state government proposed the Rent Regulation Enactment because of these reports but we needed to conduct a thorough study to get the actual facts of how many properties are actually bought up by foreigners,” he said.

On the legal aspect, Jagdeep said the enactment can be legally tabled by the state but the final decision on whether to table it or not depends on the results of the study.

Muhammad Farid Saad (Barisan Nasional-Pulau Betong) then asked why the state did not make use of its Penang Heritage Act to regulate the rent and foreign purchases of buildings in the heritage zone.

In reply, Jagdeep said the heritage act was only to regulate the management of the heritage zone but could not be used to regulate rent or property purchase within the site.

Read More: TheMalayMailOnline.com

Paramount Property, the property development division of public-listed Paramount Corporation Berhad (Paramount), today marked its debut in the Penang property market with the unveiling of Utropolis Batu Kawan, Penang’s first university metropolis.

Utropolis Batu Kawan mirrors the successful, award-winning university metropolis concept first introduced by Paramount at its Utropolis Glenmarie development in Shah Alam, Selangor. The Utropolis Glenmarie development, launched in 2013, marked the first time Paramount had brought its two businesses of property development and educational services together in one location. The launch captured the imagination of the property market, resulting in its first phase being sold out in a matter of days.

The 44.3-acre Utropolis Batu Kawan development, with an approximate Gross Development Value (GDV) of RM1.8 billion, comprises well-integrated residential, commercial, retail and hotel components, anchored by a new flagship campus for KDU Penang University College, owned and operated by Paramount Education. The 10.5-acre campus will be the biggest purpose-built campus in Batu Kawan when fully completed.

Speaking at a preview of the Utropolis Batu Kawan development held in Shah Alam today, Paramount Group Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Chew said, “Utropolis Glenmarie is a visionary development that successfully showcases Paramount’s strength-through-synergy business strategy, which is anchored on generating maximum value by bringing together our two core businesses of property development and educational services in one location. Three years and two property awards later, Utropolis Glenmarie is fast transforming the industrial area of Glenmarie with its unique live-and-learn, work-and-play lifestyle.”

He added, “This is our vision for Utropolis Batu Kawan – to support Penang’s aim of making Batu Kawan its third satellite city, and the Central Business District & Lifestyle Hub of the Northern region. At over 6,000 acres, Batu Kawan is not just a major development, but also the only landbank in Penang and the entire Northern region that has infrastructure completed ahead of property developments.”
He said that university metropolises were unique in that they never grow old – the constant infusion of new students acts as a catalyst to attract lifestyle businesses and support services, creating a dynamic and evolving community.

“This in turn creates a vibrant real-estate market, with a constant demand for investment and rental residential properties, as well as commercial, retail and office spaces. As a pioneer participant of the Batu Kawan vision, we are well-positioned to take advantage of the growth opportunities this address offers with our unique university metropolis concept,” Chew concluded.

He added that Batu Kawan’s well-crafted masterplan was already attracting many international and lifestyle retail brands, led by Swedish giant IKEA and Design Village Penang, the Northern region’s first outlet mall.

Utropolis Batu Kawan, at the heart of Batu Kawan, Penang’s third satellite city, is strategically located one kilometre away from the Second Penang Bridge and the North-South Highway. It will consist of commercial, retail and residential properties, all surrounding the purpose-built KDU Penang University College campus.

Work on the development has commenced; the campus is scheduled for completion by 2019, while property components will be completed progressively from 2016. The first phase of the property development offering, comprising offices and retail shops, is now on sale, with gross prices starting from RM326,600.

For more information on Utropolis Batu Kawan, please visit the website www.paramountproperty.my. Enquiries can also be directed to the Paramount Property Sales Gallery at 604-506 0350.

* Read more about Utropolis @ Batu Kawan *

Location Map:

The proposed paired road from Tanjung Bungah to Teluk Bahang will reduce the travelling time between the two places by more than half, said project director Mazlan Ali.

He said it now took about 20 minutes to drive on the 10.9km existing stretch from Tanjung Bungah (where Jalan Lembah Per-mai meets Jalan Tanjung Bungah) to Teluk Bahang.

However, the journey will take just nine minutes on the highway which will be 10.6km long.

Mazlan said this during a public briefing on the highway which is one of the three paired roads proposed to be built under an infrastructure package which includes the proposed undersea tunnel linking Penang island to the mainland.

Consortium Zenith BUCG Sdn Bhd is the main project contractor.

About 100 people turned up for the briefing at the Tanjung Bungah community hall on Saturday.

It was reported earlier that the road is to run along the foothills starting about 200m from the Teluk Bahang roundabout and ending in Lembah Permai near the Sri Vazhikattum Muniswarar shrine.

It will have three interchanges at Jalan Sungai Emas and Persiaran Sungai Permai and near the Chin Farm Waterfall.

Various environmental concerns were raised at the briefing, including by city councillor Dr Lim Mah Hui who said the billions of ringgit to be spent on road projects would be better channelled towards improving public transport.

Joleen Yap, 26, a zoology student from Universiti Sains Malaysia, said she was concerned that the project would threaten the existence of the Dusky Leaf Monkeys found in the jungles along the Tanjung Bungah-Teluk Bahang corridor.

Katharine Chua, a director of Tropical Spice Garden, called for the Environmental Impact Assess-ment report to be made public to ensure that the ecotourism belt remains sustainable.

Consortium Zenith executive vice-chairman Datuk Lee Chee Hoe said the paired road project was important as an alternative road.

“The existing road is already very congested along Batu Ferringhi,” he said.

State Public Works, Utilities and Transportation Committee chairman Lim Hock Seng said the project was expected to commence in mid-2018 and scheduled to be completed in three years.

READ MORE: TheStar.com.my

Map showing approximate location

A proposed affordable housing by Nova Land Development Sdn. Bhd. at Jelutong, Penang. It is strategically located near Nova Place and Grace Residence by Nova Mulia Development, easily accessible via Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway.

This development will see the demonstration of 34 existing houses and workshops for the construction of a 42-storey affordable housing. The new housing will offer 444 affordable and 310 low medium cost residential units. Selling price is expected to start from RM150,000 onwards.

This project is still pending for approval. Details to be available upon project launch.

READ MORE ABOUT AFFORDABLE HOUSING:

• Eligibility and the requirement of buying affordable housing
• Full list of affordable housing in Penang

Property Project : (to be confirmed)
Location : Jelutong, Penang
Property Type : Affordable Housing
Built-up Area: 700 sq.ft., 850 sq.ft.
Total Units: 444 (affordable), 310 (low medium cost)
Indicative Price: RM150,000 onwards (to be confirmed)
Developer: Nova Land Development Sdn. Bhd. (Nova Mulia?)

Location Map:

Aspen Vision City Sdn Bhd (AVCSB) is set to launch its first landed housing at Aspen Vision City in Bandar Cassia, Batu Kawan, Penang next year. AVCSB is a subsidiary of Aspen Vision Land Sdn Bhd (AVLSB) while AVLSB is a subsidiary of Aspen Vision Development Sdn Bhd (Aspen Group).

Aspen Vision City covers 245 acres of freehold land and is one of the biggest mixed developments in Penang offering a combination of condominiums, shopoffices, serviced suites, hotels, office tower, financial hub, medical centre, international school and a range of amenities. The northern region’s first IKEA furniture store will also be located there.

“This will be our first landed and luxurious designer bungalow development in Aspen Vision City which is named ViLuxe. These upcoming bungalows will raise the bar of luxury projects in mainland Penang. It will also have direct access to our 25-acre Central Island Park,” Aspen Group CEO Datuk Murly Manokharan told TheEdgeProperty.com.

There will be a total of 157 units with prices starting from RM2.5 million.

“Our target market is the elite group in mainland Penang and those who know how to appreciate the finer things in life,” said Murly.

According to him, Batu Kawan is the only landbank in Penang and the entire northern region that has infrastructure completed ahead of property developments.

“Billions of ringgit have been spent by the government to connect Penang Island to Batu Kawan.

“The North-South Highway at Batu Kawan makes it very attractive as a destination of choice for people from other northern states which is a largely untapped market. Batu Kawan is a well-planned satellite city — the infrastructure and public amenities are all well thought-out by the government. In other developments, developers need to pay high land cost and heavy infrastructure investment before they start their developments,” said Murly.

He added that due to its accessibility, the economy of scale in Batu Kawan will be better than in Penang Island as the area is well connected to almost all states in Peninsular Malaysia. The high-tech and light industries that are mushrooming in Batu Kawan also play key roles as job centres. With all these elements and the attractive land cost, it is not ambitious to say Batu Kawan will spearhead the future of Penang’s commercial and financial activities,” he said.

Meanwhile, the group will also officially launch another component of Aspen Vision City, Vertu Resort, in December.

Vertu Resort is a resort-inspired condo development with furnished move-in condition units. It is Aspen Vision City’s first residential development.

The project was soft-launched in February this year and is already 60% booked. The project has a gross development value (GDV) of RM620 million. It has 1,282 units with built-ups ranging from 1,030 sq ft to 1,290 sq ft. Prices start from about RM450,000.

Aspen Group had also recently launched Small-office Home-office (SoHo) units known as Beacon Executive Suites in George Town, Penang in September. It has achieved a 40% take-up rate so far.

“There are a total of 227 units with built-ups of 980 sq ft. Prices start from RM558,000,” said Murly, adding that the project has a GDV of RM150 million and is targeted for completion by 2019.

On the property market, he noted that the market has been challenging not only in Penang but in the entire region.

“However, it very much depends on the relevance of the product to buyers. The right product will still strike the market well. The property market will remain challenging next year and developers need to understand the needs of the market and put in more thoughtful details so that the new projects will remain relevant to buyers,” he offered.

Aspen Group has so far achieved RM850 million in sales and targets to hit RM1 billion sales by the end of the year.

The group has a current undeveloped landbank of RM13.1 billion GDV and is planning to acquire more potential land in Penang and the Klang Valley.

Read Source: TheEdgeProperty.com.my