ALL active negotiations between the Penang State Government and affected stakeholders, including Waterfall Cafe, to find a fair and practical solution to the issue that has been going on since 1990, have failed, resulting in its demolition.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said all vacate notices issued by the North East District Land Administrator, starting with the vacate notice on Jan 4, 2024, have not been complied with to date.
"Despite the rental arrears, the state government, through the Northeast District and Land Office (PDTTL), has offered Waterfall Cafe several options to relocate and continue operations, including two units in a multi-storey car park (commercial plaza) for the upcoming Bukit Bendera cable car project, as well as a temporary site during the construction period.
“Unfortunately, these offers were rejected without justification even though they were offered in good faith to support business continuity," he said in a statement.
Chow informed that a coordination meeting on June 19, 2023, had agreed that Waterfall Cafe would relocate and settle the rental arrears, but the commitment was also not fulfilled.
He said the first eviction notice was issued on Jan 4, 2024, by PDTTL with several series of discussions starting on Feb 19, 2024 and the final notice on April 15, 2026 before being followed up with enforcement action.
Yesterday, the cafe located near the entrance to the Botanical Gardens was demolished by the authorities, thus triggering various reactions on social media and among residents.
Meanwhile, S. Anand Raj, the proprietor of Waterfall Cafe, said it had been situated within the gardens for over a century.
He claimed that Chow was misled by the civil service and that the reason given was that it had encroached on state land.
"Waterfall Cafe is a restaurant that has existed for one hundred years, since my grandfather’s time. Initially, our restaurant operated inside the Botanical Gardens, where monthly rent was paid to the British authorities.
“Later, we were relocated outside the Botanical Gardens, to the roundabout area that has since been built there.
"In 2009, the State Government at the time decided to widen the entrance road to the Botanical Gardens.
“My father contacted the then MIC President, the late Tun Samy Vellu, to seek assistance.
"In 2010, we were relocated to the current site by the then state executive councillor, Danny Law Heng Kiang. We have remained here ever since.
“We were not trespassers, but had been paying rent to the government throughout that period,” he said.
He said in 2017, the Botanical Gardens suddenly stopped collecting rental payments, and that refusal was allegedly meant to turn Waterfall Cafe into an “encroacher.”
“When my lawyer wrote to the District Office in April 2024, no response was given by the authorities.
“On April 15 2026, two years after my lawyer’s letter was sent, the District and Land Office finally replied.
“In that letter, it was stated that all settlement offers are rejected, even though no offers had ever been made before. I was also given only 10 days to vacate.
"I had sought the Chief Minister’s assistance since 2024 to save our business. There was no response from him," claimed Anand - April 29, 2026.
