KUALA LUMPUR – After his plans to develop Taman Rimba Kiara were shot down by the Court of Appeal, tycoon Tan Sri Desmond Lim has been dealt another blow when Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) rejected his redevelopment plans for Plaza Batai.
DBKL town planning officer Hanif Nordin confirmed to The Vibes that the planning application submitted by Motif Budi Sdn Bhd, the company responsible for the redevelopment, was rejected.
While he did not go into details, it is understood that the high-density nature of the project and objections from the affluent Damansara Heights neighbourhood played a key role in the decision.
“It is true,” said Hanif, when asked whether the application was turned down by DBKL.
“I think that is as much information as I can give.”
Federal Territories Minister Tan Sri Annuar Musa, when contacted, said he has no knowledge of the matter, adding that it is solely under DBKL’s jurisdiction.
Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Mahadi Che Ngah did not respond to The Vibes’ request for comment.
The Edge previously reported that Lim, of Pavilion fame, bought the 16 double-storey terraced shoplots in Damansara Heights last December to the tune of RM100 million from Selangor Properties Bhd.
The plan was to demolish and redevelop the 49-year-old upmarket retail shoplots, located near the Pavilion Damansara Heights project, into serviced apartments.
The Edge cited documents as saying Motif Budi submitted the planning application to DBKL on December 23, with plans to amalgamate three parcels of freehold land, measuring 9,002 sq m, to build two 19-storey blocks, each comprising 152 units, with two floors of retail space.
On Wednesday, the Court of Appeal declared the development order granted for the Taman Rimba Kiara project in Taman Tun Dr Ismail null and void.
The project would have seen the development of eight blocks of 42- to 54-storey high-end serviced apartments, to be known as Pavilion Taman Tun, and one 29-storey block comprising 350 units for current residents of longhouses there.
Taman Rimba Kiara has been a sore point for the public, as it involves allegations of impropriety that includes then Federal Territories minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor and saw the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission commencing investigations.
Yayasan Wilayah Persekutuan (YWP), then under the chairmanship of Tengku Adnan, in 2014 procured the issuance of a title to itself for 4.8ha of the 10ha plot, which comprised a Hindu temple, longhouses and the park land.
In April that year, YWP entered a joint-venture agreement with developer Memang Perkasa Sdn Bhd, before obtaining the development order from DBKL in 2017. – The Vibes, January 30, 2021
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