BUKIT MERTAJAM – Fulfilling Penang’s housing needs, which is part of the Penang 2030 vision, will see five old housing schemes in the state converted into projects with more high-rise flats and more living-friendly units.
The project is undertaken by the Penang Housing Board under its Urban Regeneration Committee (URC).
State Local Government, Housing Development and Town and Country Planning Committee chairman Jagdeep Singh Deo said the schemes include the Mahsuri five point block in Bayan Lepas, Padang Tembak, Taman Free School on the island, and Taman Siakap in Seberang Jaya and Mak Mandin.
He said Penang is the first state in the country with a URC aiming to build some 3,000 housing units beginning with the Jalan Mahsuri project next year.
“The Mahsuri housing scheme has four storey blocks with 250 units at each block and there is no reason why it cannot be converted into 10 to 15 storey blocks.
“We have a piece of land there and we may build the new high-rise blocks and relocate the residents from the old blocks, which will be demolished.
“By doing this on the existing land, we increase the number of units threefold.
“The new blocks are also bigger at a size of 750 square feet with three rooms and two bathrooms compared to the old units which have a built up area of only 250 square feet.
“The new blocks under the URC will also come with security and other facilities, which is a much better deal for the people.
“We are very happy to introduce the Mahsuri project, which will be the pilot project,” Jagdeep added.
He also said the objective of the URC is to see how older housing schemes can be upgraded, regenerated or renewed which has been implemented by many countries, including Singapore under its Urban Regeneration Authority.
“We want to move this forward. We formed the committee in 2013, but we have not progressed due to technical problems.
“The federal government had a road show in 2018 and was happy to note that we have a URC to undertake the project,” he said at the launch of a workshop on URC.
The event was attended by department officers from the Penang Island City Council, Seberang Prai City Council and land officers from five district offices, namely PLANMalaysia, Penang Development Corporation, and the state legal department. – The Vibes, April 9, 2021
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