PJ Residents Want Community - Centric Development For PJ Section 52.
June 21 , 2010
Dear Sir / Madam ,
I am writing on behalf of the Coalition of Residents Associations of Petaling Jaya ( APAC ) to voice our concerns and objections to the proposed “PJ Sentral” development in Section 52 of Petaling Jaya.
On its own this is a massive development of 8 tower blocks of up to 27 floors each, and that’s just Phase 1 of the proposed re-development of Section 52. Our concerns and objections are based on our expert analysis of the impact this development alone would have on the local community....essentially the massive increase in traffic congestion, noise pollution, car and truck fumes as well as the imposition of massive road widening, flyovers and road extensions through and adjacent to established residential communities in Petaling Jaya. The developer’s own traffic experts admit that that the car parking attached to this development would be inadequate to cope with the total demand the Development generates. Based upon the developers own numbers our experts calculate the shortfall in car parking to be about 6,000 vehicles, which would then need to find parking on already congested streets in and around the PJ New Town area and adjacent neighbourhoods. You can just imagine the chaotic consequences
The residents of PJ have for some time been looking forward to modernisation of the PJ New Town and Old Town areas, encompassing Section 52. We anticipated a community-centred development vision which would enhance the quality of life of the Petaling Jaya stakeholders. Instead we got a multi-billion dollar monster which would displace rather than serve the local community, but which would we estimate, make hundreds of millions of ringgit of profit for the developers and their stakeholders.
Their Application shows that the PJ Rate Payers may have to bear the burden of more than RM92 million infrastructure works to justify their Application/proposal .
Despite recent comments in the Media, neither the PJ Datuk Bandar , Datuk Mohd Roslan Sakiman, the MBPJ, nor the Developer had engaged with or discussed these plans with the local community and Residents Associations or their representatives (until a Hearing last week under Local Agenda 21).
For the record we would confirm that the Coalition of Residents are against this Development Proposal
( as is ) and welcome the opportunity to engage with and work out a solution which would serve the interests of the Community, but the Developer to date , has refused to agree to make any changes to their Proposal Application.
We trust that now that the MBPJ and the PJ Datuk Bandar are aware, through your good office, of our concerns and objections to this Development Proposal and that they would make every effort to ensure that the Community’s needs and wishes are taken fully into account. We would also hope that MBPJ would reconsider carefully the acceptability of this Application given its significant flaws and shortcomings as pointed out by our experts in relation to the proposal concept and the Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA).
We hope that the Developer concerned would show sincerity and in the spirit of compromise and respect , would withdraw their current Development Proposal, and re-submit in due course and with the Residents full support AFTER they have made the changes necessary to reflect our concerns and objections.
From a procedural point of view, unless the Developer withdraws their Application, they cannot accommodate our inputs and concerns, and thus it is a pre-requisite to any meaningful discussions between the relevant Petaling Jaya community stakeholders and the Developer.
Yours sincerely,
Johan Tung ABdullah
President of All Petaling Jaya Residents Associations Coalition (“APAC”)
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