Events which made news in 2012

KUALA LUMPUR: THE year might have seen big events such as the London Olympics or the hype about Doomsday, but nevertheless, on the home front, and especially at city level, many events shaped the year affecting its communities.

 

From municipalities issues, the start of works on the Mass Rapid Transit Sungai Buloh-Kajang line, new local council guidelines, departures and appointments of council presidents -- there were many stories to be shared. Here are some of the major stories Streets highlighted  over the past 12 months:

 

JAN 16

To encourage more members of the community to take up cycling, the Putrajaya Corporation is upgrading bicycle lanes. The cycling lanes will be connected to eight public parks around Putrajaya, namely Taman Botani, Taman Warisan Pertanian, Taman Wawasan, Taman Wetland, Taman Ekuestrian Putrajaya, Taman Putra Perdana, Taman Rimba Alam, and Taman Selatan and is expected to boost tourism in Putrajaya.

 

FEB 25

Devotees of Amitabha Temple in Jalan Ampang protested against the demolition of the 160-year-old house of worship to make way for the proposed Sungai Besi-Ulu Kelang Expressway. They had called for the temple to be spared as it had historical value.

 

 MARCH 20

Subang Jaya Municipal Council and its synergy partner, Universiti Putra Malaysia, embarked on their green initiative with the launch of Serdang Greentown as the first "Biomass Town in Malaysia". It was chosen as it is being developed with the aim to preserve and conserve the environment.

Together, they will work closely in the areas of community service, environment, engineering, green city, safe town and environment beautification. The following month, the council became the first in the country to venture in both vermicomposting and anaerobic digestion biogas.

 

MARCH 2012

It was all systems go for the Sungai Buloh-Kajang My Rapid Transit line ground works. Covering 51km, the alignment starts from Sungai Buloh, cutting through the Kuala Lumpur city centre to Kajang. It will have a 9.5km underground tunnel between Jalan Semantan in Damansara Heights and Taman Maluri, Cheras. It is scheduled for completion in 2017.

 

MARCH 6

The Kelana Jaya LRT extension project in Persiaran Kewajipan started on March 15. Works on the facilities included site clearing, piling and the construction of piers.

The extension begins at Kelana Jaya station and passes through 13 new stations, including Subang Jaya and USJ before ending at Putra Heights, covering a distance of 17km. Meanwhile, the Ampang Line extension line will stretch to Putra Heights with a 17.7km of elevated track and passing through high-density residential areas such as Sri Petaling, Bandar Kinrara and Puchong. There will be 11 new stations. Extension project on both lines is expected to complete in 2014.

 

MAY 12,

The long-awaited redevelopment of the Kampung Kerinchi flats finally took off with Federal Territory and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin at the ground-breaking ceremony. The ceremony was witnessed by 432 homeowners of the redevelopment project called Kerinchi Residences.

Developed by Suez Domain Sdn Bhd, Kerinchi Residences is made up of seven blocks of apartments, of which one, with 472 units, will be allocated for the Kampung Kerinchi residents.

 

JUNE 11

Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin announced that residents of the Hundred Quarters in Brickfields will be vacated once the new ones in Jalan Ang Seng is completed.

The relocation will be facilitated by the Prime Minister's Department property management division. Hundred Quarters was built by the British colonial government in 1915 for civil servants. The new site spans over 1.4ha. It will have a multipurpose hall, surau, open space, and a 17-storey apartment block. There will be 212 units including eight disabled-friendly units with a built-up area of 111sq m each.

 

JUNE 22

The 50-year-old Chow Kit market will be redeveloped into a modern market with more facilities, at the cost of about RM200 million. Covering an area of 23,225 sq m, it will be renamed Jalan Raja Bot Market upon completion in 2017.

It will adopt green technology for efficient maintenance, equipped with solar panels and a rainwater harvesting system. The market was last upgraded 25 years ago.

 

JUNE 27

Kuala Lumpur received its new mayor following the departure of Tan Sri Ahmad Fuad Ismail whose term ended on July 15. Successor Datuk Ahmad Phesal Talib's term took effect on July 19, will last for two years. Phesal was the Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing secretary-general.

 

JULY 27

The development of an office tower beside the Kompleks Dayabumi will be another landmark in the city's skyline.

The office tower project, being developed by KLCC Property Holdings Bhd, is part of the Kompleks Dayabumi's City Point annexed building redevelopment plan which will also include renovations works of the Kompleks Dayabumi building. Renovations works on the Kompleks Dayabumi main building will involve refurbishment of both its common and corporate lobbies.

 

OCT 2, 2012

Datuk Mohamad Roslan Sakiman ended his term after serving as the PJ mayor for six consecutive years. He assumed his new roles at the SUK state government office as both the state's deputy secretary 1 (development) and director for the State Economic Planning Unit.

However, Roslan's departure sparked tension among councillors who objected to the transfer as they alleged it went against the Local Government Act 1976 in reference to Mayor's appointment. Others believe that Roslan's new appointment should be a promotion instead of a lateral transfer.

 

OCT 16

The Jalan Sultan MRT track alignment development grouses, raised by property owners, were finally appeased with the signing of the Points of Agreement (POA) between the owners and MRT Corp.

The POA will form the foundation of the legally-binding Mutual Agreement between both parties which will allow the MRT tunnel to operate with private properties above ground.

With the Mutual Agreement, it will not be compulsory to acquire private properties above the MRT tunnel, allowing government to stop its land acquisition exercise in the area.

 

SEPT 15

Acknowledging the difficulties of middle-income earners to purchase homes in the city due to the soaring prices of houses, City Hall has embarked on the development of an affordable middle-cost housing scheme which is slated to price each unit below RM400,000. Discussions on a joint-development effort between City Hall and private developers was carried out, however, the details relating to the housing project design and plans have yet to be disclosed.

AUG 11

The V3 package of the MRT Sungai Buloh to Kajang project, which comprises the development of a 6km alignment track linking the three MRT stations, namely, The Curve, 1Utama Shopping Centre and TTDI, had started.

The RM816 million project awarded to Mudajaya Corporation Bhd for the construction of the three stations is expected to complete by 2016. The stations will serve both residential and nearby commercials areas such as Damansara Perdana, Bandar Utama and Damansara Kim.

 

NOV 17

The short-noticed transfer of former Selayang Municipal Council president Datuk Zainal Abidin A'ala to the National Institute of Public Administration (Intan) came as a shock to many, especially to MPS councillors and state Exco members, who claimed Zainal's transfer was illegal and against the Local Government Act 1976. Chief Secretary to the Government Datuk Seri Dr Ali Hamsa refuted the claims and said Zainal's transfer was prompted by the Selangor administration which wanted to end Zainal's term and the move was done according to procedure.

Zainal's departure from MPS came after a massive public protest against a condominium development next to the Batu Caves limestones rock formation.

 

DEC 18

A cleaner and vibrant look for the Pudu wet market is in the pipeline. City Hall business facilitation and petty traders management department director Rolan Abd Rahman said allocation for the upgrading works will be requested soon. He said aside from the need for repairs, such as to re-tar the road surfaces riddled with potholes and put in a proper sewage and drainage system, the wet market should be clean at all times and competitive with supermarkets and hypermarkets.

 

DEC 21

Plans to downsize the Sivan Temple in Bukit Gasing was proposed by the interim temple committee to ensure public safety.

It was proposed that the two-storey temple structure which sits on top of Bukit Gasing be scaled down to a single-storey building. The committee plans to rebuild the temple as its condition had deteriorated over the years and they fear the structure might collapse if nothing is done soon, due to the wet weather.