Resignation as Ampang Park ambles towards its end

Once among Kuala Lumpur's top shopping malls, Ampang Park will shut its doors on Dec 31 after 44 years in operation.

Ampang Park, which was Kuala Lumpur’s first shopping mall, is being demolished to make way for an underground walkway as well as the five-storey Ampang Park MRT station that will serve the new MRT2 line.

The tearing down of the iconic four-storey building will undoubtedly leave painful memories for shop owners at the premises, as well as loyal patrons, having been part of the pulse of the city for four decades.

Even with newer shopping malls popping up around Kuala Lumpur, the attraction of Ampang Park never dimmed, as it had built a steady clientele, particularly among the middle-income group.

Dwarfed by the nearby Suria KLCC and Avenue K, Ampang Park continues to attract visitors looking to relax, shop, do business or just grab a bite to eat.

After almost a year-long battle to save the mall, the courts dismissed an appeal filed by 39 premise owners and renters against the plan to tear down the mall to build the Ampang Park MRT station and an underground walkway which will connect the new station to the existing Ampang Park LRT station.

With 10 days to the new year, some traders have cleared the premises while others have vacated their lots to eke a living elsewhere.

But those who have yet to find a new place continue to hope for a miracle that would somehow allow them to continue running their businesses there.

Others are holding clearing-out sales to move remaining stock before the doors of Ampang Park close for good.

Craft shop owner Jennifer Lee (photo), 55, is finding it hard to believe that she will have to leave behind the family shop inherited from her grandfather.

Among some of her earliest childhood memories are of helping her grandfather stacking the shop shelves, which has become her second home.

Since receiving the management's notice to move out just this month, Lee has barely had enough time to pack up her wares.

"I am very sad because the management gave us the letter to relocate on Dec 1, I barely had time to sleep because I have been here 44 years, there is too much stuff that I don't know where to put them and I haven't found a new place.

"I have been here since the day this complex opened in 1973, and I plan to leave on its last day. I really don't want to leave, I am devastated," she said while holding back tears.

Recalling the early days, Lee said Ampang Park used to have a children's playing area, a disco and a cinema.

“When I think about it, I feel really sad. I can't even tell the stories," she said.

Despite being issued with a notice to vacate the premise, Lee claimed she has yet to receive the promised compensation.

Proud owner

For electrical shop owner Mah Su Ping (photo), who has also been in business since the complex was launched by Malaysia’s second prime minister, Abdul Razak Hussein, no amount of sadness will save Ampang Park.

"I started working here since the very beginning. Even if I say I am sad, it can’t save Ampang Park.

"I was unmarried when I started working here and now I am a grandmother. I have been here from the time my hair was black to now; it has turned white," she quipped.

Mah remembered feeling pride in being able to open a store at Kuala Lumpur's only mall at the time.

"I was proud because I could open a shop at this complex. We remained here for 45 years, and we will surely feel emotional about leaving.

"No matter how we express our feelings, it would not change anything. It cannot save Ampang Park. No one can help us," she lamented, adding that her plan is to move to a new location not far from the Jalan Ampang mall.

A sports store employee, who only wished to be known as Awe (photo), 42, said Ampang Park has left him with many memories in his 15 years there.

"I started work here when I was still a bachelor, and now I have four kids, the eldest is 14.

"This shop will move on Dec 31. Our customers are still coming, so I am informing them that we are moving, because most of them are our loyal customers.

"I have many memories here and I am a little bit worried about business at the new place," he added.

Dunkin’ Donuts area manager, Norizan Mansor, 44, started her very first job at the outlet in 1995 with a salary of RM750.

Norizan has worked in Ampang Park for over two decades.

"I spent half of my life here at this Dunkin’ Donuts. This place has a sentimental value so I get a little bit sensitive talking about this complex.

"I learnt about life in Kuala Lumpur starting from Ampang Park, Hankyu Jaya and Chow Kit," she said with a tinge of sadness in her voice.

Sentimentality is the order of the day at the Dunkin’ Donuts outlet, with the original signage from 20 years ago still in place.

"We had plans to renovate once, but when we saw that sales have gone down, we decided not to replace it with a new sign.

"At one point our profit hit RM50,000 a month, but lately it is only around RM20,000," she said.

Destroying father’s legacy

Patron Mohamed Salleh (photo), meanwhile, said he was disappointed that the mall would be torn down.

He believes that the government should preserve Kuala Lumpur’s old buildings as a part of the city's history, so that it can be appreciated by future generations.

"For the people born in my generation, Ampang Park is the first mall, not only in Kuala Lumpur but also in Malaysia. If people from Kelantan came to KL, it would not be right if they missed coming here. This was the meeting point for all Malaysians.

"It is very important for Malaysians to remember our history, because without history, we will not know who we are.

“History is the only instrument that can build our identity. I can cry talking about this," said the government retiree.

Mohamed was at the mall with his family to pay it one last visit before it is reduced to rubble.

Commenting further, he noted the irony in Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak destroying the complex built by his father.

"Najib is destroying his father's legacy. Think about it. Appreciate the history that we have. People nowadays think that learning history is foolish, when in fact, it is history that will shape us and our culture," he said.

At the same time, he also expressed concern that more of the city's historical icons could be torn down in the government’s push for development.

"Don't be so greedy for development... Make sure that our landmarks are preserved, or else our future generations will no longer know their history," he warned.- Mkini