PETALING JAYA: A planning and local government expert has questioned assurances that future high-intensity developments in Kuala Lumpur will be capped after 2021, saying this fails to address the core issue of unsustainable development policies.
Derek Fernandez told FMT that the recently gazetted Kuala Lumpur City Plan 2020, said to contain more than 270 questionable development orders, further negated these assurances as irreparable damage would be done based on the present blueprint.
“The problem is not skyscrapers per se, but the lack of infrastructure and public amenities to support such intensity,” he said.
He was responding to Kuala Lumpur mayor Nor Hisham Ahmad Dahlan, who recently said that high-rise projects in the city may be halted by 2021 due to the effect they would have on the city’s image as well as the lives of residents.
He also said discussions would be held with all stakeholders before the Kuala Lumpur City Plan 2040 is gazetted.
However, Fernandez said skyscrapers could help free up valuable space for the creation of parks and other public amenities.
He added that implementing proper policies which limit the overall development intensity could be more effective than spreading small buildings across the area.
“One tall building is built, and the remainder of the land can be used for parks and public amenities,” he said.
Attributing what he called the “uncontrolled aesthetic” of the city skyline to a lack of policies on the issue as well as on building design, he cited Bukit Gasing as a prime example of how the natural skyline had been altered.
He said the lack of an effective affordable housing policy also contributed to the problem, as allowing higher plot ratios had led to the abuse of such policies to justify the overdevelopment of open spaces and government land. - FMT
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