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GEORGE TOWN: A couple who owns a heritage bungalow here has sued the chief minister, the state government and the city council over concerns that a planned mega development would leave their home and others in ruins.
Louise Goss-Custard and Thomas Arnold Schmidt, who own a 1935 bungalow at Chow Thye Road, said the mega project carried serious risks to their home and others down the road, which had been built without a foundation.
They said the area was prone to sink if development occurred. The couple is seeking details of the feasibility studies for the proposed project from the High Court.
A state-owned company had proposed to build a 23-storey block of serviced apartments and a 30-storey condominium apartment building. A total of 558 office and residential units and 10 floors of retail space are planned.
Goss-Custard and Schmidt have filed an originating summons asking the High Court to order that a feasibility study, including environmental, traffic and social impact reports, be made public.
They have also sought an order to compel the developer to disclose what studies had been carried out.
The couple named chief minister Chow Kon Yeow, PDC Properties Sdn Bhd, the Penang Island City Council and the state government as respondents.
Goss-Custard said the project would drastically alter the character and originality of the area, a heritage residential precinct that surrounds Victoria Green.
In a supporting affidavit, she said there were fears about damage to her property and others along the road, including impact on traffic, pollution and value of property once the “gigantic structure” was built.
She said the developer had refused to reveal the reports despite requests made through her lawyers.
She also said there was a conflict of interest as the chief minister and state leaders were directors in Penang Development Corporation, which owns the developer company.
In addition, she said, the city council’s top leadership was handpicked by the state government and likely to follow orders from the state.
“The city council and PDC and whoever approves this humongous project, which carries deep implications and impacts, are beholden to the political masters of the state,” she said.
Goss-Custard said she and her partner had made their objections at an inquiry held by the council on Jan 12, to which they and five other property owners were invited. However, she felt the inquiry was merely held as a “formality”.
“We have spent a lot of money and sacrificed time to preserve our bungalow. It is our labour of love and appreciation. To keep the public and us in the dark, the developer has refused to provide reports or studies.
“We are directly impacted as our bungalow house and land are just in front of the proposed project, are entitled to reports and not merely ‘feted’ at briefings,” she said.
She accused the authorities of not taking the residents’ objections seriously
The couple’s lawyer, John Khoo, said the High Court had set April 29 for case management as the respondents had yet to appoint lawyers.
The couple’s bungalow is located near Burmah Square, a business district created by PDC in an area that was once home to government quarters dating from the 1920s.
The project calls for 15 homes on Service Road and Irrawaddy Road to be demolished, while a row of 19 houses on the adjacent Chow Thye Road will be “upgraded from two floors to four floors”.
The heritage properties in the area have been let out as eateries, offices, and restaurants. In December, the PDC ordered tenants of 34 units to leave in a month but the decision was reversed following an uproar. - FMT
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