DBKL Urged To Explain Demolition For 34-Storey Project At Bangsar
Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) has been called to explain why it has approved the demolition for a 34-storey apartment project at Jalan Abdullah, Bangsar even as the traffic and environmental assessment reports have not been submitted.
Demolition work at the project had been previously put on hold following complaints by residents of workers hacking the walls of one of the homes.
Save KL Coalition (SKL) and the residents said it was not right for the developers to commence demolition work since the dilapidation survey had not yet been conducted, reported Free Malaysia Today (FMT).
Exploring Efficient Design: Retrofit Over Demolition and Rebuild
However, when FMT checked the area on Wednesday (21 April), it saw that hoardings had been set up on the land, while at least two excavators were working.
The vacant double-storey bungalow that once occupied one of the two plots of land has already been flattened, and the once serene residential area is now filled with demolition work noise.
The demolition continues until 6pm, when such work in housing areas is supposed to end by 5pm.
“DBKL has to explain,” Lembah Pantai MP Fahmi Fadzil told FMT.
SKL chairman M Ali said the developer has agreed to submit new traffic, environment and social impact assessments including geotechnical report before it would start on any work.
“Enough with DBKL’s ‘KL city for all’ slogan. Have a caring heart and come down to the ground, please,” he said as quoted by FMT.
Aside from being noisy and chaotic, the demolition could also lead to “disasters”, he added.
T Ksharmini, a resident working with SKL in opposing the project, said she was told that the developer secured the demolition permit last week.
She was also informed that the dilapidation survey, which is a requirement for the issuance of a permit, had been completed, and that DBKL appeared to have approved the study.
Residents are miffed on how the developer conducted the dilapidation survey, saying that demolition work commenced on Tuesday and they only got a copy of the survey one day later.
A resident of one of the homes that was wedged between the two plots of land of the developer had already complained of dust and tremors when demolition works started, said Ksharmini.
The resident was not also able to participate in the dilapidation survey due to a miscommunication.
“When they approached her for the dilapidation survey, they just asked if they could see the cracks in her house. They didn’t say it was part of the survey, that’s why she rejected it,” explained Ksharmini as quoted by FMT.
“So, I told the developer they must write and reach out to every resident, make an appointment and set it in black-and-white that you want to do a dilapidation survey.”
She noted that the residents want to know how the demolition permit was approved and what precaution and safety measures were taken by the developer.
The houses in Jalan Abdullah are some of the oldest remaining homes in Bangsar, comprising mostly semi-detached houses and bungalows that . Most of the homes were constructed between 1929 and 1940.
For more than a year now, residents have been protesting the development of a 32-storey apartment project within the area, saying they were not consulted.
During the latest meeting between stakeholders held on 27 March, the residents were told that the development was now a 34-storey serviced apartment project, with 180 units.
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