propertyproperty22 FocusM | June 9-15, 2018 23FocusM | June 9-15, 2018

Average price for double-storey terrace house in Tmn Melawati, Ulu Klang (Land area: 1,000-1,5000sf)

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Unlocking Melawati’s potential

• Excellent connectivity and proximity to city centre makes location a hot pick

• More developments expected as Taman Melawati earmarked for urban redevelopment initiative

Prior to its development, Taman Melawati was a rubber plantation known as Hawthornton Estate

Ng says Melawati is strategically located, being not too far from the city centre

A former rubber planta-tion, Taman Melawati is often called the hidden jewel of Kuala Lumpur and has long

been known for its peace and quiet despite its proximity to the city.

The neighbourhood was even dubbed the Malaysian version of Hollywood at one point for being home to a number of local per-sonalities.

Raine and Horne Interna-tional Zaki and Partners Sdn Bhd partner James Tan says data shows that prices and rentals of properties in the area have been generally stable.

To illustrate the point, he states that the price of a standard terrace house ranges from RM600,000 to RM800,000 while the rental for terrace homes is from RM1,500 to RM3,500 per month.

Moving forward, he expects the property market in Melawati to remain challenging and com-petitive. Market prices and rent-als are expected to be relatively stable with little, if any, potential for upside this year.

“Demand and supply in (cer-tain) locations as well as the gov-ernment and Bank Negara Malaysia’s latest policy will stimu-late or hinder its growth.

“However, with the right con-cept, enticing product features, attractive pricing and well-planned marketing strategies, property developments in this area are expected to be market-able,” he adds. Unique location Despite bearing a Kuala Lumpur postal address, the Melawati area is administered by the Ampang Jaya Municipal Council as it sits in the state constituency of Ulu Kelang, which is part of the

by Ang Hui Hsien

Taman Melawati was developed into a residential area for the middle-income group, says Quek

2007 corporate merger exercise. Sime Darby Property Bhd

chief operating officer (inte-grated) Quek Cham Hong reveals that prior to its development, the location was a rubber plantation known as Hawthornton Estate.

“Taman Melawati was devel-oped into a residential park tar-geting the growing middle-income group. With the beautiful backdrop of the Klang Gates Quartz Ridge, Melawati enjoys an abundance of nature,” he states.

Former resident Azreena Hamzah, who grew up in Taman Melawati, remembers that it was one of the first projects to be developed in the area and was an extremely quiet neighbourhood when her family moved in 1980.

She notes the residents of Taman Melawati were a close-knit community where everyone knew their neighbours, who were evenly distributed between Malay and Chinese families, with a small number of Indian families also living in the area.

“Many people thought it too far from the city as transportation was not as convenient as it is now. There were buses running back then but they would only go up to the Klang Gates Dam and from there, residents had to walk the rest of the way in,” she recalls. Good connectivity Improvements to connectivity within and surrounding Taman Melawati began with the con-struction of the six-lane KL Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) which was completed in 2002 and con-nects Bandar Sri Damansara at one end to Sri Petaling at the other.

The Genting Klang-Pahang highway which links the township to other areas such as Wangsa Maju and Taman Melati to the city was also upgraded in 2015 from a Property whose latest project is a

low-density residential develop-ment called Sunway Montana.

The project is not the devel-oper’s maiden venture in Melawati. The property arm of conglomerate Sunway Bhd had also previously completed Sunway Rydgeway in 2012 which features a collection of zero-lot bungalows.

Sunway senior general man-ager (central region) of property development division Ng Kok Chew says the locality had great potential for the developer to

create a project that could deliver extraordinary value to the resi-dents as it was strategically located not too far from the city centre.

“In terms of liveability, it is located within a mature township with a host of amenities and its spectacular surroundings.

“Our landbank is located right next to a hilly area, where the proximity to the hills and lush for-ests makes it a location where we could create a sustainable lifestyle for our community,” he states. Hillside topography The 22.8ha Sunway Montana which consists of courtyard villas, semi-detached homes and town-houses, takes advantage of its natural surroundings.

“Located in the self-contained town at the northeastern border of KL and Selangor, Sunway Montana is a meticulously-planned development oriented along the natural contours of the hill; integrating harmoniously to its cascading terraces to gain full advantage of the hillside topogra-

administrative district of Gombak in Selangor.

The uniqueness of the locality does not end there, as its borders have changed to include and exclude different neighbourhoods over time.

According to a 2010 news report, Melawati also encom-passes surrounding localities such as Bukit Kemensah, Ukay Perdana, Bukit Mewah and Lembah Keramat, but the advent of devel-opments has led to the neighbour-hoods forming their own identi-ties and gradually losing their association with Melawati.

Taman Melawati, however, remains synonymous with the area although other neighbour-hoods such as Desa Melawati and Taman Wangsa Melawati have also emerged within the same locality.

Launched in 1972, Taman Melawati was the first township to be developed by Negara Properties (M) Bhd which was then operating as a subsidiary of Golden Hope Plantations Bhd. The latter became part of the Sime Darby Group in a

phy, providing each home with a panoramic view of the KL city centre,” explains Ng.

Sunway Property also invested in extensive landscape facilities which include an exclusive 5.7ha private forest with a skywalk as well as a 1km jungle trek.

One of the development’s key highlights is its clubhouse which integrates rainwater harvesting and smart energy solution and has a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification – a first in the country.

“Each abode is designed with the latest sustainable innovation, enhanced with environmental and energy conservation features to redefine the standards of qual-ity urban living,” adds Ng.

This seems to be a winning concept as it was revealed that Sunway Montana, which is tar-geted at upgraders and multigen-erational families, is fully sold out.

Sime Darby Property’s Quek reveals that the developer is undertaking an urban redevelop-ment initiative at the 364.2ha Taman Melawati township which is earmarked for residential, com-mercial, retail and lifestyle devel-opments.

One of these is Serini Melawati which will have 528 units in two 38-storey towers that are described as Melawati’s tallest high-rise residential offering.

The project’s take-up rate stands at 60%, with most of the buyers comprising upgraders from KL and Ampang aged from 36 to 55.

Pent-up demand for mall The condominium sits less than 1km from the 10-storey Melawati Mall, which is jointly developed by Sime Darby Property and CapitaLand Mall Asia Ltd.

According to Quek, the mall acts as a catalyst for the urban redevelopment initiative and is positioned as a lifestyle hub for the greater Melawati area.

Explaining the decision to build Melawati Mall in the loca-tion, he says: “Melawati and the surrounding areas have been underserved for a long time and there was a pent-up demand for a modern quality retail offering. Additionally, Melawati is a mature residential area with lots of potential.”

At present, the mall receives 700,000 visitors a month on aver-age and has an occupancy rate exceeding 90% of committed leases, with more than 80% of shops opening by next month.

A key component of the pro-ject is Melawati Corporate Centre which will feature 10 storeys of office suites and retail shops with built-ups from 1,259 sq ft and 1,862 sq ft, respectively.

The retail shops occupying the ground floor come with terraces that can be used as outdoor rooms while the office suites fea-ture an open plan office area that allows its occupants to arrange the layout according to their needs.

Quek says the 0.6ha project is also aiming for MSC Malaysia Cybercentre status. It currently has a 56% take-up rate, with most of the buyers aged 50 and above and originating from Kuala Lumpur. FocusM

Sunway Property is also stamping its mark in Melawati with Sunway Montana

Volume of Transactions in Melawati in 2017RESIDENTIAL

COMMERCIAL

Semi-detached 7 3,197 – 9,216 203 – 475 900 – 2,650

Townhouse 3 1,012 – 1,066 356 – 366 360 – 380

Terrace 34 744 – 3,571 84 – 734 250 – 1,000

Serviced residence 9 904 – 1,227 425 – 561 425 – 630

Apartment/ condominium 26 484 – 1,399 300 – 713 320 – 835

Shoplot 9 2,484 – 6,730 197 – 557 600 – 2,280

Source: Brickz.my*The data covers the following areas: Taman Melawati, Desa Melawati and Persiaran Bukit Melawati

TYPE NUMBER OF TRANSACTIONS SIZE SQ FT PRICE PER SQ FT SELLING PRICE

four-lane to a six-lane dual car-riageway.

“Taman Melawati has matured and has seen growth due to its strategic location and excel-lent connectivity. It is easily con-nected via a network of highways which include the Ampang-KL Elevated Highway (Akleh), Duta-Ulu Kelang Expressway (DUKE), MRR2 and Karak Expressway,” states Quek.

He believes the completion of

the proposed Sungai Besi-Ulu Kelang Expressway (SUKE) will further enhance accessibility and convenience.

“As an alternative to driving, two LRT (light rail transit) stations (Wangsa Maju and Sri Rampai) are a mere five-minute drive away for hassle-free trips into the city,” he adds.

The improvement of roads and highways combined with rising costs and scarce availabil-ity of land drove developers to the fringe of the city, and Taman Melawati became an ideal spot due to its proximity to KL.

Another well-known com-pany that is also stamping its mark in the area is Sunway

SURROUNDED by nature, Taman Melawati houses one of the entrances to Bukit Tabur, a popular hiking destina-tion also known as Bukit Hangus which rises 396m and

boasts a scenic view of the Klang Gates Dam. Despite the bad press it has received involving lost and

injured hikers, many continue to visit the hill which is often crowded on weekends with both amateur and experienced climb-ers attempting to conquer its challenging and dangerous trails.

Split into the east and west trails, the hill is said to require about three to four hours of hiking to reach its peak, depending on the fitness level of the hiker.

Bukit Tabur is also part of the world’s oldest and longest quartz ridge – the Klang Gates Quartz Ridge – which is unusual because of its size measuring 200m in width and 22km in length. Additionally, the presence of four different types of quartz for-mation also makes it one of a kind.

Despite this, the quartz ridge has little conservation and has faced many threats brought on by development, with the latest being the proposed East Klang Valley Expressway which was ini-tially planned to cut through the geological formation.

According to environmental organisation WWF-Malaysia, its proximity to Kuala Lumpur city centre coupled with increasing demand to house the city’s population has also rendered the foothills of the ridge vulnerable to development pressures.

Apart from Bukit Tabur and the Klang Gates Quartz Ridge, Taman Melawati is also home to the entrance of the Klang Gates Dam which was the first dam built in the country for water supply.

Completed in 1958, the dam is also known as the Bukit Tabur Dam. With a capacity of 25,104 million litres, it acts as a major source of drinking water for residents in the Klang Valley.

Natural advantage

SOURCE: RAINE AND HORNE INTERNATIONAL ZAKI AND PARTNERS SDN BHD