|
| 763. |
Special Areas are those that need
special attention in terms of planning and development implementation.
These areas have generally fallen behind in development and are associated
with complex developmental problems, relative poverty, poor living
conditions and inadequate infrastructure. Three types of areas are
identified as Special Areas namely the Malay Reservation Areas (MRAs),
traditional kampungs and new villages. |
| 764. |
In its goal to create an efficient
and equitable city structure and to enhance the city living environment,
CHKL intends to bring these areas into the mainstream of development.
It is imperative to encourage and facilitate the development of these
areas so that they can help to achieve the vision of Kuala Lumpur
to be A World-Class City. |
| 16.2 |
Existing
situation and issue |
|
| 16.2.1 |
Malay
Reservation Areas |
| a) |
Background
and legal status |
| 765. |
The MRAs were created under the Malay
Reservation Enactment of 1913 and the Land Enactment of 1987. The
objective of the legislation was to ensure that the Malays would be
able to own land, especially in urban areas, and a provision of the
enactment is that an MRA may not, either through sale or lease, be
transferred to non-Malays. |
| 766. |
Table 16.1 Indicates the population,
land area and density of the six MRAs in the City. |
| 767. |
The MRA is a familiar but complex
subject that elicits considerable public interest, in particular the
potential for developing Kampong Bharu into a modern commercial area
because of its location within the City Centre. Although a few development
plans have been prepared for the MRAs, to date, little progress has
been achieved and the issue on slow development process of the MRAs
remains unresolved.
• Underdevelopment of Malay Reservation Areas and traditional
kampungs. |
| |
Table 16.1: Malay Reservation Areas - Area and Population,
2000 |
| 768. |
Legal restrictions imposed on property
and the land ownership are the major factors that have reduced the
financing potential and the marketability of these areas. Other constraints
include the lack of capacity of individual owners to develop their
properties and the absence of clear implementation programmes.
• Difficulty in initiating development in Malay Reservation Areas. |
| 769. |
The MRAs were originally conceived
and planned as traditional villages comprising individual dwelling
units with associated lands sufficient to provide agricultural smallholdings.
This explains the relatively small lot sizes in these areas. As the
City has grown, the MRAs which were originally located on the outskirts
of the City have become surrounded by urban development, none more
so than Kampong Bharu which is now completely within the City Centre.
Consequently, many of the original buildings and settlements are no
longer compatible with their surroundings. |
| |
Photo 16.1: ... a few attempts to prepare development plans
for the MRAs, to date, little has been achieved... |
| 770. |
While Kampong Bharu, Kampong Datok
Keramat and Selayang are well laid out with internal roads, utilities
and community facilities, Gombak, Segambut and Kampong Sungai Penchala
have retained their original agricultural sub-divisions and have consequently
developed in a haphazard manner. In term of land usage, the MRAs are
essentially residential although almost 40 percent of Segambut and
Kampong Sungai Penchala, mainly the hilly areas, are still undeveloped
or used for agricultural purposes. |
| 771. |
Kampong Bharu and Kampong Datok Keramat
are the most developed among the MRAs, followed by Gombak, Kampong
Sungai Penchala and Segambut. In the case of Selayang, owing to its
condition as ex-mining land, only a small portion has been developed.
Generally, the changes that have taken place in the MRAs over the
last 15 years have been minimal. |
| 772. |
Ad-hoc additions and alterations have
been carried out to existing buildings. To cater for the growth of
extended families, single dwellings have been converted to multiple
dwelling units. In addition dwellings have been converted to incorporate
shops, workshops and light industries which are incompatible with
the residential component. Buildings have been also exanded to occupy
the full extent of their sites leaving little or no room for setback
area. These haphazard developments have resulted in substandard living
conditions.
• Substandard living conditions due to adhoc individual development. |
| 773. |
A consequence of the haphazard development
of the MRAs has been to render the existing infrastructure obsolete
and inadequate. The provision of community facilities has also been
inadequate due to the shortage of available land.
• Substandard infrastructure nd inadequate community facilities. |
| 16.2.2 |
Traditional
kampungs |
|
| 774. |
The traditional kampungs experience
the same environmental, economic and sociological problems and face
the same difficulties in initiating development as the MRAs. |
| 775. |
However traditional kampungs are not
gazetted in the same way as the MRA and therefore, there are no restrictions
on property ownership. Table 16.2 indicates the 12 traditional kampungs
in the City. |
| |
Table 16.2: Traditional Kampungs - Area and Population, 2000
|
| a) |
Background
and legal status |
| 776. |
The new villages, which are predominantly
populated by Chinese, were created as a result of the forced resettlement
from rural areas of a section of the population by the British Colonial
government in the early 1950s in an effort to curtail linkages with
the banned Malayan Communist Party. There are four such settlements
in Kuala Lumpur as shown in Table 16.3. |
| |
Table 16.3: New Villages - Area and Population, 2000 |
| |
Photo 16.2: The traditional kampungs experience the same environmental,
economic and sociological problems and face the same difficulties
in initiating development as the MRAs. |
| 777. |
The new villages were created solely
for residential purposes and located outside of the City. The standard
plot size is 50' x 80', with some instances of smaller plots of 30'
x 80'. The areas are characterised by lack of development, poor housing
and inferior standards of infrastructure, utilities and facilities.
In the period 1992/93, land in the new villages was only issued with
Temporary Occupation Licenses (TOL). This led to uncertainty regarding
future prospects for the residents’ properties resulting in areas
of dilapidation and ad-hoc development. |
| 778. |
Land titles notably in mid-nineties,
have been issued with 99-year lease and replacement of the old dwellings
with more permanent construction is taking place. Nevertheless, the
new villages still suffer the consequences of hurried resettlement
based on the earlier military imperatives. Roads are narrow and in
some areas terrain conditions are virtually ignored in the street
pattern. There is also limited land available for new amenities. These
conditions make it difficult to correct many of the inadequacies in
the physical environment. |
| |
Photo 16.3: The rapid development surrounding the new villages
has put great pressure on them to develop in tandem. |
| |
• Underdevelopment of new villages. |
| 779. |
The rapid development surrounding
the new villages has put great pressure on them to develop in tandem.
However, when they were originally conceived and planned, insufficient
provision was allowed for economic activity, which has resulted in
illegal cottage industries being located in residential properties. |
| |
• Incompatible usage of land and
building. |
| 780. |
Illegal ad-hoc additions and alterations
carried out without adherence to planning or building regulations
have resulted in sub-standard housing conditions.
• Sub-standard housing conditions due to the illegal renovation
and extension of dwelling units. |
| 781. |
The growth in private vehicle ownership
has placed increasing demands on the road infrastructure which cannot
be met due to difficulties in carrying out road widening and other
improvements.
• Insufficient road capacity to cope with additional vehicular
traffic. |
| 782. |
Flooding in some areas is commonplace
due to deficiencies in the drainage systems including unlined drains.
• Frequent flooding due to inadequate drainage system. |
| 783. |
These areas were solely designed for
residential use without considering provision for utilities and community
facilities. As the new village populations have grown so has the need
for facilities such as markets, hawker centres, government clinics
and sports facilities.
• Inadequate utilities and community facilities |
| 784. |
In order to bring the MRAs, traditional
kampungs and new villages into the mainstream of the City’s development
so as to create an efficient and equitable city structure and an image
consistent with the vision of Kuala Lumpur as A World-Class City,
CHKL aims to:
• rationalise and optimise the use of land within the Malay Reservations
Areas, traditional kampungs and new villages; and
• promote Bumiputera participation in the City’s urban economy
through the development of the Malay Reservation
Areas and traditional kampungs. |
| 785. |
In order to enhance the city living
environment in the MRAs, traditional kampungs and new villages, CHKL
aims to:
• improve the quality of housing and housing environment;
• provide a clean and pleasant living environment supported by
efficient infrastructure, facilities and services;
and
• ensure they are provided with adequate high quality community
facilities. |
| a) |
Institutional
framework |
| 786. |
The difficulties in development process
faced by the Special Areas cannot be resolved by merely proposing
specific developments or attempting to resolve specific issues. These
development difficulties related to legal, physical and financial,
require effective coordination and promotion which need to be undertaken
by a dedicated body. |
| 787. |
This dedicated body is responsible
for the planning, development and management of Malay Reservation
Areas and traditional kampungs. This body shall coordinate public
and private sectors’ initiatives.
| Policy |
| SA 1: |
CHKL shall set up a dedicated
body to initiate and co-ordinate the planning, development and
management of Malay Reservation Areas and traditional kampungs. |
|
| 788. |
The creation of Development Corporations
involving landowners and residents of new villages, to carry out improvements
to infrastructure and facilities as well as to initiate and manage
new development, will be encouraged.
| Policy |
| SA 2: |
CHKL shall promote the setting
up of community corporations by appropriate groups, involving
landowners and residents, to develop the new villages. |
|
| 789. |
Development constraints are interlinked
and most specific issues cannot be resolved in isolation. For example,
the upgrading of infrastructure to improve living conditions is constrained
by the difficulty of enlarging utility reserves because of the small
lot sizes. It follows that the improvement of conditions in the MRAs,
traditional kampungs and new villages cannot be achieved by piecemeal
development but only through the implementation of comprehensive plans
for redevelopment. |
| 790. |
Comprehensive development plans setting
out the overall framework for development must be prepared. Of immediate
concern will be the improvement of living standards through the upgrading
of infrastructure and provision of community facilities.
| Policy |
| SA 3: |
CHKL shall implement comprehensive
development plans for Malay Reservation Areas, traditional kampungs
and new villages. |
| SA 4: |
CHKL shall implement measures
to accelerate development and upgrade living standards in Malay
Reservation Areas, traditional kampungs and new villages. |
|
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