KUALA LUMPUR: Seputeh MP Teresa Kok, taking to Facebook, said that it was “crazy” to spend RM300 million on a new building for City Hall in Kuala Lumpur.
“This is crazy. Why do they need to spend so much money for a local council’s new building?” she asked in her posting. “Isn’t it better if the government uses the money to build more low-cost flats?”
City Hall staff are at the moment spread out among three buildings viz. Menara 1 and Menara 2, side by side along Jalan Raja Laut, and Menara 3, about 2km away along Jalan Raja Abdullah. Menara 2 would reportedly be demolished to make way for the RM300 million project.
Menara 2, according to recent media reports, was recently renovated at a cost of several million ringgit.
Kok, who is a DAP national Vice-Chairman, had earlier submitted a verbal question in Parliament on the construction details of the new building, and the benefits of building it when the economy could be better. She wanted to know the name of the building contractor and what will become of the existing City Hall buildings.
Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Mansor, in a written reply said that so far only RM1 million had been released for the building design. The proposed building, designed by Hijjas Kasturi Associates for a competition organised by City Hall, has four towers interconnected by bridges at various levels. The highest tower is 57 storeys.
“If implemented, the project is expected to be ready after 2020,” he added. “The project contractor and consultants have not been appointed so far as the proposed redevelopment was still in its infancy.”
The new building, according to him, would provide for a special space for a one-stop centre and automation facilities that would make the processing of applications, approvals and consultations easier.
“For this purpose, the departments involved will be centralized so DBKL can provide efficient service and ensure that its ‘World Bank Ranking’ will be maintained as one of the best.”
The tower, he continued, will also have facilities like a community centre, exhibition space, recreation space and a library. The building will be designed as a public space featuring also a commercial and business centre as well as function rooms for rent.
“It will also have a centralized management facility to cut down management and logistics costs, as well as save time,” he said.