6,000 sign petition to suspend 51-storey development in Mont’Kiara

Kuala Lumpur (Jan 7): About 6,000 residents in Mont’Kiara have signed a petition to urge Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) to suspend the development order of a 51-storey commercial building in their neighbourhood.

Mont Kiara Community Society chairman Carol Lee said the residents have also asked DBKL to review the basis of its approval, reported The Star today.

“We want to know the details in the development order, traffic impact assessment, environmental impact assessment and geotechnical feasibility report.

“We also want to know the reasons behind the change of land use from religious institution to commercial, and increase in density and plot ratio,” said Lee.

Resident of a nearby condominium, Rita Dutta said the construction work sometimes extends into the wee hours.

“The workers have felled some trees and bored at least one hole, which is now covered. The tiles on the pavement along the perimeters of the site are damaged too.

“We are very worried about possible damage to the surrounding buildings,” she told the daily, adding that the developer scheduled a dilapidation study this month.

An international learning centre general manager, Steven Shorthose, said he was worried about the noise pollution and safety, as his centre is next to the project.

Lee pointed out that speedier action by DBKL would reduce the cost of compensation.

“To our knowledge, there is a clause in the Federal Territory Planning Act 1982 that provides reimbursement to the developer, so it is crucial that the developer does not incur further expenses, to reduce the amount of potential reimbursement,” Lee explained, adding that their contacts in the property development industry estimate the present cost to be about RM1 million.

DBKL advisory board member and lawyer Sankara Narayanan Nair said: “The affected parties have a right to ask the mayor to check if there are any breaches of the Acts or rules and regulations.

“If there are, the mayor is obliged to impose a temporary stay order.

“It is unfair to tell the people to go to court as it will involve prohibitive legal costs, when the action is within the powers of the mayor.

“If the concerned parties are not happy with the outcome, they can file a judicial review,” he said.

A source said Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Nor Hisham Ahmad Dahlan was looking into the matter.