Nga: Urban Renewal Act targeted to be tabled next year

• “With limited land resources and considering areas that need to be protected and preserved, urbanisation must not just focus on urban renewal but infill development as well.”

PETALING JAYA (Sept 5): The Cabinet has decided that the Urban Renewal Act should be drawn up as soon as possible, with a target to have it tabled next year, says Nga Kor Ming.

The Local Government Development Minister said the Act is crucial to ensure systematic, well-planned and efficient urban renewal developments that will boost Malaysia’s economy, reported The Star today.

“This is one of the push factors that enables the redevelopment, rejuvenation and revitalisation of our cities,” he was reported saying on Tuesday (Sept 5).

The proposed legislation “would lead to better redevelopment planning for isolated, old and uneconomical areas and turn them into zones that can offer good quality of life to urban dwellers”, stated the daily.

Nga noted that Malaysia’s urban rate is expected to increase to 85% by 2040.

“This growth will create new challenges which require a more systematic approach to urban planning and management.

“With limited land resources and considering areas that need to be protected and preserved, urbanisation must not just focus on urban renewal but infill development as well,” he said.

A regulatory impact analysis will be done by the Town and Country Planning Department and Malaysia Productivity Corporation to study “the need for a dedicated Act for urban renewable initiatives in line with the practices of first-world countries”, the report said.

(Read also: The REAL deal: Urban redevelopment key to sustainable cities)

The minister acknowledged that the lack of an Act has stymied urban redevelopment efforts, as they are currently regulated by nine different laws, such as the National Land Code, Town and Country Planning Act, Contracts Act and Land Acquisition Act.

“As a prelude, we now have an urban renewal implementation guideline in place, to which local authorities, developers and other stakeholders can refer when planning for redevelopment or development,” Nga said during the launch of the guideline on Monday (Sept 4).

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