THE skyline of Ipoh is changing rapidly.
About a decade ago, high-rise buildings were not a common sight but many of these tall structures would soon dominate the city’s skyline, dwarfing the shophouses in the city.
Mixed development projects like The Majestic, The Octagon and Tin City in Falim have multi-storey buildings planned and they are expected to be completed next year onwards.
At present, one of the tallest structures in Ipoh is The Haven Lakeside Residences, which is located on the fringes of the city centre in Tambun. The Haven has three towers with each block having 26 storeys.
Real Estate and Housing Developers Association Malaysia (Rehda) Perak branch chairman Tony Khoo Boon Chuan said he believes that there would be more high-rises in the future in Ipoh.
“Land in the city centre is getting scarce and expensive.
“Developers will most likely maximise land use and build high-rises,” he said.
“With more people migrating to the city, there’s no doubt the higher number of people will also cause traffic congestion.
“The city council needs to find a solution for this,” he added.
Khoo said the many upcoming high-rise residential projects in the city caters to people looking for security features and convenience.
“Homeowners might look at the security aspect when looking for homes and these high-rise residential projects are a gated and guarded community.
“Some look for homes close to their workplace,” Khoo said, adding that the lifestyle of the people in the city was changing alongside the rapid development of Ipoh.
“Being in the city centre is also convenient, especially if the buyer is a retiree,” he said.
“Some would prefer landed properties but most of these are in the outskirts of Ipoh like in Tambun, Meru and Simpang Pulai and travelling to work in the city could take between 20 and 30 minutes,” he added.
Since the One-Stop Centre (OSC) at the Ipoh City Council headquarters in 2007 was set up, it has received 20,169 applications for commercial and housing development projects.
In 2014, there have been 2,808 proposals while the most proposals received was in 2012 with 4,445 applications.
From the more than 20,000 applications, 1,036 were commercial projects.
About 406 commercial projects have been completed, effectively changing the skyline of Ipoh city.
Among the projects was two Mydin hypermarkets, AEON shopping complex in Station 18, Menglembu Golden Triangle, Tower Regency Hotel, Kinta Riverfront Hotel and The Banjaran Hotspring Retreat Ipoh.
Other projects that are still being constructed included the Ipoh Convention Centre, AEON Big in Falim, Ampang Centre Point, Movie Animation Park Studios in Meru Raya and the Ipoh Shoe City in Pengkalan.
A retiree who only wants to be known as Peter said Ipoh has come a long way in terms of its development.
“Could I have imagined Ipoh to be filled with high-rises about two decades ago? No.
“There were times when it seemed the development in Ipoh had stagnated,” he said.
“But I think Ipoh has done well in developing commercial and housing properties,” he added.
Born and bred in Ipoh, Peter, who’s in his late 60s, said he believes that Ipoh would continue to develop rapidly.
“There’s just so much potential here in Ipoh.
“All it needs is good management by the city council or the state government,” he said.
Graphic designer Ethan Tan, 34, who works in Kuala Lumpur, said the city looks different each time he returns home to Ipoh.
Tan said there were lots of construction works going on.
“Apart from the construction works, I am not seeing any kind of real business development.
“It’s not really a business hub. The industries seems to be dying,” he said.
“Ipoh seems to have lost its identity,” he added.
Tan said tourism seems to be thriving with its popular local fare still drawing visitors.
“Ipoh used to be known as a clean city with good food but now, the food doesn’t taste as good as before.
“Tourist spots are also not well maintained and not well promoted,” he said.
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