Life in a half-done township

Lembah Beringin was touted to be the next Petaling Jaya in the 1990s, but has since faded away from public memory.

THE story of the Lembah Beringin township which earned the reputation of being “one of the worst failed developments in Selangor” is far from over.

It was touted as an up-and-coming satellite township amid the economic boom of the 1990s, with a mix of residential and commercial properties.

There was talk of projects like learning institutions and hospitals, being built near the development in Hulu Selangor that some touted it as “the next Petaling Jaya”.

Those aspirations, however, were not to be, as the impact of the 1997 financial crisis took its toll on the development when it was less than two years from completion.

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Compounded by the lack of infrastructure and retail businesses in the area, the project halted in 1998, sealing the fate of the township.

The developer Lembah Beringin Sdn Bhd subsequently went into receivership and was eventually liquidated in 2006.

At that point, some 1,300 units were completed, while another 1,000-odd were abandoned which left more than 600 buyers high and dry, with no recourse to date.

Attempts to revive Lembah Beringin were made over the past 20 years, but little progress was made.

The development is commonly depicted as just an abandoned ghost town.

However, completed sections look like a proper township.

About 200 units are occupied, mostly by retirees and their families as well as those who work nearby. Some are used as weekend homes.

Only a residential college and three eateries doubling as sundry shops are open for business, while a homestay make up the rest of the local economy. There is also a tahfiz at the location.

The township’s once crowning attraction – Lembah Beringin Golf Club – has also ceased operations as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Unhappy residents

Lembah Beringin Residents Association chairman Mohd Adlum Mohd Radzi, who moved into the township in 1997, said residents’ hopes of better living conditions had only been met with frustration.

Less than 300 residents, he said, currently lived in the township (not including the 500 in Kolej Yayasan UEM) but there had been new residents moving in since the pandemic.

“The number of residents is slowly growing but it is still a small number, which does not bode well for the township.

“We don’t have facilities and don’t get the same attention for services as other townships, but we still pay one of the highest assessment taxes in Hulu Selangor,” said Adlum, claiming that this was because of the small population.

Beyond the abandoned buildings and poor road conditions, he said lamp posts vandalised by monkeys remained unrepaired while abandoned cars had been left by the roads for years.

Even in the more affluent part of Lembah Beringin, an abandoned car could be seen not far from a playground. The amenity too was in deplorable condition.

“We feel betrayed and neglected after all these years,” said Adlum, referring to the state of the township.

“To date, we only have one school in the community. Besides water and electricity, we have very little else.

“Some of us are fed up and feeling hopeless as we don’t have the power to change things,” he said.

“There are some who are worse off, like estate workers who have been promised new homes and those who took loans and have nothing to show for it.

“It is all up to the landowners and the authorities to come up with a solution to fix the township, but we have to ask, how long will we have to wait?”

A resident, who identified herself only as Setra, has been renting a house in Lembah Beringin for over 10 years since moving from Seremban and currently works at a nearby college. She lives with her mother, husband, daughter and brother-in-law.

They are the only family living in that section of the housing estate, surrounded by 50 empty houses and no street lights.

While she did not enjoy living far from others, she said her husband liked living there.

“I want to buy a house in Lembah Beringin in the future, but would prefer to stay in a more populated area,” she said, hoping more people would move in.

“This place could be nice if the authorities make an effort to maintain it,” said Setra.

Council contractors, she said, did minimal maintenance like cutting the grass and collecting rubbish a few times a week in the more populated areas.

“But where we live, they only come once a week and have not cleaned our roads and drains for months,” she said.

Because they live so remotely, Setra and her family have to stock up supplies for at least two weeks.

“I have to go to Rawang about 40km away for my shopping and about 15km to Kerling for petrol.

“Being on a motorcycle makes it difficult to get enough supplies for long periods, especially with the bad condition of surrounding roads,” she added.

Differing views

Despite all these problems, a future resident of Lembah Beringin, Muhammad Satria Budiman is quite content with the idea of living there.

“Compared to Gombak where I grew up and its hectic environment, I really like the slower pace and seclusion here,” he said.

He said he fell in love with Lembah Beringin in 2016 when he took a detour on his way to Tanjung Malim, Perak, where he has businesses.

“When I first visited the place, I was excited feeling the serenity and closeness to nature,” he said.

He spent RM20,000 on the house renovations including some repairs that he did himself.

Muhammad Satria plans to live in the township with his wife and four children for the next five years.

“I believe the environment affects society. I hope being close to nature and the slower pace of life will have a positive effect on my family.

“One of the key things to living here is being well prepared in terms of shopping and healthcare,” he said.

He believed that with the revival of Hulu Bernam and Bukit Beruntung, it was possible for Lembah Beringin’s situation to improve.

“We are in the middle of both places. Things are slowly improving. When I first saw this place seven years ago, it looked a lot more ‘abandoned’.

“I am not against development but I would prefer Lembah Beringin to remain this way. In any case, it is a win-win for me,” added Muhammad Satria.

Another resident, who wanted to remain anonymous, said she was also drawn to nature and moved out of Kuala Lumpur more than 10 years ago.

“The ecology here is good, we get pristine air and we get to live among wildlife.

“We get to see eagles, snakes, monkeys and unique birds that cannot be found in the city.”

The former bank employee said she always wanted to be away from the hustle and bustle of the city, but was held back because of her children’s studies then.

“It is peaceful here, which is the best part about Lembah Beringin.

“I do not mind seeing some businesses open here but I don’t wish to see development in the area,” she said.

Working on the futureAfter years of litigation following the liquidation of Lembah Beringin Sdn Bhd, the unsold land and properties were finally sold to a private holding company in 2020.

When contacted, Kuala Kubu Baru assemblyman Lee Kee Hiong said the long-drawn court case to decide on the new landowner had been settled at the Federal Court.

She is sympathetic towards Lembah Beringin residents and those who bought houses and have not received their properties.

“There is unfortunately no special procedure where the government can wipe the slate clean. They have to accept the fact that things are like this because the developer was liquidated.

“The government has to follow the procedures laid out by the law. Our hands are tied because parts of the land now belong to private companies and their planned solutions are beyond the limits of what we can do.

“Now that the case is over, we as authorities will do our part to ensure the new landowners do not face delays in getting things in order while following the required procedures,” Lee added.

When contacted, a spokesperson for the company, which bought over 567ha of land in the township, said long-term plans had been drawn up for Lembah Beringin, but “many issues have to be resolved before the plans could be implemented.”

“We see the potential for Lembah Beringin to become a proper township and we intend to preserve the serenity of the area, which is an important asset in the long term.

“For now, our priority is on laying the foundation before work is actually done, like (getting approval for) rezoning applications which have been submitted to the authorities as well as sorting out the master land titles and subdivisions.

“While the 567ha also include abandoned units built by the previous developer, we will move towards developing the available empty land first.

“Some of our plans include rejuvenation of the Lembah Beringin Golf Course that is in need of repairs besides future ecotourism projects as well as building commercial areas and learning institutions.”

The spokesperson said that most of the land acquired had originally been marked for agricultural and residential use.

“All these plans will have their own challenges and many parties associated with them, which will also take time to resolve.

“Realistically, we are looking at 20 years in the future to modernise the township,” the spokesperson added.

Hulu Selangor Municipal Council, the local authority for Lembah Beringin, could not be contacted for comments on residents’ complaints as well as the development plans for the area.