MORE than 100 residents, including some of Bukit Damansara’s most prominent figures, turned out in force to protest the proposed redevelopment of Wisma Damansara in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday (Oct 4) morning.
Among those present were former youth and sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin, Capital A Bhd chief executive officer Tan Sri Tony Fernandes, Asean Business Advisory Council chairman Tan Sri Nazir Razak and singer Datuk Sheila Majid, among others.
They gathered at the intersection of Jalan Semantan 2, near the iconic complex, carrying placards and banners.
About 50 police, including Rela officers were on hand to monitor the protest, which remained calm and went smoothly.
“I heard it’s going to be two 60-storey towers; it has to be something reasonable.
“Some people want the building repurposed, including Badan Warisan, because it’s a classic example of Brutalist architecture. Even if we’re rebuilding, make it reasonable. We’re hoping DBKL will scale it down,” said Khairy.
Fernandes, a long-time resident, said, “I want to see a scaled-down project. I’ve lived in Damansara most of my life, and the traffic here is already terrible. We know no one is going to stop the development, but multi-storey towers are just too much.
Bukit Damansara House Owners Association president Datuk Ahmad Sufian Abdul Majid said owners should look at repurposing the building.
“Why must everything go high? Right now, all the way from Pavilion it’s going to be high-rise after high-rise. Where will it stop? Why not just repurpose the building like The Five @ KPD, that’s a good example they should follow,’’ Ahmad Sufian said.
Save Kuala Lumpur (SKL) coalition group chairman Datuk M. Ali, who was there to show support, said: “We are here to voice our strong disappointment with the proposed redevelopment of Wisma Damansara. If this project is pushed through, it will overwhelm our roads, choke traffic and threaten the liveability that Damansara Heights is known for.”
StarMetro had previously reported on residents and stakeholders opposing plans to turn Wisma Damansara into a residential and commercial retail hub with multi-storey towers.
DBKL said the proposal is still being studied and that feedback gathered during the public consultation period, which ended on Aug 16, will be reviewed as part of the assessment process before any decision is made.
Of the 340 submissions received by DBKL, more than 300 objection letters filed on Aug 15 were against redeveloping Wisma Damansara into a residential and commercial retail hub.
The 16-storey Wisma Damansara, built in 1970 by Selangor Properties, was the first commercial office building in Damansara Heights but is now vacant.
