GEORGE TOWN: Any proposal to build next to a heritage landmark will not begin without the consent of the National Heritage Department, says the Penang Island City Council (MBPP).
MBPP building director Rizuwan Salleh (pic) said although the council's technical planning committee had given approval for a construction plan, it does not mean work will begin.
Rizuwan was commenting on a proposed five-storey building behind the 122-year-old Campbell Street market which has received backlash from heritage activists.
According to a report by an online portal on Wednesday (April 5), the market redevelopment includes shophouses, parking lots and studio rooms to be built by the council and records show that the approval was given by the council in 22 days.
George Town Heritage Action's Mark Lay has slammed the proposed development saying the back portion of the market was an extension built in the mid-1900s, saying it was unnecessary to have a five-storey building there.
The Campbell Street market was built in 1901 on the site of a Malay cemetery and at the centre of the market lies the tomb of Sheikh Mustafa Wali of Afghanistan.
The site is a Category 1 listed heritage and was previously known as the Carnarvon Street market.
