Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ ) councillors are correct to put on hold and review the proposed amendments to RTPJ1 and RTPJ2
We the undersigned members of Parliament and state assemblypersons whose constituencies include areas within the city of Petaling Jaya (PJ) support and endorse the decision of councilors of MBPJ taken by majority vote at their special meeting yesterday to put on hold the proposed amendments to the Petaling Jaya local plans RTPJ1 and RTPJ2 pending a full review by MBPJ .
The review will be done in consultation with the state government and taking into account the feedback given so far in the publicity conducted so far under section 13 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1976.
Some of the proposed amendments have turned out to be very controversial to say the least.
We were surprised to see proposals to remove wholesale all the existing detailed guidelines for planning control from both RTPJ1 and 2. This is wholly unacceptable.
These detailed planning control conditions have been worked out over the years with detailed input from the public and are provide stability to town planning in Petaling Jaya.
If MBPJ is of the view that some of these planning control guidelines need improvement, then specific improvements can be presented for public input, not a wholesale removal as currently suggested.
The proposals to increase maximum plot ratios from four to six in seven "transit-oriented development" areas around MRT and LRT stations needs rethinking given the impact on current traffic conditions, public amenities and quality of life in PJ.
The current conditions in the proposals appear inadequate to ensure that such high-density developments will be fully integrated into the mass transit stations and not create further burdens and deterioration to the living environment in PJ.
The proposal to run the Damansara-Shah Alam Highway (Dash) through densely populated housing and commercial areas in Mutiara Damansara and Damansara Perdana has evoked over a thousand written objections.
The alignment of this proposed highway through those areas needs review.
We note that the entire Rubber Research Insitute (RRI) land in PJ consisting of about 1600 acres is now being proposed as "mixed development" with no detailed lay-outs whatsoever.
This is simply not acceptable in the formulation of a local plan where the public expect to see the local planning authority’s detailed proposals on land use, plot ratios, densities, public amenities etc in order to give their views.
We are of the view that the entire RRI proposal should be removed and a special area plan prepared for the RRI land under section 16B of the Act as was done previously for the section 13 part of PJ.
The plan for RRI should be a separate process in itself considering the huge size of land to be developed with its corresponding impacts.
We note also that there is a proposal to convert the land use of the current Filem Negara site in section 12 (which is federal government land) from public institutional use to commercial at a possible plot ratio of six.
Even if the federal government decides to move Filem Negara to another site, that plot should be returned to the state government or the local authority for continued public use.
Useful public amenities can be built on that land rather than develop it as another high density commercial site.
We therefore agree that the proposed amendments be revoked.
As proposed by the MBPJ councillors, a special committee should be set up to review all the proposals taking into account all the public feedback and present them again taking into account the public interest as the prime consideration.
This letter is signed by MPs Hee Loy Sian (PKR-Petaling Jaya Selatan) , Tony Pua (DAP-Petaling Jaya Utara ), Sivarasa Rasiah (PKR-Subang), Wong Chen (PKR-Kelana Jaya), and Selangor asemblypersons Rajiv Rishyakaran (DAP-Bukit Gasing), Haniza Talha (PKR-Taman Medan), Lau Weng San (DAP-Kampung Tunku ), Yeo Bee Yin (DAP-Damansara Utama ), Elizabe th Wong (PKR-Bukit Lanjan) and Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad (PKR-Seri Setia).
