USJ folks battle-ready against development of TM land
Residents of USJ 6 Subang Jaya are up in arms against a proposed nine-storey commercial building in their neighbourhood.
The building is to be built on 1.5 acre plot of land designated as public utility land for telecommunication purposes.
Having completed the telecom exchange, TM now intends to use the remaining land to put up a nine-storey commercial building in a joint venture development with developer Pujangga Budiman.
Residents of USJ 6 Subang Jaya are up in arms against a proposed nine-storey commercial building in their neighbourhood.
The building is to be built on 1.5 acre plot of land designated as public utility land for telecommunication purposes.
Having completed the telecom exchange, TM now intends to use the remaining land to put up a nine-storey commercial building in a joint venture development with developer Pujangga Budiman.
TM has received approval from the state planning committee in November 2008, leaving residents mystified and angry as to how the authorities can allow telecom reserve to be used for commercial purposes.
"We can't understand why the authorities have approved such a building on land designated for public utilities.
"It will undoubtedly add more congestion, dust and noise, besides having to live meters away from a nine-storey building," says spokesperson of the effected residents Philip Soong.
The proposed building is located directly opposite the Taipan commercial centre, the most congested area in USJ Subang Jaya. The area is plagued with traffic jams, with cars often parked in surrounding residential areas.
Since 2005, TM has been trying to profit from the land left over after the building of the telecom exchange. On two occasions, MPSJ rejected applications to sub-divide the land, stating that it should remain as land for public utilities reserved for telecommunication use.
However, in its recent application, the land title has apparently been designated "commercial". There is conflicting reports on whether the land has always been designated as commercial or whether it was "converted" to commercial in recent times.
It is clear that in the original development plan for USJ the land was reserved for a telecom exchange.
In the more recent Draft Local Structure Plan, the land has been classified as "empty land, recreational use" ( Tanah Lapang dan Rekreasi )
A dangerous precedent
Former state assemblyperson Lee Hwa Beng concurred that the land has always been a telecom reserve.
"I had recommended a rejection to the application at MPSJ level with no requirement for public hearing or reference to the state government. I also referred to the residents nearby on this land and they all disagreed to any conversion to commercial or otherwise.
"I am now perplexed why there is a proposal again to develop the land," he said in a recent letter to the media.
If TM succeeds in converting the land it owns designated for public utilities into commercial property, residents across the country may see commercial buildings popping up in front of their homes.
To date this has not been possible. A similar application by TNB to build a commercial building on its land in Petaling Jaya was rejected.
Lawyer and town planning expert Derek Fernandez questioned how TM managed to get a title designating the land commercial.
"There is no basis for the issuance of a title for the land ... marking it for commercial use.
"Why would any developer provide precious commercial land to TM at much discounted prices, only for TM to later profit from the land? The very fact that the local authority turned down previous planning approvals to use the land for a commercial purpose confirms this," Fernandez said.
Fernandez, who is also a municipal councillor for Petaling Jaya, said that the Selangor government should investigate the matter.
"How this title came to be issued should be investigated by the state and a panel of inquiry formed as this is not an isolated case in Selangor," he added.
"If TM does not want to use the land, it must be surrendered to the state which can use the land for other public purposes," he stressed.
MB, exco wrongly advised
Subang Jaya state assemblyperson Hannah Yeoh has been working with the residents to stop the building going ahead.
"The building cannot be allowed. It sets a dangerous precedent for other utility lands to be developed into commercial buildings," she said.
Yeoh has been in touch with the state authorities and has called on them to act quickly.
"The state planning committee must revoke the approval given by them because they were wrongly advised - the history of the matter was not provided to the MB and exco members sitting in that committee," added Yeoh.
The issue has currently been referred to the state appeals board for arbitration, with a hearing which was supposed to take place on May 28, postponed to give residents more time to look into the planning and traffic reports which they just received last week.
"We have lodged our complaint against the matter since last year. The state authorities have also been alerted about the irregularities surrounding the land title.
"Yet, there seems to be no urgency by the state planning committee to rectify their mistake, instead putting the onus on the residents to fight the matter.
"What happened to Pakatan Rakyat's pledge to put the people first?" asked a disappointed resident.
