Why ... Can't We Keep It Neat And Tidy

Neat and pleasant....

Along Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah before the Jusco Kinta City traffic light a contractor is trimming the hedge in the middle of the road. This is done regularly.

Overgrown ...

and unsightly 

Over at Old Town along the Kinta Riverbank parallel to Jalan Bijeh Timah the grass is overgrown and has covered the lovely walkway that lines the riverbank.

Is this an oversight by MBI as it is hidden and slightly away from the core area of Concubine Lane?  

What it should be ...the walkway along the riverbank

Why do some areas receive attention and others in core areas do not, why ah?

JAG

We Object – Tourism Stakeholders Of Old Town Ipoh

YB Tan Kar Hing receiving the memorandum from Dr Ko. With them are stakeholders (l-r) Kenneth Lee, Lim Yi Wen and Puan Sri Sandra Lee

Tourism stakeholders today sent a memorandum to the Menteri Besar Ahmad Faisal Azumu objecting to Change of Plot Ratio and Building Height Restriction.

The protest memorandum was delivered by Kepayang assemblyman Dr Ko Chung Sen to State Tourism Committee Chairman Tan Kar Hing, who received it on behalf of the mentri besar.

The area in question is currently an empty car park but previously was located the Sun Cinema. It is bordered by Jalan Sultan Idris Shah, Kinta River and immediately behind 22 Hale Street Heritage Gallery on Jalan Tun Sambanthan.

Dr Ko on the proposed plot for amendment

Good attendance of stakeholders and concerned parties

The plot is located within the core zone has been gazetted by the Majlis Bandaraya Ipoh as the Heritage City of Tin 2020. Buildings in the zone are restricted to five floors and a plot ratio of 1:3.5.

The developer who owns the land has applied to amend the plot ratio to 1:6.0 and building height to 14 stories and plans to erect a 14 storey hotel.

The stakeholders contend that should the amendment be approved it will set a precedent for the construction of more buildings that exceed the 5 storey height limit  within the Core Zone.

JAG

Lahat Town - An Glimpse Of A Tin Mining Town.

Lahat Market

This is the Lahat Market, well in 2008 when it was still around. The Kinta Valley was rich and supported a multitude of people, migrants no doubt and also the local population.

Towns like Lahat grew due to the economy just as did Papan, Tronoh and even Menglembu.  Did each town have a predetermined layout such as Police Station, Post Office,  the town Market to one side  and around it the town like in Menglembu. 

Lest we forget in pre-war days there was a railway that ran from Ipoh to Tronoh before it was all carted away by the Japs for their infamous Death Railway.

Wouldn't it have been nice that had we preserved Lahat for its Cultural Heritage, part of the Kinta Valley's Tin Mining Heritage and a microcosm of the many Mining Towns?

Just take a look at the layout .....

the Police Station ..... 

good paint, everything spick and span... 

and the Post Office next door .....

well then it had shifted to Menglembu just over 2Km before Lahat....

the Police Station, Post Office then the town were on the same street

still on the same street was the Assembly Hall and 

...... the Play Ground, a full sized basketball court....Looks quaint almost like in the comic book.

a block away was this town market

possibly where they sold vegetable produce from the nearby farms

the flow was quite quaint ......

part of the market area .... 

and then back into the town ......

at the time the family that lived here who .....

very graciously allowed me to photograph their home. It was lovely house, very neat and would have been considered grand .... the tiles was a give away

in 2008 this was very well maintained ....

and even the kitchen .... well everything neat and in its place... just like the town.

This year, 2018 i went back one evening and this was what greeted me.

the Police Station was still neat well maintained...

the Post Office top suffered the fate of the elements ..

the nice family home looked fine ... 

the Assembly Hall now had a signboard calling it the 'Dewan Orang Ramai' and belonged to MBI

The basket ball court was still there but the grass needed a trim .. however a disappointing sight was the .....

MARKET ....It had been demolished and in its place was this 'enclosure' with a pink sign that said 'LAHAT' 

how disappointing .... a sad day indeed

...like I said ...very disappointing but .....

that is progress. The town has now been boxed in.... made way for development of this .... 'Waterfront City@ Lahat Mines' development ....

a huge development stretching around the Lake that was once the Lahat Mine 

Lahat looked like a 'Resettlement Village' once again. My dream of Lahat showcasing a Mining Town in the Kinta Valley disappeared with a Puff.

The End    

Public Announcement. Do We Want To Preserve The Heritage Of Old Town

The X-site was the location of Sun Cinema previously.

A plan to convert 1) the plot ratio from 1:3.5 to 1:6 and 2) the height limit from 5 storeys to 14 storeys in Old Town where the Sun Cinema once stood.

Note: This plot is located within the heritage Core Zone with a gazetted height limit of 5 storeys in the Rancangan Kawasan Khas (RKK) by MBI. New buildings should correspond and be sensitive to the existing heritage buildings in terms of height, size, and design And preserve and promote Ipoh’s identity as a heritage city built by tin.

Agree or Disagree.

_____________

Dear Old Town residents & friends,

In April 2018, Majlis Bandaraya Ipoh (MBI) put up a signage inviting the public to voice their objections of the conversion of the plot ratio and height restrictions of a plot of land in Old Town where the Sun Cinema once stood. The plans are to convert the plot ratio from 1:3.5 to 1:6 and the height limit from 5 storeys to 14 storeys. We welcome MBI’s efforts in involving the public in this process.

The amendment is to enable the developer, PK Lee Sdn. Bhd. to build a 14-storey hotel with an underground floor on the plot. We, together with several concerned parties, attended the hearing, but would also like to further highlight this issue to the public.

This plot is located within the heritage Core Zone with a gazetted height limit of 5 storeys in the Rancangan Kawasan Khas (RKK) by MBI. We are concerned regarding the following matters:

1.Ipoh Old Town is heavily promoted as a heritage and tourism spot, and has attracted tourists from around the globe due to its history. Any development must not change the fabric/landscape of the area, but must take Old Town's heritage into account. New buildings should correspond and be sensitive to the existing heritage buildings in terms of height, size, and design.

2.The plot is bordered by the Kinta River and heritage buildings that are over 100-years-old. Most of the heritage buildings were built without foundations. This amendment will enable the construction of the hotel or any high-rise building which will cause serious damage to the surrounding heritage buildings.

3.If the amendment is approved, it sets a precedent for the construction of more buildings that exceed the 5 storey height limit within the Core Zone in direct contravention to the guidelines set in the RKK. The RKK then becomes a document that bears no weight on any further development in the gazetted areas.

It is our hope that due consideration is given to the abovementioned matters to preserve and promote Ipoh’s identity as a heritage city built by tin.

Wow …Awesome Perak Facts

Perak has 3 of the most significant parks in Peninsula Malaysia 

• Royal Belum with 10 species of Hornbills
• Kinta Nature Park with over 2,000 nesting herons and egrets
• Pulau Sembilan with bioluminescent beach and rare seahorses.

 And then some more 

• Like the prehistoric Perak Man in Lenggong   
• The recently announced Kinta Geopark

Awesome Perak …. We have it all,

Can we preserve it for our future generations?

‘Kopi – O” A TAPIR & Perak Tourism’s New MASCOT

Hi there. I am Kopi-O, a Malaysian Tapir.

This is my creator Wan Sue Khay, 21, from Ipoh Mali and a graphic designer.

Ms Wan designed me cause I am a Malayan Tapir, an endangered species and she wanted to create awareness and get people to appreciate the animal that I am.

She called me Kopi-0 because of my colour and it being synonymous with Ipoh’s famous coffee.

I am also known as a MASCOT and a sort of AMBASSADOR for the state government’s Perak Tourism sector where I will promote the state within and outside the country.

 

Mr Tan, Ms Wan and my portrait on the wall of Gua Tambun

Did you know that I am part of a Pre-historic drawing at Gua Tambun, Gunung Panjang in Tambun dating some thousand years ago …… and the reason I was chosen as a mascot.

Awesome aren’t I … imagine I have been around and actually have a portrait in stone.

I want to thank Ms Wan and Mr Tan for making me FAMOUS.

Kopi-O

Perak Sultan's birthday run ...2018

Kuala Kangsar, Nov 11 — Sultan Nazrin Shah was among 7,000 people who participated in the Sultan of Perak Birthday Run at Dataran Pavillion here today.

The fun run started at 6.45am with 4 four categories -15 km, 10km, 7km and a 2.8km VVIP run for men and women.

Sultan Nazrin was joined by his consort Raja Permaisuri Perak Tuanku Zara Salim and children Raja Datuk Seri Azlan Muzzaffar Shah and Raja Nazira Safya.