Damansara Damai

By TAN KARR WEI

THE Public Works Department (JKR) has to obtain a planning approval from the Petaling Jaya City Council for the shelter complex being built in Damansara Damai.

The MBPJ organised a meeting between the JKR and Armanee Condominium residents at the MBPJ headquarters in Jalan Yong Shook Lin to clear the air about the ongoing project following complaints by residents.

The contractors for the 2.4ha project had initially defied two stop-work orders issued by the council in March and May.

Councillor Robert Tan, who chaired the meeting, advised the two parties to voice their concerns and sort out differences before the matter was brought to the One-Stop-Centre (OSC) committee meeting on June 10.

According to a JKR architect, who declined to be named, the JKR project involved building a shelter complex for the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry with hostel blocks, staff quarters and an administration block.

Armanee Condominium Residents Association chairman Sebastian Oh said the heavy vehicles plying the residential roads posed a danger to residents in the area.

Fellow resident Aili Hashim said they were not opposing the project but the heavy vehicles had left their roads in a deplorable state and that lorries moved in and out as early as 7am and as late as 10pm.

Oh said noise pollution was also a problem as construction work went on until late at night and even on weekends.

The JKR architect denied the claims of residents, saying that the contractors did not work past 5pm and that there were several other construction projects going on in that area.

“We also usually submit building plans for all our projects but, for this one, we were told by the council that we did not need a planning approval,” she said.

JKR Petaling district engineer Abdul Latif Moktar said he had to approve any work done after 5pm and he had not done so for this project but residents insisted that they had proof.

Another matter discussed was the possibility of opening a road through the project that would connect Damansara Damai to Bandar Sri Damansara.

A Women, Family and Community Development Ministry representative said they could consider surrendering the land needed for the road if MBPJ would bear the cost of building it.
Councillor Chan Chee Kong said the stop-work order would only be lifted once the development order has been issued.