The theme was “townships for the future.” It was in conjunction with Transformasi Nasional 2050 (TN50). According to Dato’ Sri Amrin Awaluddin, Sime Darby Property Group Managing Director, what Sime Darby Property wants to do is to maximise the full potential of green spaces, affordable and sustainable living, excellent connectivity, and a smart and safe city. The overall plan was an impressive one. In fact the scale of City of Elmina is 5,000 acre and the current estimated gross development value is RM27 billion. There are purpose-built cycling tracks which is 90km in length! After looking at the damage that a major flood could do to cities in Malaysia and around the world, it is worth nothing that The Elmina has a Central Park which will function as a dry park for everyone and transforming into a floodplain when there’s a potential flooding happening. It says that the whole 300-acre Elmina Central Park can help mitigate a 1,000-year flood. (What is 1,000-year flood definition? Referring to USGS.gov – “The term “1000-year flood” means that, statistically speaking, a flood of that magnitude (or greater) has a 1 in 1000 chance of occurring in any given year. In terms of probability, the 1000-year flood has a 0.1% chance of happening in any given year.” In brief, it means a super major flood. Please do read the press release for full details.
Reported by kopiandproperty.my’s junior reporter, MMY from attendance at the launch.
Press Release by Sime Darby Property.
From TN50 Aspirations to Realisation: Sime Darby Property Launches City Of Elmina – Townships for the Future
SHAH ALAM, 16 January 2018 – Sime Darby Property today launched its first initiative towards achieving Transformasi Nasional 2050 (TN50) through the sustainable development of the City of Elmina, a model township for the future. This is part of Sime Darby Property’s efforts to support the country’s vision of becoming a top 20 nation in economic development, social advancement and innovation by 2050.
This is in line with the aspirations collected during the TN50 Youth Initiative on sustainability, which includes greener and more sustainable developments, affordable housing and high quality living standards as well as the responsible stewardship of our forests and natural resources. Since January 2017, the TN50 Youth Initiative has reached out to more than 1.7 million Malaysian youths of all backgrounds through dialogues, workshops and online channels; collecting over 60,000 unique aspirations.
Minister of Youth & Sports YB Khairy Jamaluddin officiated the collaboration between Sime Darby Property and TN50 witnessed by YABhg. Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Malaysia’s Fifth Prime Minister and Advisor to the Board of Trustees of Tropical Rainforest Conservation and Research Centre Bhd (TRCRC), YABhg. Tun Jeanne Abdullah, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of TRCRC, YBhg. Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar, Chairman of Sime Darby Property, YBhg. Dato’ Lokman Hakim Ali, Secretary General of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, En. Johan Mahmood Merican Deputy Director General, Economic Planning Unit & Head, TN50 Special Unit, and YBhg. Dato’ Sri Amrin Awaluddin, Sime Darby Property Group Managing Director.
YB Khairy said, “We applaud the initiative by Sime Darby Property Berhad to participate in the TN50 with the theme “Townships for the Future”. Through various engagements and dialogues with Malaysian youths of diverse backgrounds, we recognise their aspirations for smart development, environmental protection, seamless connectivity and affordable housing. The City of Elmina fulfils these aspirations with distinction through its all-inclusive master plan that will inspire other sustainable and revolutionary developments for the future.”
In conjunction with Sime Darby Property’s partnership with TN50, the 36-acre Elmina Community Park located in Elmina West was named the “Elmina TN50 Community Park*”. YB Khairy also planted a time capsule containing aspirational messages written by event attendees, which will be opened in 2050.
Amrin said, “Our development projects in City of Elmina bear the hallmark of Sime Darby Property’s unique value proposition, as a leading developer in developing sustainable communities. The developments in City of Elmina are part of Sime Darby Property’s master plan to maximise the full potential of green spaces, affordable and sustainable living, excellent connectivity, and a smart and safe city which are in line with TN50’s vision for the future.”
“We are pleased to play a key role in supporting this long term initiative for the future of the nation and applaud the government and the Ministry of Youth and Sports in carrying out the TN50 efforts. Our sustainable and innovative developments in City of Elmina is testament to our efforts in offering a model township for the wellness and healthy lifestyle of future generations.”
City of Elmina is a 5,000-acre themed township development by Sime Darby Property with an estimated gross development value (GDV) of RM27 billion and includes the Denai Alam, Bukit Subang, Elmina East and Elmina West townships. Strategically located along the Guthrie Corridor Expressway and highly accessible via several major highways and main routes such as the NKVE, LATAR, NSE and the upcoming DASH highway, the township offers seamless inter-connectivity and accessibility. City of Elmina is also planned with public transport connectivity, with a proposed line extension from My Rapid Transit (MRT) Sungai Buloh depot and a proposed LRT extension from the Subang Jaya City Centre.
City of Elmina is the first township dedicated to wellness and liveability in Malaysia, planned and developed in line with specifications set out by Mercer’s Quality of Living Survey, an internationally recognised standard that measures liveability.
In addition to the 90 kilometres cycling and jogging track which is one of the longest tracks in the country, a key design feature within the well-planned and integrated City of Elmina is the designated 300-acre Elmina Central Park located at the most prime area within the development in Elmina West, for the public to enjoy the park and at the same time connect them to the existing forest reserve.
In total, there are five precinct parks within the Elmina Central Park – community park, forest park, cultural park, urban park, and sports park – with each of them promoting the township’s key pillars of wellness namely Community Wellness, Mind Wellness, Physical Wellness, Family Wellness and Environmental Wellness.
City of Elmina will also preserve endangered trees. Sime Darby Property, TRCRC, and the Hulu Selangor Forestry Department came together to identify and collect endangered, rare and threatened (ERT) plant species and plant them within our forest park. Residents and the general public will be able to visit the ‘Knowledge Centre’ in the forest park to learn more about these ERT plant species and our rainforest.
The Elmina Central Park is designed in the shape of a basin; when there is no rain, it will function as a dry park. In the event of heavy rain and flooding, the water level will increase and overflow into the green areas of the central park, which has been designed to mitigate a 1,000-year flood – the whole 300-acres Elmina Central Park can be temporarily flooded, becoming a great floodplain.
In addition, Sime Darby Property collaborated with the United Nations and the Public Works Department to build energy efficient homes. For example, Tiana bungalows in City of Elmina have features such as solar-powered hot water systems, insulated roof and walls and rainwater harvesting.
Upcoming launches at the City of Elmina for 2018 include double storey link homes and semi-D residential units in Denai Alam and the second phase of Elmina Green double storey link homes in Elmina West.
Updates on Sime Darby Property activities and developments can be found onsimedarbyproperty.com, Facebook (facebook.com/SimeDarbyProperty), Instagram (instagram.com/SimeDarbyProperty) and the Sime Darby Property Mobile App (available for download via the App Store and Google Play).
* Subject to authorities approval
— end of press release —
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