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The Edge Malaysia
May 12, 2014
Corporate: No resolution in sight for Plaza Rakyat
Kamarul Azhar

The arbitration between Plaza Rakyat Sdn Bhd (PRSB) and Dewan Bandaraya Kuala Lumpur (DBKL) is expected to be concluded in the next two months, according to sources.

The final submission proceeding of the two disputing parties over whether DBKL had the right to terminate the joint-venture agreement (JVA) and lease agreement on the Plaza Rakyat project in 2010 is expected to be done by the middle of this month.

However, sources say the conclusion of the arbitration may not end the decades-long fiasco. This is because PRSB is challenging, in the High Court of Malaya, the arbitration tribunalâ s interim award late last year that favours DBKL.

The proposed 15.3-acre integrated transport hub and commercial development in Jalan Pudu, Kuala Lumpur, has been abandoned for 17 years. PRSB was once its developer while DBKL was the original owner of the site.

â PRSB is contesting the interim decision at the High Court because it argues that the arbitrators have no jurisdiction, under the National Land Code 1965, to decide on matters concerning the lease agreement,â says a source.
The arbitrators, comprising Datuk Ghazi Ishak, Professor Tan Sri Visu Sinnadurai and Robert Lazar, had on Oct 24, 2013, found the termination of the JVA and lease agreement by DBKL valid.

However, PRSB argues that the forfeiture of the lease agreement is not arbitrable under the Land Code as the jurisdiction to grant any relief or order in such disputes is only within the purview of the High Court of Malaya.

PRSB said if the arbitrators were allowed to decide on matters concerning the lease, it will affect both the rights of PRSB and DBKL, as well as third parties, in particular the lenders. PRSB had charged the lease of the Plaza Rakyat land to secure loans from banks.

â The arbitration is between PRSB and DBKL, thus any decision made by the tribunal should not impede the rights of other parties, which cannot intervene in the proceedings. That is why PRSB is bringing the matter to the High Court so that the bankers can intervene,â says the source.
The banks had in February 2013 appointed AdamPrimus Chartered Accountants to be the receiver and manager of PRSB, effectively taking charge of the company previously controlled by Tan Sri Ting Pek Khiing.

While PRSB and DBKL lock horns over the JVA and lease agreement, buyers who had bought units in the development are losing their patience. For the past 17 years, they have tried to seek assistance from the authorities to resolve the deadlock.

â We would like to know what DBKL will do to help us. We have been waiting for almost 20 years for this project to be completed. How long more do we have to wait before the project is completed?â asks a frustrated buyer when met by The Edge recently.

While the Plaza Rakyat project is being left to rot in Jalan Pudu, other iconic developments are being planned for Kuala Lumpur. These include the 118-storey Warisan Merdeka tower, the Tun Razak Exchange and the redevelopment of Pudu Jail.

After it took charge of PRSB, AdamPrimus conducted an open tender in the middle of last year to invite suitable developers with sound finances to rehabilitate the project. It subsequently awarded the project to Ivory Properties Group Bhd in September 2013, with both parties entering an acquisition and rehabilitation agreement (ARA).

However, the ARA between PRSB and Ivory Properties is not recognised by DBKL. City Hall maintains that since it had terminated the JVA with PRSB earlier, any agreement entered into by PRSB or parties acting on its behalf is rendered invalid.

According to a source close to AdamPrimus, DBKL did not even respond to a letter informing it about the ARA signed by AdamPrimus and Ivory Properties. Communications between DBKL and AdamPrimus seem to have deteriorated.

â How can the receiver know what DBKL wants, whether or not it agrees with the ARA, if it did not respond to the letter? The contract with Ivory Properties will ensure that all parties are taken care of,â says the source.

According to the ARA, Ivory Properties will pay RM560 million to DBKL for the project. At the same time, Ivory Properties will settle all outstanding quit rent to DBKL, while PRSB will be paid RM400 million, which will go towards settling its debts with the banks and other parties.

Observers opine that the agreement is not palatable for DBKL because it will only get a maximum share of 7% of the gross development value of the project, limited to RM560 million. This translates into RM844 psf, while real estate valuers put the value of the land at between RM1,000 and RM1,200 psf.
According to a court document seen by The Edge in regard to the arbitration proceeding, DBKL is demanding an additional payment of RM265 million for the revaluation of the project land, and payment of a minimum 20% guaranteed profit from PRSB.

However, DBKLâ s decision not to speak to the media and interested parties is not helping the parties involved to find a win-win situation all around. A DBKL spokesman says, due to the ongoing arbitration, City Hall could not issue any statement or comments to the media.

â Iâ m so sorry to inform you that DBKL canâ t answer the questions you have posted. The reason is that this case is still in arbitration. We will know more details once the process is over,â says DBKL media relations officer Md Aznan Md Zain.

Ivory Properties group CEO Datuk Low Eng Hock says the group has asked to meet with DBKL to discuss the ARA in detail but has yet to receive any confirmation to date.

â We are still waiting for a response from DBKL,â Low says in response to an email from The Edge. The Penang-based property developer has plans to work with PR1MA Corp Malaysia to come up with an affordable housing proposal for Plaza Rakyat.

â We aim to provide more affordable homes for the people and we hope DBKL is receptive to the proposal,â Low states in his email. If it is given the right to develop Plaza Rakyat, it would be Ivory Propertiesâ first major project in the Klang Valley.

The Plaza Rakyat project â " first mooted by Datuk Hamzah Abdul Majeed and his wife Datin Freida Pilus in the early 1990s, and subsequently taken over by Tingâ s now defunct Wembley Industries Holdings Bhd â " has been postponed indefinitely since construction was halted during the 1997/98 Asian financial crisis.

The project would have been a multi-modal transport hub amidst an integrated property development, probably the first of its kind in Kuala Lumpur at the time before the completion of KL Sentral in the early 2000s.

â At the moment, nobody knows what exactly DBKL wants. Even if it does not agree with the terms of the agreement with Ivory Properties, it should at least make it known to the receiver so that something can be worked out,â says the source close to AdamPrimus.
May 14, 2014

This post has been edited by bb68: May 29 2014, 12:50 PM

[quote=cfa28,May 28 2014, 05:58 PM]
Bro, it would have been easier to read if its separated into paragraphs.

Noted.

Plaza Rakyat project to be revived

First Published: 7:43pm, May 30, 2014
Last Updated: 2:38pm, May 31, 2014

Good news guys !!

KUALA LUMPUR (May 30): This will be a year of maintenance and upgrading for Kuala Lumpur, said Mayor Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal.

"We will be hosting the SEA Games in 2017, so the MPs have identified problems clogging the city."

This includes the appointment of a new contractor to continue constructing Plaza Rakyat- an abandoned project opposite Tung Shin Hospital.

Ahmad Phesal noted that the project stalled 17 years ago due to legal complications which have obstructed the Ministry of Federal Territories from intervening.

"We are currently waiting for the arbitrators to sort out issues of due diligence and ascertaining financial obligations and the quantum involved before engaging the new contractor."

Construction is scheduled to begin next month but he noted that the process might take some time.

He added that the Ministry has also requested for the KL City Hall (DBKL) to engage with several banks, and primarily RHB Bank, to discuss financing the construction.

"The tribunal's decision will become the basis of our negotiations with the new contractor. After the deliberation, then we will speak to banks on how best to restart this project."

Bukit Bintang MP Fong Kui Lun welcomed the new development to finally rehabilitate the 'eyesore' for both locals and tourists.

"It's a huge plot of land that was meant to be a mixed development with residences and offices," he told reporters after a meeting between Federal Territories MPs and the mayor.



Read more: http://www.fz.com/content/plaza-rakyat-pro...d#ixzz33SlMX4KG

Hope this time the dead plaza mayat will resurrect !

I can't help but wondering if there is any plaza Rakyat buyers here in this forum too... share your thought.

The Star

Published: Tuesday June 24, 2014 MYT 12:00:00 AM
Updated: Tuesday June 24, 2014 MYT 6:50:57 AM
Ivory plans RM1.4bil projects, developing 80-acre land bank in Penang

BY DAVID TAN

On the Plaza Rakyat development, Low said the company was in the process of procuring an extension for the conditional acquisition and rehabilitation agreement (ARA) with Plaza Rakyat Sdn Bhd to acquire the leases and development right of the project land.

“The last extension ends on June 4 and we need more time to meet the conditions precedent stated in the ARA.

“Our proposal to Datuk Bandar Kuala Lumpur has given special attention to the interest of the end purchasers, whose deposit money has been tied up by the project during their purchase from the previous developer and we hope to help solve their woes soon,” he said.

sure fly but dont how high only

Published: Wednesday June 25, 2014 MYT 12:00:00 AM
Updated: Wednesday June 25, 2014 MYT 7:19:42 AM

DBKL to inspect site of abandoned Plaza Rakyat project

The Star
BY BAVANI M


KUALA Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) will serve a legal notice to the receiver of the abandoned Plaza Rakyat project so it can enter the premises and address health and safety concerns.

Public Works and Drainage Depart­ment director Tan Keng Chok said the department had written to the court-appointed receiver and manager, Adamprimus Chartered Accountants, several months ago, asking for permission to enter the site and carry out rectification work, including repair a bridge linking the Plaza Rakyat LRT station to Pudu Sentral.

“We wrote to them asking for permission to enter, but they stopped us. Since public safety is concerned, the legal department has advised us to serve them a notice and we will be going in within the week,’’ Tan said.

He was responding to StarMetro’s report on June 23, “Unsightly and Dangerous”, which highlighted safety concerns at the long-abandoned Plaza Rakyat project.

When contacted, a source from Adamprimus said some of the concerns were addressed and they had been maintaining the area by doing general cleaning regularly.

“As a manager, we are maintaining the site as best as we can. We also carry out fogging activities every week. We have placed several security guards to ensure no one goes in or out and have done our best to seal the place.

“We don’t want anyone to just walk in as scrap metal is valuable and ensure the site is checked regularly,’’ he said.

The source added that the water formed a pool because the old piping system connected to the LRT station is leaking.

On the huge pond that is filled with rainwater, the source said it cannot be drained because this could cause the entire structure to collapse.

“It acts as a buffer to keep the place stable. That is why no one did anything about it for 20 years.”

The source admitted that DBKL had written to them, asking for permission to go in and repair the bridge, and they wrote back to request that security in the area was maintained.

“We want an undertaking that the hoarding is in place. We do not want to be held responsible if anything happens at the site,’’ he said.

The project located next to the Pudu Sentral transport hub, has been abandoned for almost two decades. It was supposed to be one of the first mixed-commercial development projects that would be integrated with a transportation hub.

DBKL is currently involved in an arbitration proceeding with the developer.

Hence, any attempts to move forward can only be achieved if arbitration between PRSB and DBKL is resolved quickly.

There have been calls for either UDA Holdings Bhd or Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd (Prasarana), which manages the Pudu Sentral and Plaza Rakyat LRT stations respectively, to take responsibility for the bridge.

Spokesmen for both companies said their hands were tied as the bridge was on private land.

THE STAR

Published: Friday June 27, 2014 MYT 12:00:00 AM
Updated: Friday June 27, 2014 MYT 7:52:57 AM

New firm to revive Plaza Rakyat

BY INTAN FARHANA ZAINUL

Plaza Rakyat - Abandoned site

KUALA LUMPUR: The revival of the abandoned Plaza Rakyat project in Jalan Pudu here is headed the way of controversy, with the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) looking to appoint a new company to undertake the job.

Kuala Lumpur mayor Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal Talib revealed yesterday that DBKL did not recognise the appointment of Ivory Properties Group Bhd to revive the project.

On the other hand, Ivory, which had won the rights to revive the project after a tender exercise conducted by Plaza Rakyat Sdn Bhd (PRSB) in September last year, has not given up on undertaking the job.

Under the agreement, PRSB would transfer the existing sub-lease and all development rights under the joint-venture agreement with DBKL to a subsidiary of Ivory.

Ahmad Phesal told StarBiz that he was awaiting the completion of the arbitration between DBKL and PRSB to appoint the new company. He, however, declined to name it.

“DBKL, together with the Federal Territories Ministry, has decided that some other company should take over the redevelopment of Plaza Rakyat and not Ivory. We were not involved in the appointment of Ivory for this project (initially),” he said yesterday.

“As far as we are concerned, DBKL cannot just agree to the appointment of Ivory by PRSB to take over the project. We have our own plans,” Ahmad Phesal added.

As early as September last year, DBKL had denied media reports that it had entered into negotiations with Ivory to take over the development of the Plaza Rakyat project.

DBKL said it had terminated its joint venture with PRSB in April 2010, and that the latter had no legal standing to enter into any pact with any third party.

However, Ivory is keen to be party to the revival of the project.

In an interview with StarBiz, Ivory chief executive officer Datuk Low Eng Hock said the company was keen to meet up with DBKL and the mayor on the acquisition and rehabilitation agreement (ARA) for the project.

Low said early this week that the group was open to including new counter-offers from DBKL in its package that would provide a win-win solution for all the stakeholders of the project.

“We hope to meet up with DBKL soon to inform them about the details of our ARA with PRSB,” Low said.

Ivory wants to develop it into a mixed-development project comprising a shopping mall, serviced residences and hotels at a gross development value (GDV) of RM8bil.

“Plaza Rakyat will be enhanced with the introduction of new building components to maximise the potential of the land.

“On top of new serviced residence towers, the affordable component introduced will establish a community of young working adults, making it possible for them to afford a home located at the convenience of a city centre,” Low added.

Ivory is currently working with PR1MA Corp Malaysia to come up with 1,000 affordable housing units for Plaza Rakyat, according to Low.

The group has put up a fair and attractive package for DBKL and PRSB, the original developer of the scheme, Low added.

Whether or not Ivory would get its proposal heard by DBKL is not clear, given the fact that DBKL has its own plans for the revival of Plaza Rakyat.

The story of Plaza Rakyat dates back to 1993 when PRSB, which was then controlled by Tan Sri Ting Pek Khiing’s Wembley Industries Holdings Bhd, had ambitious plans to develop it into a mixed-development project comprising a shopping mall, serviced apartments, a hotel and office towers. The project was supposed to have a GDV of RM1.3bil.

However, the Asian financial crisis of 1997-1998 forced the developers to abandon the project, although the foundations and a six-storey basement carpark was completed. Subsequently, PRSB went into receivership and came under the administration of a consortium of lender banks.

Maybe Gamuda...

Ivory entered into agreement with someone that had been terminated, so it is void.

It was once that MRT is considering the alignment tru plaza rakyat but it will be a duplication of LRT which has already been serving the area. So it is later re-aligned to waarisan merdeka to cater for future development. It make sense actually.

er... I am not really sure if Ivory can really swallow this giant PR

This PR cant afford to have another drama so better be sure to get the real "God" on board for its salvation .

Are you the TR owner? or plan to buy the phase 2 TR?

Sunway is good but not excellent, Just normal retail...

YTL is better in luxury marketing in hotel and resort but rare in retail...

I also very interested to know whom is in DBKL's mind. Hope not cheapskate GLC or cronies...

GOOD NEWS !!!



(The Star) DBKL to end agreement

The long-abandoned Plaza Rakyat project in Kuala Lumpur, which has been in limbo for almost 20 years, is set to be revived as a new contractor has been identified to carry out the rejuvenation work, Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor said.

The findings of the arbitrator involved in negotiations with the developer, Plaza Rakyat Sdn Bhd (PRSB), and Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) confirmed that DBKL was lawfully entitled to terminate the agreement because of nonperformance and breach by PRSB.

However, the arbitrator have yet to issue the final award. When the final award is issued, which should confirm the termination, DBKL would be entitled to reclaim possession of the site.

“The Ministry and DBKL are waiting to move in and clean up the entire place and start working on reviving the project,” said Tengku Adnan.

Presently, there is an interim injunction against City Hall, preventing them from entering the site, until the final award of the arbitrator.

According to reliable sources within DBKL, the local authority

The abandoned site is set to be revived as a new contractor has been identified to carry out the rejuvenation work. — filepic had issued a conditional appointment to another company to revive the project, subject to the arbitration award, and the approval of the Government within a week or two.

“The new contractor cannot go in yet because of the injunction.

“We are on standy to mobilise and revitalise the place. But, we can only go in after the arbitrators authorise DBKL to retake possession.

“We are at the final hurdle now, and once that is settled, we can move in,” Tengku Adnan said.

The minister said several parties had showed interest in developing Plaza Rakyat, but the Government was adamant in picking the right one.

“We wanted the one with the best proposal that will benefit all stakeholders, including City Hall.

The deal will include the rights of purchasers who have been left in the lurch all this while. It will be a ‘win-win’ situation for everyone,” he added.

Tengku Adnan said PRSB owed the Land Office and DBKL millions in unpaid assessment and quit rent.

“They never paid the fees, the place was badly maintained until it has become a slum of sorts and a breeding ground for mosquitoes and snakes.

“We cannot allow this to go on,” he said.

“We are looking at ways to ensure that DBKL will not suffer losses and once this is over (arbitration), we are going in to clear everything out,” he said.

At the final award hearing, which is expected to be in the next week or so, the arbitrators will decide on the quantum of damages.

Apart from obtaining vacant possession of the site, City Hall will also be seeking payment of outstanding assessment and quit rent fees from the developer.

Meanwhile, StarMetro spoke to several of the original purchasers about the Plaza Rakyat revival plans, and many who are now in their twilight years are still hoping to get back their investments.

Retiree Steven Yong, 70, said all he wanted was for the project to take off so that he could get back his deposit.

“I paid a 20% deposit of RM300,000, 19 years ago. It was a lot of money back then for me.

“I put in all my life-savings for two units in Plaza Rakyat,” he said.

“Today, I pray that I will get something back,” he lamented.

Another buyer, who wanted to be identified as only Lee, said she had paid 30% of RM600,000 as down payment to purchase two shoplots.

“Fortunately, the bank had not released the balance 70% of the payment when the project stalled or I would be paying the loan and interest for a property that is not even completed,” she said.

Another stakeholder who went by the name of Danny said, “We want our money back, we are entitled to it. No more excuses, please,” he said.

StarMetro reported last week that the 17-year-old Plaza Rakyat project had become a health hazard, with ageing rebar and scaffolding at the development site in danger of collapse.

The mold-covered walls have turned black because of trapped moisture and water leaks from years of neglect, giving the building and its surroundings a pathetic look.

Pools of stagnant water everywhere, with rubbish strewn all over the place, have made it a paradise for mosquitoes to breed.

The “dead” project, located next to the Pudu Sentral transport hub, has been abandoned for almost two decades and was supposed to be one of the first mixed-commercial development projects that was to be integrated with the transportation hub.

The original plan comprised a 79-storey office tower, 46-storey condominium, 24storey hotel and seven-storey shopping centre.

The RM1.4bil project was 30% completed about 15 years ago when the developer, PRSB, ran into financial difficulties during the 1997/1998 Asian financial crisis that forced them to abandon the project.

The Government decided to terminate PRSB’s contract in 2010, 12 years after the company abandoned the mixeddevelopment project.

Subsequently, PRSB went into receivership and came under the administration of a consortium of lender banks.

It's from today's The Star news.

If this comes true, I will buy another biji The Robertson!

selfie on scaffolding ?! haha i wonder if he ever visited the site at all...

This post has been edited by bb68: Jul 1 2014, 05:34 PM

very sad investment stories...
hope the decendant can get something from the rivival

This post has been edited by bb68: Jul 1 2014, 05:40 PM