The next level of living

Early Bird by Johnni Wong | May 3, 2012

Who would have thought that one day, swimming pools would be a common feature of terraced houses aimed at middle-class property buyers? And that day is soon upon us when the developer of the KEN Rimba development in Section 16, Shah Alam, starts handing out keys next month.

Developed by Kenny B.K. Tan of KEN Holdings Bhd, the mixed-development project spans a total of 24.3ha (60 acres) and is located just off the Federal Highway, near the Padang Jawa KTM train station.

Comprising 496 terraced houses, two condominium phases of 240 units and 679 units, 109 shoplots and another proposed commercial lot, the freehold development is hailed as the first Green township in the country.

According to executive director Sam C.S. Tan, the double-storey terraced houses are in two phases. And they represent the company’s efforts in bringing property development in Malaysia to the next level with greater comfort at an affordable price level.

Legian & Jimbaran 
The Legian Residences which offers 328 units have mostly been sold. The typical units sold for RM548,000 while the corner units are priced at nearly RM1.3mil with certain units still available. There are 26 units with pools.

The soon-to-be launched Jimbaran Residences will have 168 units with 24 houses with pools.

Show house: The pool is 3m by 6m and the corner lot has an extra 20 feet of garden space by the side, as the actual lot size is 44ft by 65ft.

Incidentally, the names “Rimba”, “Legian” and “Jimbaran” were chosen to connote the same kind of serendipitious feeling when venturing into a typical village in Bali and then, discovering a wondrous resort development in its midst. In any case, Section 16 in Shah Alam will never be the same when the whole KEN Rimba is completed in about five years. Said Sam: “We hope to launch Jimbaran by the third quarter of this year and the intermediate units should be from RM700,000 and the corner units from RM1.4mil upwards.”

The latest phase of houses will have greater improvements in terms of design concept, materials and Green features. Among the unusual initiatives including the planting of trees and cow grass in all the back lanes, turfed mounds and ponds next to walkways as well as hedges and more trees between the rows of houses. Even the mini roundabouts are each planted with a single raintree to offer shade when matured.

For the first phase, each unit has a built-up space of between 1,840sq ft to 2,215sq ft. The standard units have a lot size of 20ft by 65ft and comes with four bedrooms and three bathrooms.

The standard units have a lot size of 20ft by 65ft and each comes with four bedrooms and three bathrooms.

Pool size 
The premium corner houses are 24ft by 65ft and come with extra land for the lap pool that is equipped with filtration equipment. The property even has timber-like fencing made of recycled rice husk and shielded by a hedge.

Sam standing next to the pool of a corner unit.

“The pool size is three metres by six metres and the corner lot has an extra 20 feet of garden space by the side, as the actual lot size is 44ft by 65ft. The house is 24 feet wide for the corner units,” explained Sam, while on a site tour.

 “Ken Rimba is the first landed home development in the country to be awarded a BCA Green Mark Gold (Provisional) Award.”

Referring to the 109 shoplots, he added that the commercial centre also received a BCA Green Mark Certified (Provisional) Award.

While the first batch of the Legian units is nearing completion, with the hand-over expected in June, the shoplots will be completed later this year, as scheduled. The intermediate 20ft by 70ft shoplots with a built-up of 1,800sq ft, were priced at RM980,000.

What makes the project truly Green is the planning and conscious efforts to deploy technology and material that are already available. According to Sam, special Australian adjustable glass louvred windows were used to facilitate better ventilation - especially when it rains - compared to the use of casement windows.

And in order to capitalise on natural air flow to cool the houses and utilise natural sunlight without getting unnecessary high levels of heat radiation, the rows of houses are oriented in a north-south direction.

The Legian Residences which offers 328 units, have mainly been sold. The typical units sold for RM548,000 while the corner units are priced at nearly RM1.3mil. Special panes from Australia (right) were used for the louvred windows to facilitate better ventilation.

“The correct orientation of your new home could also mean huge savings in cooling and lighting bills, as well as a huge increase in the comfort level,” pointed out Sam, while opening all the doors and windows of a unit to prove his point.

Rainwater harvesting 
For Green-conscious property buyers, each of the houses will be equipped with rainwater harvesting tanks with enough water supply for gardening and washing the car porch without using potable water. By the way, each porch of a typical unit can park two cars and the driveway outside the gate, another two vehicles.

Each Ken Rimba house will be equipped with rainwater harvesting tanks in the backyard

Other Green features include:
• water-efficient fittings with sub-meters to monitor every dwelling.
• “Breathable roof” to allow heat to escape from the roof attic.
• Low VOC and heat-reflective paint for the external walls.
• Thermal-insulated and powder-coated for aluminium frame.
• Green-rated gypsum plasterboard.
• Simulated planks for the main gate using recycled material.
• Internal green planter under a skylight for natural lighting.

The vision, said Sam, was to change the existing landscape and perception from that of an industrial area to a young, thriving township brimming with energy.

The development is poised to drive traffic and visitors from Klang, who would not normally venture into Shah Alam, with the promise of a tranquil, green township. This could be partly achieved with the introduction of a cosmopolitan food and beverage scene. Even the road leading into the development is a tree-lined avenue, more typical of upscale developments of bungalows or resort condominium projects.

Green Tour 
Talking about Green initiatives, Rehda Youth, a wing of the Real Estate Housing Developers’ Association Malaysia, will be conducting its second Green tour on May 22.

Sam shows how the Green features of a Ken Rimba house work.

The tour will cover four outstanding Green-rated developments in the Klang Valley:
• KEN Rimba, Legian Residences in Shah Alam
• S11 House in Section 11, Petaling Jaya
• 11 Mont’ Kiara or MK11 in Mont’ Kiara
• Sime Darby Idea House in Shah Alam

The projects have acquired Green certification, either from Malaysia’s Green Building Index (GBI) or Singapore’s BCA Greenmark.

The objective of the Rehda Youth Tours is to allow people to understand the work and thinking behind these Green developments. It offers participants the opportunity to study the buildings by walking through and spending time in them and learning from the creators and designers of the buildings.

Participants will be assigned to four small groups to ensure that each group will be able to experience the tour on a more intimate level. Each group will be assigned a schedule for the day. Participants will be ferried in buses for the duration of the tour.

The inaugural tour last year covered 1First Avenue, Challis Damansara, GTower and Ken Bangsar. For details of the upcoming tour, contact Rehda secretariat at 03-78032978.