Riverson to be KK's latest landmark

Extracted from Sabah Times on 8th November, 2011

KOTA KINABALU: The city will get another new landmark when the Riverson project is completed in 2014.

The Riverson, costing some RM590 million, is a mix integrated commercial development, strategically located along the coastal highway of the city here.

The dazzling development which has commenced is sited on 5.5 acres of prime commercial land and is just 10 minutes away from Kota Kinabalu International Airport.

It is perched within the central business district, offering marvelous seaside views and the blue waters of the bay beyond the Tunku Abdul Rahman Islands, said Riverson Corporation Sdn Bhd, managing director Ben Kong.

The development is consisted of four main pillars-The Gleneagles Kota Kinabalu Medical Centre, Riverson Walk (three-storey of retail shops), Riverson Suites (a tower of six-storey office suites with mezzanine floor) and Riverson SoHo (a seven storey tower of SoHo units with mezzanine floor).

The Gleneagles is expected to contribute to the development of the medical tourism targeting patients from Indonesian cities such as Balikpapan, Pontianak in Kalimantan and from Brunei Darussalam, as well as neighbouring countries such as Philippines, Singapore, Hong Kong and even Korea, he remarked.

“There will be a focus on setting up specialists centres such as cardiology/cardiac surgery, neurosurgery, surgery, orthopaedics, gastroenterology and women & chidren,” he said.

The standard of the hospital is in compliance with the Joint Commission International and adhering to local and national regulations has a capacity of up to 250 beds, 180-seat auditorium, large operating complex, 24-hour Accident & Emergency Department and Trauma & Intensive Care Centre.

“The hospital will create some 1,000 jobs and can accommodate 95 specialists. It is important to have a hospital in the city for the convenience of the tourists,” said Ben, who has more than 15 years of experience in property development.

The facility will also cater to the growing healthcare needs of the residents in Kota Kinabalu and its surrounding areas in Sabah and will also compliment to serve as one of the main private referral centre for Sabah, he said.

The Riverson Walk consists of 247 retail outlets with sizes ranging from 100sq ft to 937 sq ft a unit.

“It is ideal for small boutique retail businesses-a concept similar to Singapore’s famous 313@Somerset, Orchard Road and Empire Subang,” said Ben, who is formerly the executive director of Wah Mie Group for 11 years where he oversaw the construction of Sutera Harbour Resort and Grace Ville Kota Kinabalu.

The F&B and al-fresco cafes to be open there will be carefully selected to let patrons to dine, hang-out, relish and enjoy over good food in chic surroundings, he stated.

The Riverson SoHo is designed with contemporary architecture with modernistic taste which consists of only a block of 152 units of one to two bedrooms suites and duplexes with double volume living space, with size ranging from 530 sq ft to 1,775 sq ft.

It comes with swimming pool, gym, function room, a common garden, security surveillance, and own private drop-off area and lift lobby, he added.

The Riverson Suites offer a flexibility of space where one could have an option of owning a customizable corporate suite of 1,000 sq ft, or half a floor, and even the entire full floor of some 20,000 sq ft.

Overall, he said Riverson offers investors a whole new all-rounded urban lifestyle development under one roof.

“It will bring about substantial integration of activities and continuous crowd movements, served and generated by about 900 residences, over 600,000 sq ft of commercial retail outlets, about 800,0000 sq ft of office space, more than 6,000 car parks and more than 12 hotels in the vicinity; offering no less than 15,000 job opportunities into the market,” said Ben.

Riverson’s development is poised to be in-line with its neighbouring landmarks – Sutera Harbour Golf & Country Club, KK Times Square I & II, the upcoming transport-interchange station, Wawasan Plaza, Harbour City and the new Ming Garden Hotel.

“Together they will form the new KK Southern City Hub, which had been touted as the Orchard Road of Kota Kinabalu,” said Ben.

The whole development was further boosted when Danajamin Nasional Berhad sealed an agreement with Riverson to provideRM200 million five-year Private Debt Securities programme on August 2, this year, said Ben.

The bond programme has been rated AAA by Malaysian Rating Corporation Berhad, he said.