Hong Kong-based luxury hotel group Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts and Malaysian property developer S P Setia Berhad Group signed a management agreement for Shangri-La to operate the planned luxury development in Melbourne’s CBD.
At 308 Exhibition Street, the two-tower development was designed by Cox and Fender Katsalidis, and will be loacted near Melbourne’s World Heritage-listed Carlton Gardens.
The property is currently under consideration for planning approval. When it is completed in 2022, the Shangri-La Hotel, Melbourne will have an estimated 500 guestrooms with three floors of amenities, including a sky lobby, restaurants, a spa, a fitness center, a pool and a ballroom.
The second tower will include about 300 luxury residential apartments and office space.
A sky bridge will connect the two towers, and retail space will be in the lower floors of the development.
Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr Wan Mohd Zahid, chairman of S P Setia, said that Shangri-La supported the project’s vision to provide development that increases capacity, creates local economic development opportunities and sets a new benchmark for five-star luxury in Melbourne.
Through the design and construction phases and for many decades to come as a luxury residence, retail and hotel precinct, the economic benefits of this project will be significant for Melbourne, Zahid said in a statement.
Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts currently operates over 95 hotels in 22 countries and 73 destinations under the Shangri-La, Kerry, Hotel Jen and Traders brands.
Primarily operating in Asia, the group has established its brand over four decades in Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, Europe, North America and the Indian Ocean.
The group has upcoming projects in Australia, mainland China, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and Sri Lanka.
Launched in 1974, S P Setia's portfolio includes townships, eco-sanctuaries, luxury enclaves, high-rise residences, commercial and retail developments.
The group is established in the three economic centers of Malaysia, namely Klang Valley, Johor Bahru and Penang. It also has a project in Sabah.
Its international reach now includes five countries which are Vietnam, Australia, Singapore, China and the United Kingdom.
As of March 31, 2017, the group has 30 ongoing projects, with a stake of 5,141 acres in undeveloped land banks remaining and about $11.1 trillion in gross development value.
Tourism, Travel, Hospitality, Conservation: News,Stories And Experiences From Allover The World
Showing posts with label Klang Valley. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Klang Valley. Show all posts
Sunday, 16 July 2017
Sunday, 10 July 2016
Habitat Loss Drives Wild Animals Into Conflicts
Monkeys, foxes, squirrels, wild boars, snakes. These animals make for quite a menagerie of wildlife. You may not want to see them in your backyard, though.
Yet all these animals are showing up near the houses of people living in the Klang Valley in the larger Kuala Lumpur area. And locals tend not to like it. “Disturbances can occur anywhere, especially in residential areas," II Fakhrul Hatta Musa, deputy director-general of the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan), told the Bernama news agency apropos a recent influx of wild animals into villages, towns and suburbs.
Monkeys can especially be a nuisance, according to locals. The wildlife department has been receiving thousands of complaints about animal invasions, most of them made by monkeys. This year alone over 500 cases of disturbances caused by monkeys have already been recorded in the Federal Territory and Selangor. Last year, meanwhile, locals lodged a total of 1,297 complaints against rampaging monkeys in the Klang Valley.
What's going on? Are the animals acting out for some unfathomable reason? Hardly. Rather, what with the relentless loss of their natural habitats they are increasingly coming into contact with humans. Similar trends are playing out across much of Malaysia with wild animals being driven into ever smaller patches of relatively unspoiled natural habitats. Often, they end up with precious little space left and so can't help but start invading settled areas for food and shelter.
How do people normally respond? Predictably, we're sad to say. There have been numerous cases of vagrant wild animals being killed or harmed in a variety of ways from road accidents to outright slaying. The animals that met their ends this way have included tigers, elephants and other critically endangered species.
Meanwhile, in the Klang Valley monkeys that are considered too pesky by locals are often either relocated or put down. “All the monkeys which are exterminated are then put into the incinerator at the Paya Indah Wetlands in Dengkil,” II Fakhrul said. That does sound like a shame, does it not? We drive them out of their homes but when they invade ours in response we don't like that one bit and so may end up killing them. Now, what conclusion should we draw about ourselves?
Yet all these animals are showing up near the houses of people living in the Klang Valley in the larger Kuala Lumpur area. And locals tend not to like it. “Disturbances can occur anywhere, especially in residential areas," II Fakhrul Hatta Musa, deputy director-general of the Wildlife and National Parks Department (Perhilitan), told the Bernama news agency apropos a recent influx of wild animals into villages, towns and suburbs.
Monkeys can especially be a nuisance, according to locals. The wildlife department has been receiving thousands of complaints about animal invasions, most of them made by monkeys. This year alone over 500 cases of disturbances caused by monkeys have already been recorded in the Federal Territory and Selangor. Last year, meanwhile, locals lodged a total of 1,297 complaints against rampaging monkeys in the Klang Valley.
What's going on? Are the animals acting out for some unfathomable reason? Hardly. Rather, what with the relentless loss of their natural habitats they are increasingly coming into contact with humans. Similar trends are playing out across much of Malaysia with wild animals being driven into ever smaller patches of relatively unspoiled natural habitats. Often, they end up with precious little space left and so can't help but start invading settled areas for food and shelter.
How do people normally respond? Predictably, we're sad to say. There have been numerous cases of vagrant wild animals being killed or harmed in a variety of ways from road accidents to outright slaying. The animals that met their ends this way have included tigers, elephants and other critically endangered species.
Meanwhile, in the Klang Valley monkeys that are considered too pesky by locals are often either relocated or put down. “All the monkeys which are exterminated are then put into the incinerator at the Paya Indah Wetlands in Dengkil,” II Fakhrul said. That does sound like a shame, does it not? We drive them out of their homes but when they invade ours in response we don't like that one bit and so may end up killing them. Now, what conclusion should we draw about ourselves?
Thursday, 17 December 2015
MALAYSIA: What To Do When Nature Strikes
Malaysia has the third highest lightning density in the world.
Many may not be aware that Malaysia ranks third in the world for lightning density.
The most recent case was in September when a 15-year-old boy from Kuala Terengganu died and three others were injured when lightning struck them while they were in a goat shed.
Based on a scholarly report for Optical Transient Detector Lightning by Dr Huge J. Christian in 2003, Malaysia has 48.3 flashes/km2/yr lightning.
The country with the highest lightning density in the world is Rwanda at a place called Kamembe which has 82.7 flashes/km2/ year.
This is followed by three locations in the Republic of Congo – Boende, Lusambo, Kananga – with 66.3, 52.1 and 50.3 flashes/km2/ year respectively.
One of the main reasons these countries are at the top of the list is because they are on the equator.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) revealed that the inter-monsoon periods between April to May and October has the most lightning occurrences.
Lightning is more frequent between June and September during the south-west monsoon.
There are fewer cases of lightning from December to March during the north-east monsoon.
Types of lightning and what to do
There are basically four types of lightning.
The most dangerous is the cloud-to-ground lightning.
It can kill humans, animals and damage property.
The second type is the inter-cloud lightning which is lightning from one cloud to another and it does not hit anything on the ground.
Intra-cloud lightning is the third type of lightning where the lightning takes place within the same cloud.
Then there is the cloud-to-the-sky lightning where one sees the lightning flash from the clouds.
According to MetMalaysia, clouds are formed due to the heating of the air surface.
In urban areas such as the Klang Valley, which includes Petaling Jaya, Kuala Lumpur and Subang Jaya, there are more concrete buildings, hence the convection activities are stronger.
This causes lightning during a thunderstorm.
On the safety aspect, lightning expert Hartono Zainal Abidin said simple shelters such as huts in parks may not be installed with lightning arrestors.
However, a simple lighting protector system could protect those who seek shelter there.
He said in many cases, the copper light arrestors were stolen from the building rooftops because of its resale value.
“A simple lightning arrestor system for a gazebo would cost less than RM2,000 and it can help save lives.
“The cheaper way is to use the normal galvanised wire. It is less attractive than copper,” he said.
However, these galvanised wires may erode within five years depending on the environment.
He also advised the public not to take shelter under trees when there was lightning.
Lightning strikes the highest point and in most cases it would be a tree in the field or park.
Hartono said staying in the car would be a better option in case lightning strikes.
Changes in climate pattern
MetMalaysia revealed that in January last year, peninsular Malaysia experienced exceptionally cooler weather than usual with Kuala Krai, Kelantan having extremely low temperature of 18.5ºC, 19.0ºC, and 17.2ºC respectively on Jan 19, 21 and 22 as a result of low cloud coverage and colder wind from Siberia and Central China.
February 2014 also experienced cooler and drier weather than normal.
The lightning count in February 2014 was exceptionally low.
The water level at Sungai Selangor Dam and Klang Gate Dam, which supplies water to Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, dropped below the 50% level.
When the levels dipped further to 30% and 40%, the Selangor government implemented water rationing in March until end of April.
Some meteorological stations, such as at Langkawi and Butterworth, recorded more than 30 days without rainfall.
Singapore also experienced a record dry spell in February 2014 with it being the driest month there since 1869.
It recorded the most windy month in the last 30 years with average wind speed of 13.3km/hr and set a new record for the lowest average daily relative humidity of 74.5%.
The lower-than-normal air temperature, strong wind and dry atmosphere contributed to extremely low lightning count.
Lightning survivor
The Sportswoman of the Year award winner in 1965 and 1966, Datuk M. Rajamani, was struck by lightning while training for the Mexico Olympics at the Kuala Lumpur Police Depot at Gurney Road on March 21, 1968.
She was a track and field athlete. Rajamani shared with StarMetro her memories of the incident.
She said during one of her trainings, she saw her fellow athlete who was running in front of her being struck by lightning, and died on the spot.
At that moment, Rajamani did not know that lightning had also struck her.
She regained consciousness only after five days.
“I did not even know why I was hospitalised and no one told me. I thought it was because of a throat infection,” she said.
However, she learnt about her lightning attack from a girl who showed her a newspaper article about the incident.
“I still had no memory of the incident. I also had no memory of my boyfriend, who is now my husband.
“Somebody told me that when they asked if I remembered my boyfriend, my reply was that I thought I had seen him before,” said Rajamani.
Now, the 72-year-old spends her time with religious activities.
The most recent case was in September when a 15-year-old boy from Kuala Terengganu died and three others were injured when lightning struck them while they were in a goat shed.
Based on a scholarly report for Optical Transient Detector Lightning by Dr Huge J. Christian in 2003, Malaysia has 48.3 flashes/km2/yr lightning.
The country with the highest lightning density in the world is Rwanda at a place called Kamembe which has 82.7 flashes/km2/ year.
This is followed by three locations in the Republic of Congo – Boende, Lusambo, Kananga – with 66.3, 52.1 and 50.3 flashes/km2/ year respectively.
One of the main reasons these countries are at the top of the list is because they are on the equator.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department (MetMalaysia) revealed that the inter-monsoon periods between April to May and October has the most lightning occurrences.
Lightning is more frequent between June and September during the south-west monsoon.
There are fewer cases of lightning from December to March during the north-east monsoon.
Types of lightning and what to do
There are basically four types of lightning.
The most dangerous is the cloud-to-ground lightning.
It can kill humans, animals and damage property.
The second type is the inter-cloud lightning which is lightning from one cloud to another and it does not hit anything on the ground.
Intra-cloud lightning is the third type of lightning where the lightning takes place within the same cloud.
Then there is the cloud-to-the-sky lightning where one sees the lightning flash from the clouds.
According to MetMalaysia, clouds are formed due to the heating of the air surface.
In urban areas such as the Klang Valley, which includes Petaling Jaya, Kuala Lumpur and Subang Jaya, there are more concrete buildings, hence the convection activities are stronger.
This causes lightning during a thunderstorm.
On the safety aspect, lightning expert Hartono Zainal Abidin said simple shelters such as huts in parks may not be installed with lightning arrestors.
However, a simple lighting protector system could protect those who seek shelter there.
He said in many cases, the copper light arrestors were stolen from the building rooftops because of its resale value.
“A simple lightning arrestor system for a gazebo would cost less than RM2,000 and it can help save lives.
“The cheaper way is to use the normal galvanised wire. It is less attractive than copper,” he said.
However, these galvanised wires may erode within five years depending on the environment.
He also advised the public not to take shelter under trees when there was lightning.
Lightning strikes the highest point and in most cases it would be a tree in the field or park.
Hartono said staying in the car would be a better option in case lightning strikes.
Changes in climate pattern
MetMalaysia revealed that in January last year, peninsular Malaysia experienced exceptionally cooler weather than usual with Kuala Krai, Kelantan having extremely low temperature of 18.5ºC, 19.0ºC, and 17.2ºC respectively on Jan 19, 21 and 22 as a result of low cloud coverage and colder wind from Siberia and Central China.
February 2014 also experienced cooler and drier weather than normal.
The lightning count in February 2014 was exceptionally low.
The water level at Sungai Selangor Dam and Klang Gate Dam, which supplies water to Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya, dropped below the 50% level.
When the levels dipped further to 30% and 40%, the Selangor government implemented water rationing in March until end of April.
Some meteorological stations, such as at Langkawi and Butterworth, recorded more than 30 days without rainfall.
Singapore also experienced a record dry spell in February 2014 with it being the driest month there since 1869.
It recorded the most windy month in the last 30 years with average wind speed of 13.3km/hr and set a new record for the lowest average daily relative humidity of 74.5%.
The lower-than-normal air temperature, strong wind and dry atmosphere contributed to extremely low lightning count.
Lightning survivor
The Sportswoman of the Year award winner in 1965 and 1966, Datuk M. Rajamani, was struck by lightning while training for the Mexico Olympics at the Kuala Lumpur Police Depot at Gurney Road on March 21, 1968.
She was a track and field athlete. Rajamani shared with StarMetro her memories of the incident.
She said during one of her trainings, she saw her fellow athlete who was running in front of her being struck by lightning, and died on the spot.
At that moment, Rajamani did not know that lightning had also struck her.
She regained consciousness only after five days.
“I did not even know why I was hospitalised and no one told me. I thought it was because of a throat infection,” she said.
However, she learnt about her lightning attack from a girl who showed her a newspaper article about the incident.
“I still had no memory of the incident. I also had no memory of my boyfriend, who is now my husband.
“Somebody told me that when they asked if I remembered my boyfriend, my reply was that I thought I had seen him before,” said Rajamani.
Now, the 72-year-old spends her time with religious activities.
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