Lippo Cikarang changes from 'ghost village' to bustling town<\/p>\n
Kanis Dursin, The Jakarta Post\/Lippo Cikarang<\/p>\n
Ask any professional to list down the things in the capital he or
\nshe dislikes most and chances are traffic jams will top the list.<\/p>\n
For Yuke Elia Susiloputro, however, traffic jams are a sign of
\neconomic growth, especially if they occur in and around the Lippo
\nCikarang residential and industrial complex in Bekasi, West Java.<\/p>\n
\"If there is a traffic jam along the toll road to Lippo
\nCikarang or in the compound, I am very happy ... it means that
\nmany people are now coming to work and stay here,\" said Yuke, the
\npresident director of PT Lippo Cikarang Tbk, in a recent
\ninterview.<\/p>\n
Indeed, Lippo Cikarang, situated some 40 kilometers east of
\nJakarta, was once considered a remote and creepy place.<\/p>\n
In just over a decade, however, the 6,000-hectare housing
\ncomplex and industrial zone has grown into a bustling, self-
\nsustaining town, where some 200,000 people live or earn a living.<\/p>\n
Jl. M. H. Thamrin, a four-lane thoroughfare stretching from
\nsouth to north, is the town's business hub, with shop-houses and
\ncommercial banks, including one foreign bank, restaurants serving
\nlocal and foreign cuisine, fast-food outlets and drugstores as
\nwell as a skyscraper lining both sides for several kilometers.<\/p>\n
The Lippo Cikarang Mall, five-star Sahid Lippo Hotel and the
\nGleneagles Hospital are also found on the street.<\/p>\n
Buses and minivans plying the Lippo Cikarang-Cikarang Terminal
\nand Lippo Cikarang-Cibarusah routes also drive down the
\nthoroughfare.<\/p>\n
Just walking distance from the shopping center, is the
\nCikarang Water Boom, which attracts thousands of people every
\nweek, particularly during weekends and holidays.<\/p>\n
Behind the shop-houses, hospital and hotel, in the residential
\narea where houses are built in clusters according to their types.
\nSecurity guards are assigned round the clock at the entrance of
\neach cluster.<\/p>\n
To date, Lippo Cikarang has built over 7,200 houses of a wide
\nvariety of sizes and types, of which around 90 percent are
\nalready occupied.<\/p>\n
According to Yuke, around 30,000 people, including some 400
\nforeigners, are living in Lippo Cikarang, mostly technocrats
\nworking in the town's industrial zone and their family members.<\/p>\n
One block away from the business center lies the Lippo
\nCikarang industrial zone, which hosts some 550 high-tech
\ncompanies, mostly electronics, coming from all over the world,
\nincluding Japan, Italy, the Netherlands, the United States,
\nSwitzerland, France, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia
\nand South Korea.<\/p>\n
The companies employ between just dozens and over 10,000
\npeople each, depending on their size.<\/p>\n
According to Yuke, Epson, the biggest factory in Lippo
\nCikarang, employs 5,000 permanent workers, 3,000 contract workers
\nand 2,000 daily workers. The company also spends some Rp 1.7
\nbillion for bus services alone every month.<\/p>\n
\"Over all, there are some 200,000 people who live and work in
\nLippo Cikarang,\" said Yuke, who has been working for PT Lippo
\nCikarang since 1992.<\/p>\n
\"Before, they would ask me 'where do you live?' and if I told
\nthem that I lived in Lippo Cikarang, they would tell me 'Gee!
\nthat is a ghostly place. But now, people are proud to be
\nassociated with Lippo Cikarang,\" he said.<\/p>\n
As the population grows, Lippo Cikarang has also increased its
\npublic facilities. Currently, Lippo Cikarang already has two
\nmosques, four churches, one gasoline station, 13 playgroups, 13
\npreschools, seven elementary schools, five junior and senior high
\nschools, four clinics, two hospitals, six traditional markets,
\ntwo supermarkets and eight mini markets and two Korean shops.<\/p>\n
\"Lippo Cikarang is trying to offer one-stop services, where
\npeople live and work,\" said Yuke.<\/p>\n
Located half way from Semanggi to Karawang, another bustling
\nindustrial zone in West Java, Lippo Cikarang has slowly become a
\nfavorite destination for young professionals.<\/p>\n
\"Sometimes, professionals working in Karawang and Jakarta come
\nhere for lunch and finally buy a house here,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Looking at how Lippo Cikarang has developed in the past few
\nyears, Yuke is optimistic that his industrial zone will become
\none of the best in the country, especially if the Bekasi
\nadministration pushes through with its plan to build a direct
\ntoll road linking Cikarang and Tanjung Priok in North Jakarta.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, Yuke is now worried about the security of
\nresidents living in the housing complex, especially the security
\nof foreigners whose number is increasing.<\/p>\n
\"I have asked the Bekasi Police to set up a police precinct in
\nLippo Cikarang, instead of a sub-precinct as originally planned,\"
\nsaid Yuke, adding that he often receives calls from foreign
\nembassies in Jakarta asking about the safety of their citizens in
\nthe housing complex. (END)<\/p>\n
I-box<\/p>\n
Facilities in Lippo Cikarang<\/p>\n
-------------------------------------------------------
\nNo Type of facility No. of facilities
\n-------------------------------------------------------
\n1. Educational:<\/p>\n
Playgroup 13<\/p>\n
Kindergarten 13<\/p>\n
Elementary school 7<\/p>\n
Junior high school 5<\/p>\n
Senior high school 5
\n2. Health:<\/p>\n
Clinics 4<\/p>\n
Integrated health services 1<\/p>\n
Hospital 2
\n3. Sports:<\/p>\n
Golf driving range 1<\/p>\n
Swimming pool 2<\/p>\n
Basketball court 2<\/p>\n
Tennis court 2
\n4. Commercial:<\/p>\n
Traditional market 6<\/p>\n
Supermarket 2<\/p>\n
Mini market 8
\n5. Places of worship:<\/p>\n
Mosques 2<\/p>\n
Churches 4
\n6. Others:<\/p>\n
Gasoline stations 1<\/p>\n
Drugstores 5
\n-----------------------------------------------------
\nSource: PT. Lippo Cikarang<\/p>",
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