Building houses in outskirt urged

Building houses in outskirt urged

TANGERANG (JP): State Minister of Public Housing Akbar
Tandjung encouraged private developers yesterday to build houses
on the outskirts of the city due to a shortage of inner-city
land.

Akbar said houses, especially small ones, could no longer be
built within the 65,000-hectare city, which is home to 10 million
people.

"So, we suggest private developers build houses in Bekasi,
Tangerang and Bogor," he said after inaugurating the Griya Hijau
low-cost housing complex which is part of the huge Alam Sutera
housing estate.

The minister said Tangerang, in particular, was a prime site
for developing housing complexes for Jakartans because it is
close to industrial sites.

Akbar praised PT Goldland Realty, the developer of Alam
Sutera, for building small houses, including some 21-square-meter
residences, inside the complex.

A company executive, Winaryo, said 7.5 hectares of the site
had been designated for the construction of 650 small houses in
the Griya Hijau complex.

The complex is equipped with a 700-square-meter market, a
mosque, public toilets, and buildings for elementary and junior
high schools, he said.

The company's general manager Soelaeman Soemawinata said Alam
Sutera was built on 700 hectares of land, of which 300 hectares
has been developed.

Soelaeman said his company started construction in 1993 and it
is scheduled to be completed within 12 years and offer 13,800
houses with different designs and prices.

The housing complex, which will have its own retail store,
outdoor sports arena and mini mart, was designed by SWA of the
United States. (41/jun)