Govt caps price of low-cost houses

Govt caps price of low-cost houses

JAKARTA (JP): The city administration has decided to set the
price of low-cost apartments in Jakarta at between Rp 12 million
(US$5,452) and Rp 15 million each, the chief of the City Housing
Office, Ongky Sukasah H., said yesterday.

The price range has been set as low as possible in order to
make the apartments affordable for people in the low income
bracket.

"This decision is aimed at promoting the concept of living in
vertical housing among people living in slum areas," he said,
while accompanying Deputy Governor R.S. Museno on a tour of the
Bidaracina low-cost apartments in East Jakarta yesterday.

He said that the promotion of that concept was costly but the
city did not have any choice as a result of the scarcity of space
and the rising population.

Ongky said that the financial burden on the city
administration of building low-cost apartments had been eased to
an extent by certain business tycoons, who have donated money for
the construction of the facilities.

"Nobody wants to invest their money in low-cost apartments
because it is unprofitable. Any party engaged in such projects is
not doing so because it expects to make a profit," he said.

Twenty-three prominent business tycoons, including Sudono
Salim, Mohammad (Bob) Hasan, Prayogo Pangestu and Sudwikatmono,
have made donations for the establishment of seven low-cost
apartment buildings in Bidaracina, Jatinegara, East Jakarta.

The Bidaracina apartments will be occupied by people who are
currently living in shanty houses along 800 meters of the
Ciliwung river bank in the area.

Three buildings of the apartment complex, which consists of
288 units, have already been completed and are scheduled to be
dedicated by President Soeharto next month.

The construction of the other four buildings will start next
month.

The Bidaracina apartments were designed by a Jakarta-based
firm of architects, PT Cipta Pura.

Bidaracina subdistrict chief, Satana, said that in the
beginning many local settlers, whose land must be cleared to make
way for the apartments, had refused to sell their plots to the
city administration.

"But finally they cooperated, when they realized that the city
had ear-marked the land for a low-cost apartment complex and not
for luxury housing," Satana said.

He said that all of the families, who lived on the land to be
used for the apartment complex, have now sold their land to the
developer.

"Yesterday the heads of four families, who had previously
refused to sell their land, finally told me that they were
willing to sell it. They have received compensation of about Rp
614,000 per square meter," he said.

Suratman, the head of Bidaracina construction project, said
that the city will make additional payments for objects on the
land, including telephone lines, trees and buildings. (mas)