Jakarta applies three methods for expansion

Jakarta applies three methods for expansion

JAKARTA (JP): The city administration has applied,
simultaneously, three development methods to expand the area of
Jakarta. They are: extension, intensification and establishment
of new satellite cities.

Chief of City Planning Office Udin Abimanyu said Saturday the
area extension method has been applied by the city since the
1960s in the Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi areas, known as the
buffer zones of Jakarta.

"But there will come a time when the greater Jakarta area can
no longer be exploited, so we have to choose land reclamation as
another alternative of the extension method," Udin said at a
seminar discussing measures to anticipate increases in the
building intensity.

The one-day seminar, held in the Shangri-La Hotel, was opened
by H. MK. Tadjudin, rector of the University of Indonesia. TB
Rais, deputy governor for economic and developmental affairs, was
the key-note speaker, as well as a number of other speakers.

More than 100 representatives from more than 30 property
developers, as well as university students from various technical
schools, attended the seminar held by the University of Indonesia
in cooperation with city administration, the Indonesian Real
Estate Association and the Kompas group.

The municipal administration, which is planning a land
reclamation project along Jakarta's north coast to accommodate a
growing population, pledged that the reclamation will not damage
the environment. An analysis on environmental impact is currently
being prepared for the project.

Udin said other effective methods to expand the city include
the establishment of new satellite cities and land
intensification method.

The development of new satellite cities within the greater
Jakarta area, such the Lippo City in Tangerang, is the
realization of Jakarta's administration initiative introduced in
the 1980s, he said. This initiative is designed to meet the
steadily rising demands for housing, and at the same time spread
the development of Jakarta to the eastern or western directions.

Udin said the land intensification is now being encouraged by
the city, especially in areas which have high levels of economic
value. The method, applied through the establishment of high-rise
buildings, is aimed at taking the maximum benefit from the
limited availability of lands.

The method is stipulated under Governor Decree No. 678 dated
May 31, 1994, which allows developers to build a building with
more than 32 stories, he said.

The method enables the city to not only build more parks, but
it also helps the city's programs in urban development, he said,
adding that the land intensification method is also applied to
anticipate the sharply rising growth of population.

Udin said the population of Jakarta, which occupies an area of
65,000 hectares, increased from 3 million in 1961 to 8.25 million
in 1990.

"With a growth rate of 2.4 percent a year, the population of
Jakarta is projected to reach 9.2 million people this year," he
said.

Chances

Gunawan Tjahjono, a lecturer of architecture of the university
of Indonesia, said the city still has chances to grow since the
population of Jakarta is not as dense as New York, Hong Kong or
Tokyo.

TB Rais said the Jakarta administration is determined to
develop the city according to Decree No. 678, making Jakarta a
service city comparable to any other international capital.

Rais said the decree is issued to anticipate the growth of
Jakarta's population, which is estimated to further increase to
12 million by the year 2005, when over five million jobs will be
needed.

Based on previous city planning, buildings over 32 stories
high were restricted due to the limited availability of
supporting facilities such as fire engines with long ladders and
major roads to facilitate traffic flow heading for the city's
business centers.

In addition to national funds for the financing of city
planning, the city administration is inviting foreign investments
to help develop the property sector, he said.

Higher projections in property investments in Jakarta is not
an ambitious idea because 63 percent of the national currency
distribution is in Jakarta, he said, and 55 percent or Rp 65
trillion (US$28 billion) of the country's total foreign
borrowings of Rp 120 trillion ($55 billion) circulates in the
capital.

The Kuningan golden triangle in South Jakarta has attracted
investments worth Rp 11 trillion ($5 billion) over the last ten
years, he added. (mas/22)