New supermall and five-star hotel to be built in Pluit
JAKARTA (JP): Residents of the Pluit area, Penjaringan, North Jakarta, will soon enjoy a new mega shopping mall and a five-star hotel built at a total cost of nearly Rp 300 billion (US$138.76 million).
The head of the Pluit Environmental Management Board (BPLP), , a city-owned company, Darrundono revealed yesterday that the construction of the mall has begun and is expected to be completed within two years.
The new mall will be located at the crocodile farm on Jl. Pluit Indah. Once a popular tourist attraction in Jakarta, the crocodile farm has been moved to Bekasi.
When asked about the reasons for the construction of the mall, Darrundono said it will help meet the needs of residents in the area, which is still lacking a major shopping and recreation center.
"Many Pluit residents must go to other parts of the city to enjoy such facilities," he said.
Speaking to reporters at the posh Pantai Mutiara estate overlooking the Java Sea, Darrundono also revealed plans for the construction of a lavish five-star hotel at the location of the current BPLP headquarters on Jl. Pluit Raya.
"Unlike other international airports, our airport (Sukarno- Hatta international airport) doesn't have a transit hotel, that's why we're building this one," he said.
Located at the mouth of the airport tollroad, the hotel, still unnamed, will be built at a cost of Rp 150 billion by PT Artha Guna Adistana Mulia, a privately owned company.
The company will manage the hotel for a 30-year period according to the build-operation-transfer (BOT) system, meaning that when the time period is up, it must returned to the BPLP.
Construction of the hotel is scheduled to begin next year and is expected to be completed in two and a half years.
According to Supadmono, the head of BPLP's technical division, the hotel will be 16 stories high.
Mall
Plans for the new mall will not merely concentrate on it being a place for shopping but a complete recreation center with a driving range and an extravagant water fountain.
Over Rp 120 billion will be spent on infrastructure alone by PT Duta Wisata Loka, the project's developer, whom Darrundono said is affiliated with a company controlled by former Jakarta governor Tjokropranolo.
When asked why developments in Pluit are focused only on facilities for the affluent, Darrundono strongly denied the allegation.
He claims that his main concern in these projects is revitalizing the various assets in the area for all to savor.
"The mall will be accessible for everyone, from those looking for Bally shoes to just plain sandals," he asserted.
Out of the some 80,000 residents living in Pluit, Darrundono estimates 15 percent currently live in slum areas, mostly those living in the vicinity of the Penjaringan subdistrict.
Darrundono believes that in order to help them, it is important not to alter the social climate people are used to, otherwise new problems will develop.
"We want to develop without evicting people from their land," he said.
However, when asked the type of immediate plans BPLP for improving these slum areas, Darrundono admitted, "we have not entered into the strategic plan."(mds)