PT CSU to complete barter process this month

JAKARTA (JP): PT Catur Swasakti Utama (CSU), the developer of the Taman Rasuna Said apartments, is scheduled to complete its barter process with the city administration on Aug. 21, one of the company's executives disclosed yesterday.

"Hopefully, the process can be completed as scheduled so that it will enable us to secure the building permits from the city administration required for the construction of two towers," Iwan Hendradi B.I, the company's managing director, told reporters at City Hall.

The city administration is withholding the building permits for the construction of the two towers because the developer has failed to fulfill its barter agreement obligations. The towers are to be built at the site of an apartment complex to be constructed by the developer on Jl. Rasuna Said, South Jakarta.

Assistant to the City Secretary Prawoto Danoemihardjo recently said that PT CSU had yet to build a school in another area to replace the city-owned school building it demolished to make way for the construction of the two towers.

He said the city administration would not allow the developer to build the two apartment towers until it has fulfilled its barter obligation.

He explained that the developer had applied for 11 building permits to build 11 towers. The city administration granted nine of the permits, while the other two have been withheld due to the developer's failure to comply with the requirements set.

PT CSU intends to build 16 apartment towers at the location.

Prawoto said that last year PT CSU, owned by Bakrie Investindo, a holding corporation of the widely diversified Bakrie business group, had illegally appropriated state-owned properties, including the school building.

For this violation the city administration has punished the company by asking it to contribute a certain amount of money to the committee in charge of implementing a program for least- developed villages -- a program based on a presidential instruction designed to eliminate poverty.

Iwan said that his company has made a commitment with the city administration to provide funds for 10 least developed traditional residential areas in the city.

"The company is ready to do it but still waiting for further instruction from the city administration," he said. However he refused to specify the amount of funds to be provided by the company for the program.

Iwan said his project was expected to be fully completed in August next year.(yns)