Shops construction protested

Shops construction protested

JAKARTA (JP): A group which says it represents residents of the Speed Plaza shopping complex on Jl. Gunung Sahari, Central Jakarta, went to the city council yesterday to protest the construction of new shops by developer PT Speed Indonesia on a plot of land which used to be a parking lot.

The delegation was received by Banjar Marpaung, chairman of the Council's Commission D, which oversees development affairs.

"The construction of the stores on the land cannot be allowed, because the land belongs to the state and should continue to function as a parking area," Stefanus S. Indrapradja, the spokesman for the delegation, told The Jakarta Post.

"Besides that, the construction disturbs the owners of the shops around it," he said.

The residents said that they had complained about it to the developer, but that the company had ignored their complaints and continued to construct the shops. They said the developer had even challenged them to report the case to the city administration.

The residents questioned whether all proper procedures had been fairly complied with by the developer.

"The developer's permit, No. 6425/IMB/1991, was revoked by the city administration. But the developer renewed it in 1994 for a six-month period," Stefanus said. (31)