A visit to the Penang Property Fair is quite an eye opening. Not only it boasted some of the most expensive housing projects in Penang (with a tag price of RM1,000,000 on a 2,000 square feet apartment, can’t even find this in KL), but it also showcased many other projects in the island to meet the ever growing demands of housing properties. Most of them do have their own selling point and target market segment, but one of them definitely caught our attention, “Times Square”.

 

Times Square…does the name ring a bell? The first impression that falls upon most people is the lighted and animated advertisements at the junction of Broadway Avenue in New York City, which is already an iconic world landmark and has become the symbol of the home city itself.

 

 

The vibrant, alive and neon filled city of lights at Times Square New York City, USA.

 

 

Well, that’s on the global front. Locally, Times Squares would remind most of us to the Berjaya Times Square in Kuala Lumpur. It is unmistakably the most popular name among Malaysian as it is tagged as the world’s largest building ever built in a single phase, with 7.5 million square feet of built up floor area. It is the place that offers shopping, luxury accommodation, business, food and abundant of entertainment. Currently it has space for more than 1000 retail shops (even though many are still vacant).

 

 

Berjaya Times Square in KL

 

However, Times Square in Penang? That is something new and exciting to blog about, is it not?

 

The Penang Times Square is a RM700 million development projects located in the heart of historic Georgetown. It will boast 800 units of residential units, commercial spaces, exhibition centre, hotel and office blocks and 2 acre of urban open square similar to the European town squares. It is also part of the Penang government’s urban renewal effort which is regarded as the milestone project for the 200 year old Georgetown. An ambitious project that if successful, will rival the Bukit Bintang in KL and Orchard Road in Singapore, as it is strategically located near the Komtar Centre, famed food districts and 3 international star-rated hotels within 100 meters radius.

 

 

Penang Times Square location in the heart of Georgetown.

 

Thus, the big question remains… Does Penang Times Square really has what it takes to make an impact and recreate Georgetown? Can Penang be iconize as the shopping and entertainment haven in Malaysia, and bring back the shine of Pearl of the Orient? Will it convince investors to buy into the idea and the grand vision?

 

When we last checked at Penang Property Fair, 80% of the apartment units and almost all commercials units have been sold out, at least the number proves this is true..

 

Is this a project too huge for the developer to handle, as we’re talking about massive scale of development and it will not be a white elephant project at the end of the day?

 

These are tough questions even for rocket scientists; however we will try our best to shed some lights on our thoughts.

 

1)       Traffic jam around Jalan Dato Keramat needs to be resolved. Most Penangites are reluctant to drive to Georgetown due to this reason. Since the opening of the new Jelutong Highway, it is able to ease the traffic a little. But with the scale of the project, it will need a full proof solution—public transportation, such as monorail, in the future. The accessibility to Times Square is the heart and soul of the project success.

a.       Verdict – The 9^th Malaysian Plan has already approved the monorail project in Penang, with Times Square as one of the sub station on its route. The completion of the monorail project will definitely boost the attraction to Times Square specifically and Georgetown in general.

 

2)       There are already too many shopping malls in Penang, an approximately 4 big malls in the island itself. Times Square would need to be different from the rest of the malls in order to attract shoppers and tourists. Having said that, according to the developer there is already a plan for a square (including the European town squares) which will stage shows or celebrations. It will also be used for grand festive celebrations such as Christmas and New Year. That is quite a new concept, as we have yet to see this at any malls in Penang. This would provide a complement to the compulsory branded retails shops and also the management’s quality of the mall. This is an innovative idea to be different from the rest of the market players.

a.       Verdict – We believe this would actually work and it will bring a positive impact to the project.

 

3)       The current poor condition on the pre-war buildings surrounding Penang Times Squares needs to be renovated and repainted to give a refreshing new aura and image to Georgetown. Look at Boat Quay and Clarke Quay in Singapore, the government put in a lot of efforts in preserving these buildings and manages to overturn it into a well known tourist attraction.

a.       Verdict – This is a long shot looking at the current state of the pre-war building in Penang. The Penang government has yet to come up with a concrete steps to tackle this old problem. There is a hope that, the Penang Times Square success would spur the development and effort being put in to rejuvenate the old pre-war buildings.

 

Boat Quay and Clarke Quay in Singapore.

 

In summary, this is not only an ordinary project in Georgetown (most of Penangites regarded it as mere another new mall and residential units). The success of the Penang Times Squares will also indirectly propel the development of the Georgetown area, as well as the rejuvenation of the area such as Campbell streets, Penang Road, Little India and etc. As more development projects moving south (due to Bayan Lepas FTZ and future second Penang Bridge Link), Penang Times Square is seen as the masterpiece project in Penang that will bring back the glory days of Georgetown… and Penang.

 

Back to the question…does Penang Times Square has what it takes to be a success? We guess it might, after all.