Hey! Where's My Battery?

Another dark episode for D'Putera dwellers as a few cars had its battery stolen. This is confirmed as it was posted by management on official bulletin boards.

As I do not have any first-hand accounts from victims I am unable to ascertain the modus operandi employed by culprit(s).

In summary this does not bode well for the well-being of the complex.

Condo Entrance Refurbished

The good news (depending on who you ask) is D'Putera now has a grand entrance. Heck, I think many heavy-lift vehicles can pass through. Next to the guard station there is even a cage-like waiting area to protect against would-be snatch thieves.

The bad; It costs close to half a million ringgit and the inner roads which many feel are in need of resurfacing is not budgeted. Oh well, I guess looks on the outside is more critical. Fret not for management could have the numerous potholes 'patched' up somewhat like what a dentist does with teeth.

D'Putera Robbery Video Gaining Views on You Tube

Over the twelve years I have heard one too many reports of break-ins, cars stolen, suicides and it did not hit a nerve as they were reports. Although all were verified to be true by first-person accounts, not until now did it make an impact with CCTV of a mugging at our guardhouse on May 14, 2012.

As at now it has garnered over 212,000 views since being uploaded by victim's husband on May 28 (7 days ago).

Paradigm Mall: Talk of the Town

The Paradigm Mall will open on Wednesday, May 23 (soft opening) and the list of tenants look impressive - big names like Golden Screen Cinemas (9 screens), Marks and Spencer, Padini Concept Store, Elle, Charles and Keith and more. Food and beverages include Chili’s, Pancake House International, Miraku, Sakae Sushi, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and Nando’s. The kids will be happy to know Toys ‘R Us is in too. And Tesco will be there to meet our household grocery needs too. That will save lots of time and money for customers who currently shop at Tesco Mutiara Damansara.

No mention if the tunnel to/from Jalan Bahagia will also open the same day though. Let's hope it does! I expect our condo value to appreciate further - another RM50k perhaps? For the record I 'heard' recent sale was in the RM380,000 region.

Full article in  The Star yesterday. Check out Paradigm's website! Please note this site is not affiliated to the developer as this is stated at the foot of the page - Disclaimer : This site is not affiliated or associated with WCT company *

Fire!

Some old news about a fire that broke out in unit A306 on November 1, 2010. According to reliable eyewitness accounts this is what I gather happened.

The occupants were in at the time and the fire broke out in the kitchen as the housewife was cooking. She grabbed her infant and ran out of the condo and her screams alerted some neighbors. Before long the guards were summoned along with the Bomba and Police.

Two of our guards and another three of the management guys helped put out the fire. Thanks to their actions the fire did not spread to the rest of the condo. The kitchen however was a total loss. I understand the Bomba arrived about 30 minutes later or more. Even the Police arrived before them. I reckon the Bomba were from the SS2 station - wow, talk about pathetic!

Zenith Residences Launched

Article from The Star dated 24 October 2010


Horrors! Zenith condo with 358 units was launched yesterday and a friend who went over to check out the launch informed that over 70 per cent sold. He said the condo only came with one parking lot - what rubbish.

Recent Memo from Management on Suspicious Persons

Management posted a memo on notice boards about a few suspicious looking persons seen loitering at blocks A and C recently. I asked around and some residents confirmed that these scoundrels are probably also responsible for 'fixing' the lobby locking mechanism so that it could not lock. Not too difficult as they would just need to prevent the circuit from connecting by sticking a piece of paper, etc onto the metal/magnetic section on the door.

Anyway a unit (or more) has been broken into recently. Do be alert and notify the guards if you see anything suspicious.

SSTwo Mall Adds Value to Community of SS2

Thursday, 25 February 2010 Designed as a community enclave and located in the centre of a popular residential suburb and commercial centre in Petaling Jaya, SStwo Mall is set to bring new commerce opportunities and enhance the quality of life for residents of SS2.

With a tagline “It’s almost home”, the developers promises a ‘mall that cares’ - made possible through initiatives aimed at adding value to the vibrant community of SS2. Scheduled for opening in the third quarter of this year, the RM180 million project is developed by Asian Retail Mall Fund II (ARMF II) and is strategically located along SS2/72, Petaling Jaya.

Worst yet to come for Kota Damansara folk

Mar 10, 2010 IF you think the traffic in Kota Damansara is bad, brace yourself for a worsening situation as another 48 projects are coming up in the busy and hyped-up district.

The main road, Persiaran Surian, that is already chock-a-block with vehicles during peak hours, is to accommodate the projects all located within a 15km radius.

Some of the projects are being constructed while the others will take off in the near future. These projects were all approved under the previous administration while other developers are eyeing the lands in the lucrative location.

The 10-year-old Persiaran Surian, which is a two-lane road, is already servicing busy commercial buildings including Sunway Giza, Carrefour, Giant and Dataran Sunway, schools as well as a cluster of high-rise residential buildings. The Star

Woes, Woes, Traffic Woes!

For those who are unfortunate to have to use the LDP it is a terrible mess each work day morning and also evening. Somehow traffic has increased so much that it can take up to 15 minutes to get past the St. Ignatius church. Of course if you jump queue as most people do maybe you can make it in 3 minutes.

All said, I believe the bulk of the increase is due to the vehicles entering Jalan SS7/19 (at Plaza Glomac) from the North-South highway after exiting the toll. I have tried using the longer route using the Kelana Puteri traffic light to turn into Jalan Bahagia. Problem is traffic is jammed up and you have a long wait before you can get past the junction. Once through it is easy driving until I reach the Taman Bahagia LRT traffic junction - more madness! Argggghhhhh!

SYABAS

I hope many of us would have had reason to smile when we got our first water bill from Syabas earlier this month - after paying cutthroat rates for the past ten years I got free water as my bill was RM9! The first twenty cubic metres (equivalent to RM11.40) of water is FREE courtesy of Selangor state's investment body - Kumpulan Darul Ehsan Bhd (KDEB).

My monthly usage as per the old tariff was between RM12 - RM15 a month so I stand to save up to RM180 a year. It may not be a major sum but for me (and I think most would agree) it is the principle. What on earth was the previous uncaring state government doing for us???

Jalan Harapan project back on track

The Star - Jan 5, 2010

Happenings In KDP

First some good news! You would have received your final water bill from management by now and the next bills will be issued by Syabas meaning we will pay the actual rate of RM0.57 per cubic metre (1st 20 cubic metres) if I am not mistaken. We have been paying a hefty RM1.38 per cubic metre all this while.

I believe there are 5 units which did not comply and I think at least 2 of them were NEVER occupied from day one, namely A1108 and D203. The other units are A1001, D905 and D108 (I think it has been foreclosed by a bank).

Next is the issue of erecting a billboard on the piece of land near block B which has met some resistance from the Resident's Association (RA). Personally I feel it should go ahead as it will earn us some income (anyone knows how much?) and the opponents should also realise that we are paying one of the lowest maintenance charges in PJ. If they want it to remain they had better come up with a brilliant idea or just shut up.

Taragon Puteri Kelana

If you have been to the Giant Hypermart in Kelana recently you may have noticed a booth promoting this development. It is located near the Shell petrol kiosk beside Giant. My guess is where the plants nursery is right now.

PROJECT DETAILS

LOCATION : KELANA JAYA - Fronting LDP, good exposure, possible accessibility from Paradigm Interchange subject to authorities approvals

PRICE : OFFICE SUITES - RM 432,000.00 TO RM 4,822,660.00
B/U : from 1,051 sf to 1,387 sf, 60 units, service charges : RM 0.50 p.s.f.

LAND TENURE : FREEHOLD

EXPECTED DATE OF COMMENCEMENT : 3rd Quarter 2009

EXPECTED DATE OF COMPLETION : 31st August 2011

PARKING : 319 Carpark bays & card access system for office Tower carpark floor.

OTHER : - Landscaped Piazza in front of shopoffices, Facing the LDP.

- All shopoffices with Individual lifts, with minimum frontage of 26 feet

- All office suites come with it's own toilet & balcony. Hidden compartment for aircon compressors

- High end finishing lobby for Office Tower with security and card access system. All office floors lobbies will be finished with marble/granite/ceramic tiles.

LAUNCHING : Soft launch starting December 22nd in Giant, Kelana Jaya.

Some Peace At Last

Ever since the mamak joint closed down in late November the unruly bunch of scavengers have stopped loitering and bumming around our cafeteria. Good riddance to bad rubbish! I guess they must be off to some other unlucky condo now, bumming around and making fools of themselves.

Then again, the shop lot is open for tender and if another mamak comes in our nightmare may just return to haunt us.

2010 BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS

2009/10/23

KUALA LUMPUR, Fri: Following are the highlights of the 2010 Budget, themed "1Malaysia, Together We Prosper":

1. An allocation of RM191.5 billion, consisting of RM138.3 billion or 72.2 per cent (operating expenditure) and RM53.2 billion or 27.8 per cent (development expenditure).

2. Special payment of RM500 in December 2009 to civil servants from Grade 41 to Grade 54 or its equivalent as well as those on mandatory retirement.

3. Enhancement of tax incentives for healthcare service providers who offer services to foreign health tourists. Income tax exemption of 50 per cent on the value of increased exports will be increased to 100 per cent.


4. Individual taxpayers will be given tax relief on broadband subscription fee up to RM500 a year from 2010 to 2012.

5. Civil servants are eligible to apply for computer loans once in every three years as compared to once in every five years now.

6. Subsidies, incentives and assistance amounting to almost RM2 billion to safeguard the interest of farmers and fishermen.

7. An allocation of RM9 billion to finance infrastructure projects, including construction of roads and bridges, water supply, sewerage services, rail facilities, ports and sea services as well as airport projects.

8. An additional allocation of RM20 million for small-scale Malaysian-Indian entrepreneurs under the Tabung Kumpulan Usaha Niaga (Tekun), on top of the existing RM15-million allocation.

9. Establishing a RM200-million Creative Industry Fund to finance activities, such as film and drama productions, music, animation, advertisements and local content development. Establishing "Tabung Kebajikan Penggiat Seni" to ensure the welfare of artistes.

10. An allocation of RM20 million for 20 schools to be identified as High Performance Schools (SBT) in 2010.

11. Awarding national scholarships to 30 "creme de la creme" students strictly based on merit. These scholarship recipients will further their education in world-renowned universities.

12. Converting the National Higher Education Fund Corporation (PTPTN) loans to scholarships for students who graduate with first class honours degrees or equivalent beginning 2010.


13. Providing a 50 per cent discount on fares for long-distance services of Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) to students aged 13 and above beginning Jan 1, 2010.

14. Offering a netbook package, including free broadband service, to 100,000 local university students for a start for RM50 per month for two years, effective Jan 1, 2010.

15. An allocation of RM100 million for the PERMATA Programme to implement various programmes which emphasise early childcare and education in an integrated and organised manner.

16. Micro insurance and Takaful coverage for small-scale businessmen which will benefit from coverage ranging from RM10,000 to RM20,000 with premium as low as RM20 per month.

17. Establishment of 14 Special Corruption Sessions Courts and four Special Corruption Appeal High Courts.

18. Imposing RM50 service tax on each principal credit card and charge card, including those issued free of charge, and a service tax of RM25 a year on each supplementary card effective Jan 1, 2010.

19. All ministries and government departments are required to provide day care and education centres for children. For this, an allocation of RNM200,000 will be made available for every ministry and government department to establish day care centres.

20. Reduction of the maximum individual income tax rate from 27 percent to 26 percent, effective from the year of assessment 2010.

21. Personal relief for individual tax payers to increase from RM8,000 to RM9,000 effective from the year of assessment 2010. This means that each individual tax payer will enjoy an increase of RM1,000 in disposable income.

22. About 50,000 hardcore poor households registered with eKasih and 4,000 Orang Asli households will be given assistance to achieve the target of zero hardcore poverty in 2010. An allocation of RM41 million will be provided to improve the income and quality of life of the Orang Asli community.

23. An allocation of RM48 million to implement urban poverty eradication programmes, including welfare assistance and house rental payments. The Ministry of Federal Territories shall now be known as the Ministry of Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing.

24. The National Housing Department to provide 74,000 low-cost houses to be rented in 2010.

25. EPF to launch a scheme that enables contributors to utilise current and future savings in Account 2 to enable them to obtain higher financing to buy higher value or additional houses.

26. An allocation of RM224 million to the disabled for the implementation of the Rehabilitation In The Community Programme and an allocation of RM174 million for senior citizens, including assistance as well as the construction and upgrading of two Rumah Seri Kenangan.

27. Increasing the allowance rate from RM50 to RM150 a month for every disabled child enrolled in NGO-organised special schools effective Jan 1, 2010.

28. Establishment of 1Malaysia Retirement Scheme for the self-employed, such as taxi drivers, hawkers, farmers and fishermen, to be administered by the EPF.

29. Effective immediately, employees' EPF contribution will revert to 11 per cent on a voluntary basis.

30. Construction of 510 km of rural roads and 316 km of village roads with an allocation of RM857 million, including roads to be constructed in Kapit, Lawas and Simunjan in Sarawak as well as Kinabatangan, Kota Belud and Keningau in Sabah. -- BERNAMA

Celebrities robbed

Malay Mail 14 October 2009

Parking Lots in KDP

For the benefit of the new or soon-to-be residents of KDP I'd share what I know about the parking situation in the condo.

Firstly each unit were allotted one (1) parking bay each and during the first year (2000) most of the ground level lots were sold on first-come-first-served basis. A single bay cost RM15,000 and I know that if an owner surrendered their single lot they only had to pay RM7,500 to "exchange" for a tandem lot.

There are two levels (about 60 bays) of parking lots in the multi-level located near blocks A and C which are available for sale at RM11,000 but as it takes about four to five turns to get up there these are mostly unsold. The lots (if available) are rentable at RM80 per month. Contact the Perantara marketing reps at the number posted on this home page. Individual owners usually charge between RM100 - RM150 if the lots are on the ground level.

If any of you have wondered why trucks cannot enter the lobby area to load/unload goods it is because the original "Loading Area" has been sold to owners. You can see from the extra ceiling height near the lobby area that these were intended for that specific purpose. Remember this when you do eventually shift out someday!

As for the visitor lots outside the perimeter wall of our condo I think there are at least 60 lots there. I have no idea whether residents are allowed to park their second/third cars there but my guess is not. But trust me there must be a few "freeloaders" doing it anyway.

The Paradigm

The residents of KDP together with other residents in the area who have been enduring the horrendous traffic snarls made worse by the just about completed (except for road resurfacing) drainage work at the Kelana Medical junction and now the Jalan Emas junction.

The Paradigm will consist of a shopping mall with 500,000 sq ft of lettable retail space, four grade A office buildings of 31 to 33 storeys high and two blocks of 27- and 30-storey small-office-home-office (SOHO).

Signages Installed

For those who may not have noticed the alphabet signs (road level and on each block) were installed last week. The road signs are in white alphabet on a red background and the 2-D signs are located at the level 3 exterior of every block. This should make locating correct block easier for casual and first-time visitors and sundry suppliers (telecommunications, courier services, etc).