THE Penang Government is getting fewer complaints from developers since the implementation of new housing guidelines for the island in the second half of last year.

State Local Government and Traffic Management Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow said the number of visits made by developers to see him about complaints had gone down.

?The Penang Municipal Council has also become more pro-active and their work process has improved,? he told reporters after delivering a talk at the i-Property Talk organised by the Red Tomato Penang Free Newspaper. His topic was on how the local government could help developers.

State Town and Country Planning, Housing, and Arts Committee chairman Wong Hon Wai, who launched the event, said MPPP had received seven applications for housing development projects on the island under the new state housing guidelines.

?In return for higher density, developers have to abide by certain conditions such as selling 5% of the project?s units below RM200,000, 5% below RM500,000 and 10% below RM300,000,? he said.

Real Estate Housing Developers? Association Penang chairman Datuk Jerry Chan said that the revised guideline for density on the island allowed a built-up area of 2.8 sq ft to be developed for every sq ft of land compared to less than 1 sq ft for every sq ft previously.

?This guideline, however, does not apply to developers who want to build super condominiums,? he said.

SOURCE: The Star