KUALA LUMPUR: The Ministry of Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing (KWPKB) and the Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM) have jointly organised a 2020 Countdown Clock Urban Design Competition that is now open for public voting.

The public can go to vote.pam.org.my. to vote for their favourite design for the countdown clock to be located at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur. Public voting commenced on Aug 27 and will close on Sept 13. Each person is allowed one vote.

According to the competition brief, the objective is to choose a design for a countdown clock towards 2020 that retains a purpose after the year 2020. The design must enhance the significance and urban design of the site as well as complement the site’s historical importance. The site covers the northern end of Dataran Merdeka. The budget for the project must not exceed RM2 million.

The public is invited to vote for their favourite design from shortlisted entries in two categories — the open category and the professional category.

The competition is divided into two stages. In stage 1, a jury’s adjudication contributes 80% of the marks for the shortlisted entries. The judging panel includes the president of PAM, the mayor of Kuala Lumpur, Datuk Yasmin Yusuf and some PAM-nominated eminent local and foreign architects. This result has already been obtained and is being held in a sealed envelope at the ministry’s audit department until after the public voting. Stage 2 is the public voting which will contribute 20% of the marks. The criteria for judging are design excellence and appropriateness to the context of the site, environmental sustainability and economic viability.

There will be a winner from each category, and the winning design from the professional category will be the one that will grace Dataran Merdeka. The prizes for the winners in the open category are RM7,000, RM5,000, RM3,000 and RM1,000 each for two honourable mention winners. The prizes for the professional category are 10 times the value.

PAM chief executive Paul Lai Chu commented that the response has been better than expected. There were more than 100 open category registrations with more than 60 being sent to the jury for judging. Lai added that he hopes this competition and the prizes will encourage and inspire those in the open category to aim to become professional architects.

“The competition also serves to promote public appreciation of well-designed urban spaces, the importance of public arts and to remind us of our vision and mission to be a fully developed nation by 2020,” he said.


This article appeared on the Property page, The Edge Financial Daily, September 9, 2011.

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