City&Country: Cyberjaya gets first retail development

Retail development Galleria@Cyberjaya by Emerald Domain Development Sdn Bhd has yet to be launched but there is already an anchor tenant for the project.

It has been touted to be the first retail development in Cyberjaya, and offers 16 six-storey (en bloc) shop offices with a gross development value of over RM90 million. The 1.3-acre freehold project is situated next to Prima Avenue, the current F&B hub in Cyberjaya.

Built-ups for the units are 6,771 to 11,000 sq ft, with prices ranging from RM4.2 million to RM8 million, or from RM630 psf. Five of the units have been taken up by e-pay (M) Sdn Bhd, which has over 400 employees, says Choong Wei Min, project director of Emerald Domain.

He adds that the developer is considering keeping some of the units or even setting up a hotel in Galleria@Cyberjaya but no decisions have been made yet.

Emerald Domain is a joint venture (JV) between construction outfit Pembinaan Punca Cergas Sdn Bhd (PPC) and Perak-based property developer Chye Hin Development Sdn Bhd. This is the second project by the JV and its first near the Klang Valley.

PPC and its JV partner Glomac Bhd, via PPC Glomac Sdn Bhd, are developers of the RM1.2 billion township Bandar Seri Permaisuri in Cheras and the new 169-acre township in Sungai Buloh called Aman Putri. PPC Glomac is also the project manager of Galleria@Cyberjaya with Choong as the lead project coordinator at the company.

Meanwhile, Chye Hin Development has been around for over 30 years and is currently developing its lifestyle commercial units called Atrio @ Lang Valley in Ipoh. Chye Hin’s past projects include Balinese-themed luxury bungalows called Racing Circle Balinese Villas, the Taman Bercham Idaman mixed-use development and Mahkota Wira Condominium in Ipoh.

With five units sold, there are only 11 units left for sale at Galleria@Cyberjaya. “We only have 11 blocks to launch and it will be an opportunity for companies and individuals to have a 6-storey flexible-use shopoffice block. Only some of the blocks offer the option of purchase by level or floor,” says Choong.

“Galleria@Cyberjaya is located in the upmarket commercial area at the centre of Cyberjaya. We will provide the Cyberjaya population a wider array of lively workspaces, food and conveniences. CIMB and Maybank are also adjacent to our site.

“All our units have dual frontage with one end facing a 40-foot wide covered gallery. Visitors walking through this covered atrium will be surrounded by cafes, restaurants and retail outlets. Visitors will also be able to easily view the first to third levels of the retail units, giving all units, even on the upper floors, maximum exposure,” he reveals.

The developer is also implementing some green features to the development. “We are definitely keen on green and Galleria@Cyberjaya has a number of green building design features such as its green parking concept, which covers two basement levels.

“Basement two is semi-sunken and mostly designated parking. Both levels enjoy natural ventilation and lighting. Compared with conventional basement parking, the reduction of carbon footprint in this design equals an amount that requires 240 mature trees to offset and it lowers operating costs substantially. A vertical green landscape forms part of the perimeter of the parking podium both inside and out,” says Choong.

The drop-off area at the grand entrance and the unloading bay along the elevated driveway do not require parking tickets, for the convenience of the public and tenants. The visitors’ parking area is at street level for added user friendliness, good visual orientation and natural surveillance.

The green features include even the façade of the buildings. “The façade of each block or unit has carefully designed deep overhang shading the windows that reduces heat gain to the interior by 50%. This overhang doubles as the service ledge, making building maintenance easy and cost effective,” explains Choong.

Galleria@Cyberjaya will also have MSC-compliant features to support the needs of technological companies.

The project is expected to be launched by the end of October, and for a limited period, the developer will be offering a 3% discount to early bird buyers and free SPA legal fees. “We are also offering a developer interest-bearing scheme for the project. Already, we have an anchor tenant for the development that will have over 400 employees to support the retail and F&B tenants of the building,” says Choong.

He adds that AmFirst Real Estate Investment Trust has also recently proposed the RM133 million acquisition of the Prima 9 and 10 office buildings with 111,224 sq ft of office space near Galleria@Cyberjaya.

Choong believes Cyberjaya is seeing rapid development with strong growth potential, citing Budget 2012 in which the government announced that a total of 7,700 houses will be built in Cyberjaya and neighbouring Putra Heights in Selangor, Seremban, Damansara and Bukit Raja in Klang. 

“The population in these areas will increase, supporting the retail potential of investment property in fast-growing areas like Cyberjaya,” he says.

“To meet the demand for affordable houses of those earning below RM3,000 per month, the government launched the My First Home Scheme in March 2011. In the recent budget, the government also proposed to increase the ceiling price of houses purchased under this scheme from a maximum of RM220,000 to RM400,000.

“This improved scheme will encourage the population to purchase homes in areas close to Cyberjaya and Putrajaya, where house prices are in that range,” says Choong. Without revealing any details, he adds that Emerald Domain is looking at future JV projects in Kuala Lumpur.

This article appeared in City & Country, the property pullout of The Edge Malaysia, Issue 880, Oct 17-23, 2011