Naim Holdings Berhad has today launched the first phase of Bintulu Paragon, one of the largest integrated development projects within the Bintulu and Sibu region. Naim Deputy Chief Operating Officer Leong Jee Van has highlighted the unique investment potential for the project – with Bintulu Paragon redefining the dining and shopping experience in Sarawak.

KUCHING: Naim Hoilding Bhd has launched Phase 1 of its Bintulu Paragon integrated development with property showcases held in Bintulu and Sibu from today till to Feb 14.

The project, to be developed in two phases at the old Bintulu Airport site, integrates residential, business, retail and hospitality components. It is slated to become a one-stop hub that has a multi-faceted lifestyle experience.

Upon completion, it will offer 1.4 million sq ft of retail space, small versatile office (SOVO) and conventional office suites, condominium units, office towers and hotels.

Naim deputy chief operating officer for property, Leong Jee Van highlighted Bintulu Paragon as “the largest integrated development to impact Bintulu”.

“It will change the town’s skyline with tall condominium buildings, sleek office towers and iconic structures. We are currently launching the street mall component first,” he said.

Explaining further, Leong said a street mall was something similar to a shopping mall but with cheaper entry cost for investors. Hence, it would provide buyers with good investment propositions.

“A typical shopping mall in Sarawak, Sabah, Penang or Johor may cost you RM1,500 to RM2,500 per sq ft, but our street mall starts from as low as RM898 per sq ft to RM1,123 per sq ft. So it’s quite affordable but at the same time, it’s a good investment potential,” he added, citing other well-known street malls such as the Sunway Giza, Curve and Pavillion in Peninsular Malaysia as examples.

“When Giza started, its price per block was approximately RM2.5mil while monthly rental was around RM14,000 to RM17,000 per block, depending on types. Now, each block can command approximately RM5mil in value while monthly rental hovers around RM16,000 to RM19,500.

“It (Bintulu Paragon street mall) is definitely worth some serious consideration among property investors,” he said, highlighting the mall as having unique designs.

“Firstly, it is built to meet the certification standards of the Construction Quality Assessment System (CONQUAS), an globally recognised benchmark for construction quality. Each unit is 24ft (over 7m) wide — larger than a normal shophouse unit in Sarawak.

“It’s also chicly designed, comprising trendy retail lots centred around an al fresco piazza, which is landscaped with water features. It has the largest covered car park, with more than 1,000 spaces and also the longest covered walkway which is approximately 300m, in Sarawak,” he said.

Notably, Leong said the street mall had a seamless and comprehensive network of highly visible bridges and escalators inter-connecting each floor, making access easier to patrons.

“Business owners should be able to operate their business smoothly as the entire area is shaded. Patrons are also able to shop comfortably within a temperature-moderated environment, made available through the installation of cooling points at strategic locations. As the street mall is designed to capitalise on natural ventilation rather than that provided by air-conditioning facility, it is also environmentally friendly,” he remarked, adding that the street mall would be managed in consultation with a renowned property management consultancy from Singapore.

It will also be provided with 24 hours’ security. The Bintulu Paragon street mall was designed by the award-winning Kuala Lumpur-based architect firm, SA Architects Sdn Bhd, which designed many notable developments such as the Sunway Giza, Medini Lifestyle Mall, Sunway GEO and Cyberjaya Mall. Among awards clinched by the firm were the FIABCI Malaysia Property Award of Distinction and Prix d’Excellence Award, BCI Asia, Asia Pacific Property Award, Malaysia Property Award — among others.

SA Architects director, Low Mun Wai, said: “Street malls are popular features in Kuala Lumpur as they create an exciting and lively place for shoppers. In short, its concept and ambience create a ‘destination’ that at-tracts the crowd. The gist of the development lies in its al fresco outdoor concept — street malls are the answer to Malaysia’s ‘love affair’ with al fresco dining and shopping”.

Low also believed that that this concept would work particularly well for coastal areas like Bintulu. “The street mall concept allows the capture of the breeze from the sea and channel it through the mall by way of natural ventilation, providing a relaxed and constantly breezy environment for patrons.”

Low added that Bintulu Paragon street mall would redefine dining and shopping experience in Sarawak.

“We are creating a benchmark not only for Bintulu, but also for Sarawak,” he enthused.