The Greater Bukit Bintang.

NST featured a very good article, an interview with property guru Gavin Tee as well as map maker Mr Ho Chin Soon - an article on Greater Bukit Bintang. Yes, we already have Greater Kuala Lumpur and Greater Klang Valley, and looking at the local area of Bukit Bintang - the name GREATER BUKIT BINTANG is ideal for this area.

Mr Gavin Tee had said that KLIFD will take 10-15 years before it can be a stiff competitor to Bukit Bintang. I would like to comment on that a bit - in my opinion, the Kuala Lumpur International Financial District (KLIFD), together with the Warisan Merdeka development as well as the Bandar 1Malaysia and perhaps the Pudu Jail Redevelopment will only make Bukit Bintang better. In fact, I believe it is about time that we filter the area a bit.

With the immense amount of office space to be offered at the developments above, I believe it would be about time the offices start shifting out of buildings within the Bukit Bintang Shopping Zone - and slowly these buildings will be converted into luxury or niche retail places. I was in Hong Kong two weeks ago, and mind you, it is about time that we have restaurants in the middle of a building (say... 18th floor or so), or even retailers on the upper floors, instead of just being in shopping malls.

Pavilion Kuala Lumpur.

If you ask me, I foresee that one day - say 10 years time, Bukit Bintang would be a 90% shopping district. It will become the Orchard Road and Tsim Sha Tsui of Kuala Lumpur. Office tenants would gradually shift out and expand to newer buildings at KLIFD and the Warisan Merdeka areas, allowing more retail space on this side. I foresee a lot of the buildings at Jalan Bukit Bintang / Jalan Sultan Ismail - such as BB Plaza, Sungei Wang, all the way til Royale Bintang Hotel undergoing renovations and upgrades to their buildings. More hotels will spring up in the area, both on the high end, as well as on the budget levels. Bukit Bintang will truly become a shopping hub of Malaysia.

Jalan Alor.

I would foresee that new 'attractions' - such as upmarket restaurants, upmarket lounges and bistros, clubs, and various different types of shopping experiences to mushroom within the area. In my opinion, it would be perfect if they could close up Jalan Alor to cars after 6pm everyday, making it a full pedestrian zone, as well as parts of Jalan Bukit Bintang too. It is about time we rejuvenate the area further and it takes the cooperation of everyone at Bukit Bintang to do this.

I feel that making this place a 'walkthrough' would be an essential step, as our walkways/corridors are seriously too 'tight' for pedestrians to walk around freely - unlike the super wide walkway in front of Ngee Ann City at Orchard Road. =) I wrote about improving the pedestrian connectivity as well as security last year after our PM announced the new 'linkbridge' at the ETP and I still feel the same way now.

...and the remark on the high speed rail, I would think that it can increase the number of tourists in Kuala Lumpur. But the possibility of Malaysians staying in Kuala Lumpur and working in Singapore via high speed rail, I think that likelihood wont happen yet, at least not for the next 20-25 years. =)

I want to see a lot more upscale retailers in Kuala Lumpur; those crossover shops, luxury names, rare names, more names like BAPE and Yohji Yamamoto, as well as Hermes and Louis Vuitton around. Bukit Bintang can be a shopping haven....

After all, who said there can only be 1 LV on Jalan Bukit Bintang?