This article first appeared in City & Country, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 4, 2019 - November 10, 2019

City of Elmina, a township by Sime Darby Property Bhd, is getting bigger. It is adding on 1,500 acres — in the form of an industrial precinct called Elmina Business Park — to its existing 5,000 acres.

For those not familiar with City of Elmina, they may be surprised to know that the journey from Kuala Lumpur city centre is not as arduous as they might think. With improved infrastructure, the township, home to more than 40,000 people, is easily accessible.

Moreover, the Damansara-Shah Alam Elevated Expressway (DASH), which is under construction, is expected to reduce travel time between the township and the Penchala interchange by 15 to 20 minutes.

The design concept adopted by City of Elmina is wellness and sustainability. This is reflected by the open spaces made available for the residents to exercise and places for them to mingle and enjoy meals together.

However, residential and commercial properties are not the only components of the township. According to general manager of business unit 1 Appollo Leong, Elmina Business Park will be a boon to the area as the companies there will provide employment.

“We cannot keep on building and selling houses. We also need to bring in businesses and increase footfall in the area. People should not only come here to live but also to work,” he says.

The land was acquired from Sime Darby Plantation in 2015 and 2016, and initially slated for a mixed-use development.

“When we first started, the site was supposed to be part of Selangor Vision City and one of four townships. At the time, market studies showed that it would be good to have a fusion city — a place that attracts Gen Y buyers... basically, a hip area,” says Leong.

“When I came on board, I reviewed the master plan because the proposal was not suitable ... it will cannibalise [similar offerings in] City of Elmina as we are already doing a lot of residential and hip stuff. So, we scraped the plan and focused on developing an industrial precinct.”

Leong says the strategic location makes it ideal for an industrial precinct. Highways near the township include the Guthrie Corridor Expressway, Kuala Lumpur-Kuala Selangor Expressway and North-South Expressway. Thanks to the online business boom, Elmina Business Park could become an ideal last-mile delivery point.

Industrial development is not new to Sime Darby Property. It has developed such properties in its townships such as Bandar Bukit Raja in Klang as well as in City of Elmina’s Elmina East precinct, although on a smaller scale.

According to Leong, the Elmina East precinct’s industrial land covers 177 acres. The industrial lots, which come with the necessary infrastructure, were launched in 2013 with prices ranging from RM4.2 million to RM12.37 million, or RM86 to RM94 psf. The lots are fully taken up and the factories used mainly for warehousing purposes.Leong says the overwhelming response was due to its strategic location.

However, being only 177 acres, it did not allow for further expansion and growth. Hence, with Elmina Business Park, new possibilities emerged, such as developing an industrial eco-system, he explains.

“If you have 200 to 300 acres, you don’t have scale. That is what we experienced when we did this industrial area in the Elmina East precinct. It is not big enough to support facilities such as staff quarters.

“For the upcoming Elmina Business Park, we are looking at building staff quarters. You can’t build for a few hundred people ... you need to build for a few thousand workers.”

The Elmina Business Park, which has an estimated gross development value of RM6.6 billion, will be developed in four phases, and each phase will have several subphases due to the size of the land.

Currently, construction work for the first phase, which will comprise 89 industrial plots, 121 open-market factories and 93 low-cost factories, is underway.

There will be semi-detached and detached factories. The semidee factories — with built-ups of 6,000 sq ft — are priced at about RM3 million while the detached factories — with built-ups of 12,000 sq ft — around RM6 million.

The industrial plots, which will come with infrastructure, are selling for RM95 psf. Twenty-eight lots were launched in August and half of them have been taken up.

Facilities will include a business support centre, staff quarters, recreational facilities such as a futsal centre and day care centres, and walkways and bicycle lanes. To reflect City of Elmina’s design concept, the well-being of workers and employers will be given priority.

To support the industrial eco-system, Leong says the developer is working with external parties. “We are working with several partners. For example, one partner is bringing in workers for the factories and logistics companies … getting workers is one of the biggest challenges for industrialists, especially the foreign ones. This company specialises in sourcing for foreign workers.

“We are going to have staff quarters with canteens. There will be transport for them to go to work. We are also building jogging and cycling tracks.

“The other thing we are looking at is the ‘software’ [in making things easier for businesses]. If you are a foreign company and you want to set up a business in Malaysia, you may face some difficulties in getting approvals. So, we will provide assistance in that area. We can help link them to Invest Selangor or the Malaysian Investment Development Authority, if required.

“On the building aspect, we will help them set up factories according to their specifications.”

Infrastructure at Elmina Business Park will include roads, water tanks, a sewage treatment plant and electricity and telecommunications ducting.

Leong says Sime Darby Property will select the businesses for the industrial park to create a conducive and sustainable environment. “This is targeted marketing to ensure that the right tenants are in the industrial park.

“Some of the industrial lots and facilities will be for sale as we need cash flow. But the bulk of them will be owned by Sime Darby Property and will be leased out.

“We will have a few business models. One is where we sell the industrial lots and the buyers build their own factories. The second model is the sale of factories. The third is the building of factories based on the requirements of the clients and then lease the factories to them.”

All the industrial lots will have individual titles but Sime Darby Property will ensure security by providing fencing and guardhouses. As an added security measure, there will only be one entrance. “The advantage here is that there is no maintenance fee ... you just have to pay for the security guards,” says Leong.

The maintenance of the sold sections of Elmina Business Park will be handled by the local council while the Sime Darby Property-owned factories will be maintained by the developer, he adds.

With the logistics sector growing in tandem with the booming e-commerce market, City of Elmina looks well-poised to achieve its goal of building a sustainable industrial eco-system.

City of Elmina updates

Sime Darby Property Bhd will be launching its first stratified landed development in City of Elmina soon.

“We are going to have our first multigenerational stratified landed development in Elmina East,” says general manager of business unit 1 Appollo Leong.

“There will four property types: 18ft by 60ft, 20ft by 60ft, 22ft by 65ft and 24ft by 65ft. There are a few reasons for this. One of them is that we are going to target different markets. First-time house buyers, young couples and young families will likely buy the smaller units. The older families and upgraders will probably buy the larger ones. We want these groups to live together. The launch is scheduled for the end of the year.”

Sime Darby Property’s latest commercial offering is Temu, a 70-shoplot commercial project that will provide more food and beverage options for the residents.

“In this area, we have an anchor tenant, which will select the tenants,” says Leong. “We will bring in F&B operators and maybe have community facilities, tuition centres, nurseries ... perhaps a banquet hall that can accommodate 50 tables. We’ll be working with a leasing agent to bring in the businesses. The good thing is, Temu is fronting a proposed teaching hospital.”

Temu, which was recently previewed, has received 60% firm bookings to date. There are 58 two-storey units and 12 three-storey units. The 2-storey intermediate units with built-ups of 3,078 to 3,834 sq ft are priced at RM1.39 million upwards, or RM452 psf, while the 3-storey corner units with built-ups of 7,549 to 7,760 sq ft are going for RM2.57 million upwards, or RM340 psf. The estimate yield of the units is 4% to 5%.

Meanwhile, Sime Darby Property is handing over Elmina Green 1 houses, which is the first phase of the Elmina Green precinct, to their buyers. The average price of the houses at launch was RM700,000. The project boasts parks, amenities and commercial outlets. A new road, which will be opened early next year, will provide direct access to the Guthrie Corridor Expressway

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