This article first appeared in City & Country, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on July 17, 2023 - July 23, 2023

Sunway Velocity in Kuala Lumpur is a vibrant township today, nine years after it was first launched and developed by Sunway Group’s property arm, Sunway Property. Sitting on sites formerly occupied by light industrial lots, old workshops and squatter homes, Sunway Velocity is modelled after Sunway City Kuala Lumpur and its formula that has transformed a mining wasteland into a thriving township.

A stratified mixed-use development, Sunway Velocity comprises six key components: residential (V Residence Suite, V Residence 2 and V Residence 3 with 1,338 units of serviced apartments in total); commercial (V Office, V Office 2, Designer Office, Signature Office 1 and Signature Office 2 with 745 units of office suites and shops, and Visio Tower); hospitality (Sunway Velocity Hotel); education (Sunway University); healthcare (Sunway Velocity Hospital); and retail (Sunway Velocity Mall with 1.4 million sq ft of retail space).

The integrated development, bounded by Jalan Peel, Jalan Cheras and Jalan Shelly, is also designed based on the 5Ds of transit-oriented development principles: density, diversity, design, distance to transit, and destination accessibility. Located 3.8km from the city centre, Sunway Velocity is connected to two MRT stations (Cochrane and Maluri) via covered linked bridge walkways as well as to major roads namely Jalan Cheras, Jalan Peel, Jalan Pudu, Jalan Loke Yew and Jalan Tun Razak and highways such as the SMART Tunnel, Kuala Lumpur-Seremban Highway, New Pantai Expressway, Maju Expressway and Besraya Eastern Extension Expressway.

The administration of the 23-acre mixed-use development, while still governed by the Joint Management Body (JMB), is currently structured as multiple components under one Management Corporation (MC) with sub-MCs. By doing so, all internal service roads and infrastructure will be owned, controlled and maintained by the MC. Common infrastructure namely Velo Garden (a two-acre public park), Nanjing Street (a vehicle-free elevated walkway that links the entire development to the MRT and LRT interchange stations), the pedestrian bridge, common roads and landscape are overseen by Sunway Property & Facility Management Sdn Bhd (SPFM).

Sunway Velocity has picked up the Bronze award at The Edge Malaysia Best Managed & Sustainable Property Awards 2023 under the Below 10 Years — Mixed Development (Entire) category.

Just like Sunway’s other integrated townships and developments, Sunway Velocity leverages the group’s build-own-operate model to ensure lifelong growth for the development’s community, says Sunway Property senior executive director of property development division (central region) Chong Sau Min in an email interview.

“With the build-own-operate business model, Sunway remains the largest investor in Sunway Velocity, owning 63.5% of the entire Sunway Velocity development. As part of the community with an interest in long-term growth in terms of ensuring good property management, good traffic management and capital appreciation, our interests are aligned with those of the community. We also look to ensure that the development is continuously improved and well maintained as a whole in order for the resident and business community in Sunway Velocity to continuously thrive as well as for long-term capital appreciation and good rental yields.

“The benefits of this model of management mainly allow for the optimal maintenance of the entire development, leverage the synergies between the components without compromising the autonomy of the different components and deliver additional benefits,” he says.

Chong notes that the team ensures maintenance, repairs and upkeep are handled effectively to enhance the entire community experience while ensuring the long-term success of the development in terms of capital appreciation and continuous footfall.

“In terms of financial management, we have an equitable and transparent management of the budget while deriving cost savings from economies of scale.

“When it comes to governance, everyone has a say in a democratic decision-making process, whether it be on matters of sustainability or security. We believe this promotes transparency, accountability, collaboration and a sense of ownership. We also have standards and protocols in place to provide a useful framework for managing conflicts and disputes in accordance with the set guidelines and procedures to ensure a harmonious relationship within the community.

“We also hold social events and community activities that bring the community together to encourage a community spirit,” he shares, adding that Sunway has organised 25 community events within the development.

According to Chong, multi-owned developments of this scale can suffer from a lack of cooperation among the operators or managers of each component. “This might lead to poor maintenance, physical obsolescence, vacancies and ultimately depreciation in the value of the development. Additionally, the absence of leadership can also fail to drive the long-term success of the development and lead to a poor tenant mix, poor budgeting control and difficulties during conflict resolution.”

To mitigate such issues from arising, Sunway has a few strategic initiatives in place. “One is remaining in the development as a co-investor of the development. We can then provide leadership, good property management, and adopt all the public walkways and linkages to the public transport network from the local authorities to ensure a safe and pleasant neighbourhood,” he says. “We believe that Sunway’s continued presence in the development as well as its continuous marketing and development initiatives ensure the long-term sustainability of the development.”

The scope of maintaining and managing a development like Sunway Velocity includes infrastructure maintenance, community engagement, budgeting and financial management, promoting sustainable practices, preparing for emergencies, safety and security, as well as growth management.

“We ensure timely repairs, upgrades and proper maintenance to ensure that infrastructure is well-maintained and expenses are kept manageable; we engage and communicate with the community to effectively address concerns, foster a sense of belonging and a sense of collaboration, and facilitate access to the various components; and we balance and manage finances well and leverage the group’s networks and economies of scale to keep outgoings manageable,” says Chong.

“Additionally, we help balance development with environmental conservation and address issues such as energy efficiency and green spaces, as well as encourage sustainable practices within the community; and we ensure that everyone is aligned on emergency responses for the safety and well-being of residents especially during challenging situations such as the nationwide lockdowns due to Covid-19.

“Besides using technology to manage the safety and security of the community, one of the key initiatives we have implemented is the creation of a centralised security command centre that monitors every aspect of the security within the development. This has delivered operational efficiency, optimised resources and reduced security costs for the development. Ultimately, we also plan for long-term growth and we aim to manage growth within the community sustainably,” he adds.

Sunway Velocity is equipped with sustainable features including energy-efficient LED lighting, sleep mode function for lifts and escalators, VVVF (variable-voltage, variable-frequency) regenerative for lifts, a rainwater harvesting system, the provision of electric vehicle charging stations, bicycle parking lots and connectivity to public transport via covered link bridges.

“We also ensure the air quality is consistently maintained and prevent sick building syndrome by having our engineers conduct bi-annual audits on the maintenance and performance of the HVAC systems throughout the entire development according to the Industry Code of Practice on Indoor Air Quality 2010. We have also implemented a smoke-free policy in Sunway Velocity, conducted legionella tests, utilised non-volatile organic compound materials and fixed condensation and water leaks,” Chong adds.

One of the key factors that Chong attributes to the successful management and maintenance of Sunway Velocity is maintaining a strong relationship with the community within the development, guided by the MC and sub-MC framework. “We are in constant communication with all stakeholders within the development and we utilise technology to ensure that communication reaches everyone.

“With the different components having different intensities of use for common M&E services, facilities and common properties such as roads, parks and landscapes, SPFM adopts a fair and equitable administration of all components within the mixed-use stratified development that is aligned with the Strata Management Act. The interests of all parties are protected equitably and responsibilities are fairly shared according to their respective intensities within the development,” Chong explains. “Additionally, we also ensure a strong mix of tenants and consistent footfall for businesses within the development.”

According to Chong, Sunway Velocity has an overall occupancy rate of 85%. “We have managed to see an increase in property values of more than 30% over the last two years. We continuously work with all the stakeholders to increase footfall to the development, ensuring that it remains a vibrant community.”

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