This article first appeared in City & Country, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on March 25, 2024 - March 31, 2024

Since the opening of its dining enclave just over a year ago, Bamboo Hills by UOA Development Bhd has become one of the Klang Valley’s most attractive destinations, offering a unique dining concept comprising individual pavilions nestled within a 16.48-acre green landscaped setting, complete with a scenic bamboo garden and waterfalls as centrepieces.

With an 80% occupancy rate to date, the dining enclave offers a wide range of gastronomic delights from the likes of Botanica+Co, Potager, Tap Room, Kampai Yakiniku, Hanam BBQ, Nok Yung, The Qing, Ginger and Locarasa.

Despite being adjacent to the DUKE Highway and Jalan Ipoh, the lush sanctuary is a world away from all the hustle and bustle nearby. UOA Development has certainly set the stage for the launch of Bamboo Hills Residences in the second quarter of the year. The upcoming mixed-use component will be part of its 27.51-acre Bamboo Hills development.

With a gross development value of RM1.4 billion, the 9.8-acre Bamboo Hills Residences will offer 2,517 units of freehold suite apartments in three 51-storey blocks. The residential blocks will sit atop a 2½-storey retail podium, which UOA Development will own and manage.

UOA Development head of sales and marketing Frankie Choo says Bamboo Hills Residences, being a transit-oriented development directly adjacent and linked to the Kentonmen MRT station — and with its own food and beverage (F&B) and retail amenities — will offer a convenient sanctuary just minutes away from the Kuala Lumpur city centre. “At Bamboo Hill Residences, we are offering urban compact living with the convenience of having amenities and facilities within easy reach for all your daily needs,” he adds.

The suite apartments will comprise units with two bedrooms and one bathroom (built-up: 603 sq ft); two bedrooms + study and two bathrooms (732 sq ft); two bedrooms and two bathrooms (743 sq ft); and three bedrooms and two bathrooms (904 sq ft). Each unit will have one to two parking bays.  There will also be a provisional electric-vehicle charging dock allocated within the residential car park floor for the residents’ use.

“The residential units are thoughtfully planned with designated living, dining and kitchen spaces with practical [layouts] to suit lifestyle-oriented residents,” Choo adds.

All units will have a balcony and will be partly furnished with air-conditioning units for the bedrooms and living room, kitchen cabinets, a hood and hob, water heater and a digital lock for the main door.

The selling price starts from RM370,000 and the maintenance fee is 40 sen psf, inclusive of the sinking fund.

Bamboo Hills Residences will offer three facility zones — known as the splash, active and garden zones — spread across the podium deck, which will comprise a lower and upper deck on levels 8 and 8M respectively, as well as rooftop sky lounges atop the three residential towers.

“What is unique at Bamboo Hills Residences is that we have deliberately jacked up the facility podium to offer 11m of headroom, whereby we will use this double volume to provide two levels of facilities. For example, there will be a jogging track that runs from the lower to the upper deck. Our facilities are designed to promote a healthy lifestyle,” says Choo.

Other facilities at the podium deck will include a hydro gym, children’s pool, wading pool, lap pool, Bamboo Club (a chill-out area) and lazy river in the splash zone; a Zumba zone, sunken garden, playground, children’s playroom, computer and reading room, indoor games room, combat gym, outdoor gym, indoor gym, outdoor yoga deck, trampoline park, basketball court, rock climbing, table tennis, pickleball court and badminton court in the active zone; and an edible garden deck, outdoor dining, herb garden and gourmet pavilion in the garden zone.

The splash zone is quite unique, says Choo. “We will have a three-tiered pool, designed in such a way that the water depth [varies] with each tier, starting  from the wading pool at the bottom tier, followed by the children’s pool and the lap pool.

“We will also have a lazy river, an extension of the pool, that will act as a water feature as well as an activity zone, as the width of the river canal will be wide enough for people to float in.”

While the podium facilities on levels 8 and 8M will be integrated into all three residential blocks, the individual rooftop sky lounges will offer more privacy for residents of the respective blocks. “The rooftop sky lounges will offer a panoramic view of the city skyline for the relaxation and enjoyment of the residents,” says Choo.

Earthworks for Bamboo Hills Residences are currently underway and the project’s estimated completion is 54 months from the date of the sale and purchase agreement. “And of course being UOA Development, we have a very strong track record of completing our projects ahead of schedule as we have our own construction team and thus are able to better manage the construction progress,” says Choo.

The Bamboo Hills Residences’ sales gallery featuring three show units will be open to the public on March 28.

The key feature of Bamboo Hills Residences is its amenities. “Apart from the dining enclave, residents will also have lifestyle retail offerings at Bamboo Hills Residences’ retail podium, which will potentially include a supermarket, convenience store, speciality shops, cafés and restaurants. The retail podium with a net lettable area of 150,000 sq ft will be managed and owned by UOA Development and we are currently in talks with tenants from our existing developments,” says Choo.

“We also have a Starbucks outlet at our dining enclave as well as an events space, Astana, within the Bamboo Hills development.”

Another strength of the development is its strategic location. “We are basically right next to the DUKE Highway, which is a major highway connecting prominent suburbs such as Mont’Kiara, Dutamas, Sentul, Kepong, Hulu Kelang and Ampang. We believe Bamboo Hills will become a meeting point for these areas, as it is easily accessible as well,” says Choo. In addition to DUKE, the development is accessible via the Damansara-Puchong Expressway (LDP) and PLUS North-South Expressway.

“Apart from highways, we also have MRT connectivity with the existing Kentonmen MRT station situated adjacent to the development. We will build a link bridge that provides a direct connection from the development to the Kentonmen MRT station, which is seven stops from Persiaran KLCC, eight stops from Conlay and nine stops from TRX.”

The developer is currently looking at introducing a wellness component at Bamboo Hills. “The proposed Bamboo Hills Wellness Centre will encapsulate a community-focused approach towards wellness and we are considering the option of introducing aged-care services by Komune Care into the wellness centre to cater to the needs of the growing elderly population.

“We have already introduced aged-care services at our Komune Living & Wellness development in Cheras. However, this is still under the planning stage, as it will be very much dependent on market needs and sentiment,” says Choo.

Amenities close to Bamboo Hills include educational institutions (Chong Hwa Independent High School, SJKC (C) Mun Chong, SMK Dato Ibrahim Yaakob, Hibiscus International School) and medical centres (Taipei TCM Medical Centre, Global Doctors Specialist Centre, ParkCity Medical Centre @ Desa ParkCity, Damansara Specialist Hospital 2).

Bamboo Hills Residences is an ideal offering for the younger generation or those with extended families living nearby, says Choo. “With the convenience of the major DUKE Highway, Bamboo Hills Residences will be ideal for the younger generation of buyers or those looking to move out from their parents’ homes, but still live close enough to commute back and forth to see them. We are also targeting first-time homebuyers or investors.

“We are offering units that are value for money with low entry prices and practical layouts for easy space planning. For example, a partly furnished two-bedroom unit is priced at around RM370,000.”

The development is also an attractive option for those working in offices that are located close to the MRT line. “Based on our study of the Persiaran KLCC, Conlay and TRX MRT stations, there are more than 15 office buildings within walking distance of these stations. With the My50 Unlimited Travel Pass government initiative, living here will be an attractive option for the working population, whether as owner-occupiers or tenants,” Choo continues.

“We see that this is happening in Bangsar South as well. A lot of residents in Bangsar South are not working there, but in areas such as KL Sentral and KLCC. So most of them rely on the MRT and LRT. Further, rents in Bangsar South are more attractive, compared with say renting in KLCC.

“We believe the younger generation values convenience on a daily basis, in terms of public transport, highways and, of course, retail and F&B establishments. Also, there are a lot more people taking public transport now, instead of driving. With Bamboo Hills’ integrated residential and retail components as well as dining enclave, we want to offer our customers a new living experience.”

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