This article first appeared in City & Country, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 3, 2025 - November 9, 2025

While the operations of many companies came to a standstill during the first Movement Control Order (MCO), Oriental Interest Bhd (KL:OIB) used that period to figure out the design and concept of its latest project, Myra Senja.

The team took the time to consider what consumers really want in their homes and, with the help of architect YHSA, those ideas have now been incorporated in Myra Senja. Undertaking the development is OIB subsidiary, Myra Land Sdn Bhd.

“What people care about is space, greenery and unblocked views. They want privacy, but they also want a little bit of community, accessibility. And ultimately, they want convenience,” says OIB chief people and growth officer Akil Hassan.

“We wanted to try to pack as much of that into the project as possible, so when we got this piece of land, which was sort of sandwiched between two other developments, the architect needed to be creative about how he wanted to orientate the buildings to allow a lot of natural light [into the units].”

Located in Subang 2, Shah Alam, Myra Senja will sit on a 5.06-acre leasehold parcel that was acquired for RM175 psf in 2021. It is a two-minute drive from DASH (Damansara-Shah Alam Elevated Expressway) providing residents with easy access to various parts of the Klang Valley.

The mixed-use project has an estimated gross development value of RM400 million and will comprise three 20-storey buildings — Towers A, B and C — and a 74,432 sq ft retail component on the ground level.

Expected to be completed in 2029, Myra Senja will be developed over two phases. Phase 1 will feature Towers A and B — the latter was launched in July and will be followed by the former at a later date. Tower C will be built in Phase 2.

Each tower will have 192 units, for a total of 576 units. Each floor will have 12 units.

A total of 96 units with built-ups of 556 sq ft will be set aside for Rumah Mampu Milik, priced from RM270,000.

The open-market units will have built-ups of 1,101 to 1,409 sq ft, three- and four-bedroom layouts, and cost RM658,600 to RM988,200.

According to OIB senior general manager Wendy Lim, some of the units, particularly the 1,101 sq ft ones, will have a different layout.

“There’s one layout where the kitchen is next to the balcony. We are challenging the norm. At the same time, we are being careful,” she says, adding that the number of this layout may be adjusted according to demand for future phases.

Akil says, “The reason why we even considered this unique configuration goes back to the MCO period when people needed to work from home, as our architect pointed out. Now the work-from-home practice is still quite prevalent. You want to work from home but you still want to be near your kitchen and you still want to be near an outdoor space, so that was the start of this kind of concept.”

For most high-rise developments, the open-­market units tend to be smaller — between 500 and 600 sq ft. However, Myra Senja’s smallest open-market unit is over 1,000 sq ft.

“This location is very close to highly sought-­after locations. You’ve got Kwasa Damansara, Ara Damansara, Subang Jaya and Elmina. Because it’s very competitive there, the kind of products are all 1,000 sq ft and below. So, there’s this gap in the market [for] larger units,” explains Akil.

The target market for Myra Senja, according to Lim, is a mix of the younger and older demographics. “[They include] young families, first-time homebuyers, young professionals and DINK — double income, no kids. When we first launched [in July], we saw a lot of young homebuyers. We may also have a lot of families that want their kids to live nearby. So, parents might want to invest in a home for them.”

Akil and Lim emphasise the importance of building a practical home that makes sense. For example, locating the yard next to the balcony allows for greater natural ventilation, Akil points out. Kitchen cabinets will be provided to reduce the need for renovation. The units will also come partially furnished, with air-conditioning units, water heaters and a hood and hob.

Other practical design elements include spreading out certain facilities — that is, not all of them will be located on the facilities podium. Instead, they will be spread across three levels: level 1 will have badminton courts and a multipurpose hall, level 3A will have a gym and reading room while the bulk of the facilities — including swimming pools, a barbecue area, outdoor gym, playground, jogging loop, orchard garden and reflexology area — will be located on level 5. The maintenance fee, inclusive of the sinking fund, is set to be around 38 sen psf.

The developer is providing 74,432 sq ft of retail space on the ground level. “The retail space will be quite sizeable, but we didn’t want to make it too big that you start seeing a lot of outsiders,” says Akil.

“We have made it just large enough to have maybe one grocer, a few F&B outlets, maybe a pharmacy or convenience store. It’s sizeable in the sense that it will cater for the needs of the residents and nearby communities, but it will not attract a lot of outsiders. The retail space, we will manage ourselves, we’re not going to sell [the units].”

The three high-rise blocks in Myra Senja will be identical in design, making it more cost efficient when constructing them, Akil and Lim point out. Drones were used to ensure that the views of the units and their orientation will be just right.

Other cost-saving measures include incorporating sustainable building materials and green features such as a rainwater harvesting system for landscape irrigation, water-efficient sanitary fittings and glazed windows to reduce heat gain and cooling loads. Furthermore, the appliances provided in every unit will be energy-efficient.

The building orientation will allow for cross ventilation and plenty of natural light to reduce the need for artificial cooling and lighting, while green landscaped facilities will decrease heat retention and promote community wellness. The integrated commercial and retail areas will reduce the need for frequent travel and support a lower carbon footprint. The developer also plans to use timers for lights in the common areas to help keep electricity costs low.

Besides Damansara-Shah Alam Elevated Expressway (DASH), Myra Senja is accessible via the North-South Expressway Central Link (ELITE) and local access roads of Persiaran Angkasa and Persiaran Kosmos.

In terms of the lack of public transport in the vicinity, Akil says, “We do not see this as a concern. The recently opened DASH provides excellent connectivity to Damansara, Guthrie Corridor [Expressway] and Puncak Alam. Meanwhile, the nearest MRT stations — Kwasa Sentral and Kwasa Damansara — are only about 5km away, and with the Rapid on-demand service, residents can easily connect to public transport hubs.”

Amenities within a 10km radius include shopping malls such as Star Avenue Lifestyle Mall, Emporis Kota Damansara and Elmina Lakeside Mall; schools and universities like HELP University, Pine Hills International School Shah Alam, TLS International School Kota Damansara and Asia Pacific Schools; and medical facilities such as Thomson Hospital Kota Damansara and Sunway Specialist Centre Damansara. For nature lovers, there are the Kota Damansara Community Forest Reserve and Bukit Jelutong Eco Community Park.

OIB’s Myra projects vary in size and product offerings, from landed precincts to standalone buildings. So, how does Myra Senja contribute to the brand’s message of creating a lifestyle and community?

Lim says, “We want to create value for any project that we are developing, be it landed or high-rise. I think it’s just giving the best that we can for an area. For example, for Myra Senja, we created what is relevant for this market, for this area. We’re not only targeting to build affordable or high-end or landed property. Our direction is, wherever we go, to raise the bar, to create value for our buyers.”

Akil concurs, saying: “We’ve always prided ourselves on our desire for practical designs. Even when we work with our consultants, practicality has always been at the root of all our designs. We don’t want to build something that is just for show or embellished unnecessarily. It is also always about liveability — what do people really, really want?

“Especially now, when we are catering for a new wave of homebuyers. They are a lot more informed, younger and place a lot of emphasis on lifestyle needs. The tricky part is how do you meet those expectations with this new mindset?”

The developer has several future projects already in the pipeline. “We have several exciting launches lined up over the next 12 months. There is Myra Senadi, serviced apartments in Sepang;Myra Yara, a condominium in Putra Heights;Myra Gardens Phase 3, which is within a strata-landed boutique township; and Myra Tenuman Halaman 2, which offers freehold, individual-titled bungalows.

“There will be further phases at Myra Gardens, Myra Park and multiple Rumah Idaman projects in Kundang and Sepang.

“This diverse pipeline ensures that we will continue to serve a wide spectrum of buyers, from first-time homeowners to families seeking premium upgrades,” says Akil.

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