Condo buyers want stalled project to be revived

Sad state: The Platinum Damansara Condominium which was left uncompleted.

Frustrated by the delay in reviving the Platinum Damansara Condominium project, about 30 buyers held a protest in Ara Damansara last Tuesday to voice their grievances.

The project, consisting of four blocks of service apartments and a commercial building, stalled in 2007 and the buyers are having a tough time finding interested parties to revive it.

It was once promoted as a high-end service apartment in Damansara but today it is in ruins with squatters taking over the development, posing health and security risks for the surrounding township.

Abandoned Platinum Damansara Condominium Purchasers Association committee member Noel Vong said there were many court cases that delayed the project even further.

“However, last year we managed to get an interested party to revive the project.

“We hired a consultant and scheme manager to draw up a scheme of arrangement with the developer,” he said.

The move was supported by 410 buyers out of 422 who attended a meeting on June 14 last year.

There are a total of 680 buyers.

Vong said the scheme had the support of the bank which provided the finance as well.

“On June 17 last year, the Shah Alam High Court approved the scheme but almost immediately after the decision, several parties filed claims to set aside the scheme.

“After several court hearings a decision was made by the High Court on Nov 30 to set aside the scheme and we were back to square one,” added Vong.

The buyers in turn filed an appeal and the case will be heard on April 5.

A buyer, Paul Adaikalam, said many purchasers had been declared bankrupt as they were are unable to pay the bank loans.

“Each buyer pays an average of RM50 per day in interest and there are so many stories of civil servants losing their jobs, businessmen being blacklisted and pensioners who invested now left without a home,” he added.

Vong said the revival cost had also increased, forcing buyers to fork out an extra 25% for work to be completed.

“It was stated that the project was 80% complete when it stalled but today due to vandalism, the building looks only 30% complete,” he added.

By The Star