Upgraded field is set to open

GEORGE TOWN: The upgraded field at Padang Kota Lama here is set to open to the public by October this year.

Penang Local Government, Traffic Management and Flood Mitigation Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow said the RM2 million project took about six months which included the installation of a subsoil drainage system.

Chow said the Penang Island City Council will be drawing up regulations for the usage of the field to prevent damage to the
drainage system.

"These include barring heavy lorries from entering, how to setup temporary stages and other installations," he said during a press conference yesterday at the 1.61ha field.

The project is part of the North Seafront Public Realm Improvement Program undertaken by George Town Conservation and Development Corporation (GTCDC).

Other projects under the program include upgrading the seawall at the Esplanade and landscaping the area there.

Also present was Think City executive director Hamdan Abdul Majeed and various officers from Penang government agencies.

Hamdan said the 600m seawall, from the Royal Malaysian Navy (RMV) Attache Office to the Medan Renong food court, was experiencing erosion.

He said an estimated RM800,000 pilot project to repair a 60m stretch of the seawall would be undertaken as part of the first phase to repair the wall.

He said repairing the entire wall, including the cost of landscaping the area, was estimated at between RM15 million to RM20 million in over four phases.

"Work will take between 18 months to two years to complete," he said.