City Hall staff blocked off this pavement in Kg Air with some security tape.
CITY HALL has cordoned off the pavement beneath the cantilever-ledge for a Kg Air shop in the interest of public safety, while it tries to locate the owner of this commercial property.
The individual will officially be instructed to repair “the canopy” for his/ her unit.
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This action was prompted by feedback that the ledge had become hazardous to pedestrians.
The Inanam resident, who spoke out about this, said the underside of the cantilever had become damaged.
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She feared that it could come apart at any time and injure any pedestrians walking underneath when it did.
Bits of concrete have come away from the underside of “the canopy”.
The individual said some of the thin, metal poles – which held up this overhang – had already been knocked out of place.
The individual provided Hotline with the location of the danger spot which was forwarded to the agency.
A spokesman for City Hall’s Building Control Department said security tape was put up around a section of the five-foot-way where Jalan Kg Air 1 met Jalan Haji Yaakub earlier this month.
“This is the most that we can do, for the time being, until we succeed in locating the owner,” he said.
He said a check of agency’s records revealed that the ground-floor shop and the four other units above belonged to a Bruneian who had intended to have the block converted into a hotel.
This corner block had been left partially renovated for years, according to him.
“The individual apparently fell out with the contractor whom he/ she hired which is why the renovation is half done. This must have happened before the canopy could be dealt with.”
He said this could account for the presence of the scaffolding beams which were presently supporting this overhang.
“We were made to understand that both parties have chosen to settle their differences in court.”
The spokesman said City Hall had written to the property owner about attending to “the canopy” on multiple occasions to no avail.
Some of the metal poles, which hold the ledge up, had been knocked out of place.
“He/she was asked to get his/her consultant to conduct an integrity test of the canopy and to either have it repaired or have it removed, should the results of the test prove that the structure was dangerous.
“The individual was warned that action could be taken against him/ her under the Local Government Ordinance, if he/ she failed to comply with these instructions.”
The spokesman declined to elaborate when asked about the nature of this action.
“Several notices have been issued to the owner of the block over the past few years. Some of these were even sent via registered mail to the address which we have on record.”
He said the latter were returned to City Hall uncollected.
“Due to this turn of events, we are banking on the legal proceedings between the owner and his/her contractor. We hope to liaise with the individual’s lawyer once the court case begins and make this person aware of our requirements regarding the canopy.”
In the meantime, he said the agency would make periodic checks of the cantilever and take the necessary steps to look after the well-being of pedestrians who used the five-foot way below.
“This is not the first time that we have blocked off the pavement. This was last done in November, after we received separate reports from two Kg Air office workers that the supporting beams had been moved out of place.”
