KUALA LUMPUR, June 18 — City Hall will reclaim several heritage buildings in Lebuh Pasar Besar and Masjid India to change the image of the area from a gathering place for foreign workers to a tourist hub.

Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Ahmad Phesal Talib said the areas identified were part of a gazetted heritage site that included Dataran Merdeka and “therefore, should be a vibrant hub for tourists in the city”.

“The intricate architecture and design of the buildings (in Lebuh Pasar) must be preserved as they contribute to the heritage of Kuala Lumpur and remain a tourist attraction,” he said.

He noted that the area had become less popular among the local people over the years, and it became a meeting point for foreign workers because of the variety of services in the surrounding buildings that catered to the needs of the workers, such as remittance outlets.

“We have had discussions with business operators and premise owners to push for upgrades to the buildings and suggest changes to the nature of the businesses conducted. However it did not work,” he said.

“City Hall has no choice but to lease the buildings from the owners for a long term and rent them out to interested parties who will operate tourism-related business activities.”

Among the planned commercial activities are open dining and night shopping.

The estimated cost involved in the leasing will be RM500,000.

Ahmad Phesal said that if the owners did not agree to the lease, City Hall would impose restrictions and limit their scope of business to tourist-related and food and beverage activities.

“To bring tourists to the square, City Hall’s culture, arts and sports department had been mobilised to create weekly and monthly programmes that have been held in the area for the last six months,” he said after going on a bus tour to look into the “River of Life” project yesterday.

The RM4.4 billion project is aimed at beautifying the banks of the Klang River and the surrounding areas such as St Mary’s Cathedral, Lebuh Pasar Besar, Pasar Seni LRT and the Sultan Abdul Samad building.