GEORGE TOWN, June 26 — Penang will seek proposals to renovate and develop four colonial bungalows on Penang Hill that have been left vacant for over a decade.
Unmaintained over the years, the bungalows located on top of the hill and which belong to the State Secretary Incorporated (SSI) are now overgrown, with their paint peeling, windows broken, and roofs leaking.
“We held a discussion with SSI about the bungalows and they have agreed to call for a [request for proposal] to develop the bungalows into guesthouses or restaurants,” said Penang Hill Corporation (PHC) general manager Dr Lawrence Khoo.
He told a press conference that PHC are still discussing the final details of the RFP with SSI before they publicised it.
“These are old colonial bungalows that could be used for fine dining or as holiday homes,” he told a press conference at Penang Hill today.
The four bungalows to be developed are named Convalescent, Fern Hill, Hillside and Woodside.
There are 52 colonial bungalows on the hill, most of which were built more than a century ago, but Khoo said there's a misconception that all these bungalows belonged to PHC or the state government.
“Only one bungalow belonged to PHC and 11 others to the SSI, state secretary department, Penang Island Municipal Council and the Penang Governor's office,” he said.
The remaining 40 bungalows on the hill, all accessible through narrow footpaths around the hill, are privately owned.
The sole bungalow belonging to PHC—The Nook—is near ruin, with only a few walls still erect.
It is learnt that the shell of a bungalow was put up for auction and it was recently auctioned off for over RM3.25 million, but the new owner is yet to do anything to rebuild or restore the ruins.
The bungalows dotting the hill are architectural wonders boasting of colonial influences in many of the structures.
Many of these buildings were built during colonial times as homes to the British officers and many spotted names such as Edgecumbe, Edgecliff, Eyethrope, Laussanne, Claremont and Fairmount.
PHC is still conducting upgrades to the hill, such as clearing the pathways leading to some of these bungalows and also to improve the infrastructure on the hill.
The hill is one of Penang's popular tourist spot for travellers to enjoy a spot of cool fresh air and to go on an Eco-trail walk to admire the rich tropical flora and fauna.
