GEORGE TOWN, March 19 — Phase One of the RM176 million Gurney Wharf project is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022, Penang state exco Jagdeep Singh Deo said today.
The Penang housing, local government and town and country planning committee chairman said phase one of the public park will be ready in about a year’s time and open tender for the public park will be called by June this year.
“The project is expected to start by the third quarter of this year,” he said during a site visit at the reclaimed land this morning.
He said almost 50 acres of the 131 acres will be turned into a public park complete with public facilities and amenities for the disabled.
Jagdeep said phase one of the park project will include landscaping, a skate park, a promenade, a children’s playground and kiosks selling snacks and souvenirs.
He added that the park will be fully equipped with facilities for the disabled to ensure access to everyone.
“The promenade is already completed but it is not open to public yet,” he said.
He said water taxis facility from Gurney Wharf is also under the planning stage.
The Gurney Wharf project is a seafront public park located on part of the 131.09 acres of reclaimed land off Gurney Drive that was handed over to the state government progressively since last year.
Reclamation works along the Gurney Drive foreshore started in 2016 and reclamation of 131.09 acres (53ha) of land was completed in September 2019.
The reclamation works were conducted in accordance with a concession agreement signed between the Penang state government and Tanjung Pinang Development Sdn Bhd (TPD), a subsidiary of Eastern & Oriental Berhad.
Under the agreement, TPD was to reclaim the land at its own cost and handover 131.09 acres of reclaimed land along the Gurney foreshore to the state government by December 2022.
