page_title: Kampung Nong Chik
section_title: Redevelopment
hierarchical_section_title: Kampung Nong Chik / Redevelopment
caption_attribution_description: English: Bird's eye view of hillside Honeycomb at Nong Chik
context_page_description: Kampong Nong Chik or "Nong Chik Village" is a Malay neighbourhood located in the city of Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia.
  Despite the name, the neighbourhood has not been a traditional village since the years before Malaysia gained independence in 1958, when government quarters were built. More recently these quarters have been demolished to make way for redevelopment.
  Situated just at the edge of Johor Baru city center, the old neighbourhood had the feel of a rural kampong with low density single-storey houses, mature trees, a prominent mosque, community center and kindergarten. However, the houses had become dilapidated. When the state government decided to move its administrative offices to Kota Iskandar, it also took steps to redevelop the land with more modern and higher density housing. In the latter part of 2009, the government quarters were demolished and work on the new houses began.
context_section_description: In 2009, 74 government quarters in the Nong Chik neighbourhood sitting on about 43 acres (170,000 m²) of land were demolished to make way for redevelopment. The residents were relocated to new housing nearby or at the Johor State New Administrative Centre in Nusajaya. The redevelopment is part of a privatisation deal between a local developer, Mudra Tropika Sdn. Bhd. and the State Government of Johor.
  The redevelopment includes 24 units of shop offices, 54 units of gallery shops and 40 units of bungalows and semi-detached houses.
  However, the most notable part of the development is the 168 units of "honeycomb housing", due for completion by late 2011, priced between RM295,000 and RM458,000. In this new layout, small groups of houses are laid out around communal courtyards in interconnected cul-de-sacs. Three new types of houses - the quadruplex, sextuplex and duplex houses – are introduced as alternatives to terrace houses, ubiquitous in Malaysia.
  According to a commentary:
  "…small groups of houses are laid out around a communal courtyard like friends sitting around a table. This makes it easy for neighbours to get to know each other. Strangers entering a cul-de-sac would feel that they were entering a semi-private area, and furthermore they would be easily recognized as strangers by the residents. It’s like that in the kampong, people know each other; it’s not uncommon to greet a stranger and to politely ask what brought him."
  "The loops and bends in the roads leading to the houses, less than 25 metres in any straight stretch, slow down cars to a walking speed. Furthermore, with the Honeycomb layout, parents can easily oversee their children playing in the courtyard in front of each home. Indeed, there are many ‘eyes on the street’ that can deter unwanted behaviour."
  “Giant, fast-growing trees will be planted in the courtyards to shade and cool the outdoors. All these factors will encourage parents to let their small children play outside.The courtyards not only serve as a recreational area, but are also suitable for weddings and any other community events".
  These honeycomb houses, based on a patent pending invention will be the first of its kind in the world.
  Phase 1 of the project was launched in the 3rd quarter of 2009 in the midst of a property market that was only starting to emerge from a recession. A property report declared that the development could be a challenge because of its novel design —neither a terraced nor a semi-detached housing development:
  "Honeycomb housing is, as its name suggests, a cluster of houses built around each other like a beehive. A honeycomb housing layout promotes community living, but the design also ends up with odd corners in the house".
  However, the developer declared by the end of 2009 that 60% of 120 units in Phase 1 had been sold.
caption: Bird's eye view.
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