BY JAROD LIM

Shoppers frequent Ampang Park Shopping Centre for various types of goods.

AMPANG Park might be just another mall to many of us but for those who had worked there for more than four decades, the 42-year-old shopping centre in Jalan Ampang is a place they had grown to love.

News that the popular mall would be demolished to make way for the MRT2 project came as a shock to most tenants and shoppers.

While most protested the idea of such an iconic mall being demolished, some accepted the fate but argued for more time to relocate.

Mah Su Ping said she had been working for Syarikat Ampang Electronics Sdn Bhd in the mall since 1973.

“I have spent half of my life in this shop and the news of the mall’s demolition to make way for the MRT2 project was too abrupt.

“This is not fair to us as we have been operating here for so long. We do not want to move out or accept any form of compensation.

“In fact, the shopowner also owns the premises, how could the government just take away the land just like that?” she asked.

Mah also said she had received a notice dated Sept 25 from the management about the mall’s acquisition accompanied by a letter from the Land Office.

“The tenants are unsure what is going to happen and the management will have a meeting on Oct 20 to discuss the issue.

“I hope the Government would consider keeping the mall,” Mah said, adding that she did not mind temporarily stopping operations but did not agree to the mall being demolished.

On Oct 14, StarMetro had reported that the Federal Territory Land and Mines Department had published a gazette on July 30 notifying the owners of lots in the area that it would be acquired for the MRT project and Ampang Park was on that list.

The Land Acquisition Act 1960 compels the Federal Territory Land and Mines Department to gazette and notify the owner of the government’s possible acquisition of the land.

There was a public gazette about the land acquisition for the Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya MRT line construction.

Another tenant, Far East Jewellers representative Lee Fok Sing, 65, said he accepted the fact that the Government was taking over the place for development.

“I have been working here for more than 42 years and we love Ampang Park.

“We are in a quandary here, it is a loss to have the mall redeveloped into something else, but we cannot stop the Government from developing it.

“However, if the plans really go through, we need to have enough time to look for a new location for the shop,” he said.

SA Elegence Sdn Bhd director Mohd Sharil Omar said he was disappointed that he had not received any written notice about the mall’s acquisition.

“I only heard about it from the newspaper and until now, there has been nothing in black and white stating the plans for the mall.

“Why have we been kept in the dark? As Ampang Park is one of the oldest malls in the Klang Valley, I did not expect the acquisition to happen,” he said.

Frequent shopper Amin Othman, 60, said he would miss the mall should it be demolished. “I used to hang out here when I was young, but I was really surprised by the news of the mall’s acquisition to make way for the MRT project.

“Can’t they integrate the station into the mall and make it a transport-cum-shopping hub?” he asked.

Salesman P. Kumar, 30, said the mall should be retained since it was one of the first shopping malls in the Klang Valley.

“I believe this was the place to hang out for a lot of people back then.

“Sometimes, I do see a fairly huge crowd here as well,” he said.

When contacted, the shopping centre’s management refused to comment on the issue.