JOHOR BARU, March 14:  Parts of the public areas in the Danga Bay mixed-development project, covering the Lido beach and Puteri Lagoon, will be ready for viewing by August.

This includes landscaping, a food court, recreational facilities and portions of the water theme park at Puteri Lagoon.

Work on the project is going at full speed in preparation for a scheduled second visit there by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad in August. Dr Mahathir had first visited the project site on Feb 14.

Danga Bay Sdn Bhd director Kamarul Ariffin Sulaiman said the public segment of the project was scheduled to be opened in 16 months before being fully completed in 2005.

The Danga Bay project, which consists of four phases covering 640 hectares, was expected to be completed in 15 years at a cost of over RM15 billion.

It will transform Johor Baru's Tebrau Straits waterfront area, west of the Causeway, into an attractive modern recreational, commercial and residential hub.

Kamarul Ariffin, who led a Press tour of the project today, said the public segment is being developed on a low-rise concept to enhance the natural surroundings.

A major shopping complex will also be build later to tap the Singaporean tourist market. Reclamation works on a 32ha site off the Puteri Lagoon area to accommodate the structure had already started.

On a related matter, Kamarul Ariffin said an environmental study on the rehabilitation of the polluted estuaries of Sungai Skudai, Sungai Danga and Sungai Melayu, where the main potion of the project is located, had been completed.

He said once the clean up project of the estuaries is completed, the vision of turning Danga Bay into the prime development area of Johor Baru will become a reality.

Source : NST  14/3/2003