How it all started...
WANGSA MAJU came into being in the early 80s when a stretch of rubber estates stretching from the current TAR College-Jalan Genting Kelang junction (near Wardieburn Camp) to the present Taman Permata/Melawati in Hulu Kelang, covering some 400 hectares.
Then in 1984, the township was born when a joint venture project was undertaken by PGK Sdn Bhd and the City Hall to build a township with mixed development, comprising medium and high rise condominiums, double-storey terrace houses, semi-detached houses, shops, offices and commercial complexes.
Birth
The project which took almost a decade gave birth to what is today Section 1 and 2 Wangsa Maju, the former low-cost flats and the latter medium-cost. These were among the most modern housing schemes built in Kuala Lumpur then and each unit was built with piped in gas and water supply.
However, the boom did not come until the growth of the Malaysian Institute of Art (MIA) and the Tunku Abdul Rahman College in the mid-80s when housing needs of students expanded beyond Taman Bunga Raya across the road to Wangsa Maju Section 2. By that time, medium cost terraced houses were already built by a Chinese developer in what has today become Taman Desa Setapak where the Wangsa Maju Light Rail Transit station is now located.
Developments
One of the earliest shopping malls to take advantage of this boom was Alpha Angle, whose main tenant was then Jaya Jusco and later renamed Jusco. It was sited at the perimeter of Wangsa Maju Sect 1, across the road from Desa Setapak. This gave a boost to businesses in and around Sect 1 and sec 2.
The current Carrefour Wangsa Maju came much later and it was built at the end of Wangsa Maju, on a hillock overlooking Section 5 and 6 and Taman Setiawangsa, which again sent a chain reaction to businesses around the hillock.
The growth of the township also prompted the setting up of Government agencies, one of which is the Wangsa Maju Road Transport Department (JPJ) about one kilometre from the TAR College-Genting Kelang junction and the Internal Revenue Board (Income Tax) at Wisma Kausar located directly opposite Jusco. The privatised vehicle inspection unit, known as Puspakom, was also set up after the RTD and located just next door.
Constituency P116
The boom in the township triggered developments around Wangsa Maju and in the early 2000, the constituency realignment exercise expanded Wangsa Maju into Constituency P116 (Parliamentary Seat) to cover a bigger area westwards to Taman Danau Kota which sits on the west side of Genting Kelang's Wardieburn Camp to the 5th Mile of Jalan Gombak. It stretched southwards to the Setapak Police station along Jalan Gombak-Genting Kelang junction and back again eastwards to include Hot Springs (Air Panas) and back to Section 10 of Wangsa Maju, which straddles the border of Wangsa Maju-Setiawangsa.
Development has today moved from Wangsa Maju to Danau Kota and now Jalan Gombak, which has been expanded into a six-lane thoroughfare from a two-lane dual carriage main trunk road connecting Kuala Lumpur and the East Coast.
About this site:
This site was set up in March 2008 to document the birth and life in and around the Wangsa Maju Constituency.
3 comments:
I think it's a great blog and information of surrounding areas in Wangsa Maju. For someone who has just bought a place in PV6, your blog gives me insight to what this area has to offer.
Though, more food places would be much appreciate!
terbitkan blog wangsa maju dalam bahasa melayu -azizi-
very detailed info and accurate too as I have seen all the changes and growth mentioned here.
good research..
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