PU office to set example in green certification

Prodita Sabarini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 01/19/2010 11:04 AM

The planned new Public Works Ministry office on Jl. Pattimura in South Jakarta will be the first building in Indonesia to be certified by the Green Building Council of Indonesia and will at least achieve a gold ranking for design, an organization director says.

Green Building Council of Indonesia (GBCI) director of rating and technology Rana Yusuf Nasir said that the new building was the council’s pilot project for green building.

Planners designed the building site plan to include zero rainwater run off. It will also have a water recycling and treatment system with 83 percent water consumption. It will include an efficient energy system that will save energy consumption by up to 30 percent, with a target of 200 kilowatt-hours per square meter each year.

According to the GBCI, the average office usage in Jakarta currently stands at 250 kilowatt-hours per square meter per year.

Rana presented the building designs recently as a case study for businesses with interests in the green building sector.

The GBCI also launched its framework for a “greenship” rating system. The council plans to launch its official rating system for newly constructed buildings in March or early April. The council will prepare a rating system for existing buildings next week.

Rana said that the greenship rating will have four rankings — bronze, silver, gold and, the highest, platinum. A building receives bronze certification if it fulfills at least 35 percent of the total points needed; at least 46 percent for silver, gold 57 percent and platinum 73 percent.

He said that looking at the current planning of the building, it would at least be given gold certification.

Consulting company PT Jakarta Konsultindo is the building’s planning consultant. Director of Jakarta Konsultindo Maryanti Kusuma Masmara said that it was in the planning process.

“The construction will begin around this year,” she said.

The GBCI scrutinized several aspects of the building plan, according to its rating system framework.

Rana said that the organization examined the planned building’s appropriate site development, energy efficiency and refrigerant, water conservation, material resources and cycle as well as indoor air health and building environment management.

The planned building would gain points due to its accessibility to public transport. The plan also included a bicycle rack, and bathroom and changing room facilities. The building will be energy efficient utilizing natural daylight and an average air-conditioning temperature of 25 degrees Celsius.

The plan for the ministry building has fulfilled 66 percent of the total points needed.

Rana said that it was possible to achieve an even higher rank. “It is possible to be more energy efficient,” he said.

Office building and mall operators at the seminar said they were positive about the upcoming rating system from the GBCI.

“Without the rating system, we will be left behind other countries. We have to implement it fast,” Grand Indonesia Shopping Town engineering and maintenance senior manager Slamet Ristono.

GBCI chairwoman Naning S. Adiningsih Adiwoso said that the demand for green buildings was high in Jakarta.

Condos Canceled As Demand Dries Up

The Jakarta Globe, Dian Ariffahmi, January 20, 2009

 

Indonesia is facing a gloomy outlook in its condominium business as some property companies defer their apartment projects and return their customers’ money as demand slows, a property analyst said on Monday.

 

“The tight monetary policy [high interest rates and tighter loan approvals] has impacted on project cash flow and turned off prospective buyers,” Utami Prastiana, a property analyst from Procon Indah, said in Jakarta, adding that further delays were likely to affect the sector until mid-2009.

 

One Park Residences, which has been developed in Kebayoran Baru by PT Gandaria Permai, a subsidiary company of PT Intiland Development Tbk, has delayed its condominium project and is going to return condo buyers’ money with interest soon, he said.

 

Utami said there were two other developers which had also canceled their projects because of the crisis, but refused to name them.

 

The Rp 300 billion ($27 million) residence projects, which was previously planned to be launched in the fourth quarter last year, was canceled due to the increasing price of project materials and a lack of demand from buyers, he said.

 

“In the fourth quarter last year the country’s rate for the amount of presold condominiums declined only slightly from 0.4 percent from its previous quarter of 95.6 percent to 95.2 percent,” Utami said.

 

The declining rate, she said, would continue into the first quarter this year, and likely to balloon to between 3 to 10 percent.

 

“Condo buyers are in a wait-and-see mode and prefer to keep their plans on hold until the interest rate goes back to normal or at least decreases from the current rate,” Utami said.

 

Procon’s 2008 report stated that 8,000 new condominiums were sold in Jakarta in 2008 from a supply of 8,400. The number sharply declined from the previous year’s report which saw around 12,000 units produced and sold in the same year.

 

In 2009, projected annual net supply of around 10,000 units will have a net take up of only 6,600. About 6,100 of those units are in mostly in less preferable locations such as on the borders of Jakarta, Utami said.

 

“Developers and buyers will be more rational in their investment decisions, therefore a few projects may not be completed on time,” he said.

University of Indonesia receives international accreditation

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Sat, 12/13/2008 3:24 PM  

The Civil and Engineering Department of University of Indonesia (UI) received international accreditation on Friday, after being evaluated by the AUN-QA International Accreditation panel. 

"This is a huge success for Indonesia," UI Rector Gumilar Rusliwa Soemantri said, as quoted by tempointeraktif.com on Saturday. 

Deputy Executive Director of ASEAN University Network Nantana Gajaseni announced the conferral on Friday, stating that the faculty had met various standards, including learning outcomes, learning strategy, and quality assurance and learning facilities. 

"This will make international credit transfers, research collaboration and journal writing easier to accomplish," Soemantri said. 

"The nation's awakening can only be achieved through a cultural revolution that increases the quality of human resources, and the key to that is responsible formal education," he added.

Global recession overshadows property market

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 11/10/2008 11:13 AM 

 

Indonesia's property sector is already feeling the pinch from the global economic downturn as demand is slowing at a time when interest rate adjustments have become a necessity for developers to keep business going, a property consultant says.

 

PT Colliers International Indonesia said over the weekend in its latest survey that the slowdown had already been evident since the end of the third quarter, in particular in Jakarta and surrounding areas, hat it continues to be felt in the fourth quarter and most likely will continue to impact into next year.

 

Bank Indonesia's benchmark interest rate currently stands at 9.5 percent, with cumulative inflation already hitting double digits in the first ten months of the year.

 

Colliers' report comes just days after a similar survey by another property consultant, PT Procon Indah, which focused on the Greater Jakarta market and said that the industry is heading for a slowdown due to increases in interest rates and the effects of inflation on prices of materials and rental costs.

 

Colliers said the industrial sector in the Greater Jakarta area, for example, had already experienced lower transaction levels in the third quarter compared to the previous quarter as export-oriented companies cut back on their investment plans amid slowing demand.

 

Average rental rates in central business districts (CBD) rose in the same period slightly from Rp 87,268 per square meter per month to Rp 88,117 per square meter.

 

The total supply for CBD office stock is now reported to be 3.9 million square meters, up from 3.71 million square meters last quarter, while occupancy rates decreased slightly down to 88.76 percent from 89.62 percent previously.

 

Supply for strata title apartments grew by 3 percent in the second quarter and 0.91 percent in quarter three. On the demand side however, out of 77,277 apartment units under construction, only 65 percent were already taken up and net absorption for apartments in the third quarter reached 459 units, declining from 551 in quarter two.

 

"With the current total units being built equivalent to about half of the total existing units and anticipating additional supply from new projects over the next two years, the apartment market will be very tough in the future," the survey says.

 

The occupancy rate for retail space is expected to decline in the fourth quarter, with shopping centers adjusting their rental rates to meet market conditions.

 

Still, retail space supply is set to increase from 3.21 million square meters in 2007 to 3.31 million square meters.

 

Meanwhile, the hotel occupancy rate nation-wide increased by 0.82 percent from the second quarter, with the five-star category dominating the market at 47.5 percent.

 

The survey reports that in the last quarter of the year hotel occupancy rates in Bali will fare better than most cities in the country -- including Jakarta and Surabaya -- due to the large local tourist potential. (dis)

Property sector heads for slowdown

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 11/05/2008 10:36 AM 

 

The property business in Jakarta and surrounding areas is heading for a slowdown next year due to increases in interest rates, inflation, prices of materials and rental costs, according to a property consulting company.

 

"The impacts of the global economic crisis will likely affect the domestic property sector and indications of a slowdown in supply and demand in Jakarta and its surrounding areas have already been noted since October," said head of marketing and communications at PT Procon Indah, Dini Priadi, on Tuesday.

 

On the supply side, she said, high interest rates, inflation and prices of materials had discouraged developers from continuing their projects.

 

Hendra Hartono, Procon chief business development executive, said only developers that mobilized financial resources on pre-sale payments and cash flows or on strong commitments from would-be tenants would continue their projects.

 

Dini said that the public's low purchasing power in the country, affected by high interest rates, slower economic growth and high inflation, would hurt the sector on the demand side next year.

 

Key Bank Indonesia interest rate currently stands at 9.5 percent, with accumulative inflation already hitting double digits in the first ten months of the year.

 

Meanwhile, Indonesia's economic growth target has also been adjusted in response to the global economic downturn. The government's revised 2008 state budget lowered the assumption on targeted growth for this year end to 6.46 percent, from the previous 6.8 percent.

 

Next year, the economy is earmarked in the 2009 state budget to grow by 6 percent.

 

The high interest rate, for example, has pushed the mortgage rate up to 17 percent, which will not be so attractive for potential buyers, according to Procon in its third quarterly Jakarta property market review and 2009 outlook.

 

The report says the rupiah's depreciation against the U.S. dollar also pushed up construction costs, which will affect the new supply of properties.

 

Meanwhile, the rupiah's depreciation has also boosted the cost of U.S. dollar-denominated property rentals, which will affect occupation rates of properties.

 

The value of the rupiah depreciated from Rp 9,330 against the dollar on Sept. 24 to Rp 10,850 by Tuesday.

 

While the outlook is a bit gloomy in the coming year, the property sector did fairly well in this year's third quarter, the report shows.

 

It says cumulative supply of office space at Jakarta's central business district (CBD) rose to 3.81 million square meters as of September from 3.63 million square meters as of June, while the cumulative demand increased to 3.29 million square meters from 3.21 million square meters.

 

The cumulative supply of rental apartments increased to 35,000 units from 34,460 units and the cumulative demand to 25,200 units from 24,000 units. (dis)

Fight floods in Old Town first, says consultant

Tifa Asrianti and Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Efforts to revitalize the Old Town in West and North Jakarta must first focus on installing proper drainage networks and pump stations in the area to prevent floods, an Old Town planning consultant said.

"Floods are indeed one of the big issues faced in the Old Town. The area has low elevation. It also has experienced many changes, including a growing population and more concrete buildings," said Mohammad Danisworo, the chairman of the Center for Urban Design Studies, which designed the master plan for the revitalization of the Old Town.

"It is only natural the area is flooded frequently, either from rain or high tides," he added.

"If we are to encourage investment in the area, I think pump stations have to be installed, the sewerage system needs to be improved and a drain system has to be built to avert flooding," he said.

On Friday, Governor Fauzi Bowo canceled a scheduled visit to the Old Town due to floods in the capital. He was supposed to tour the area in a "trolley" -- a four-wheeled semi-open tour minibus.

However, the main point of access to the Old Town from the south, the intersection of Jl. Asemka and Jl. Pintu Besar Utara, was heavily flooded, forcing motorists to wait in traffic jams for hours.

"The road in front of the Bank Mandiri Museum flooded, but the water was not very high. Water did not enter the museum," Kartum Setiawan, a research and development employee at the museum, told The Jakarta Post on Friday afternoon.

"Water inundated the parking area at the back of the building. But we pumped the water out," Kartum said.

The Bank Mandiri Museum is located across the road from the Kota busway terminal in West Jakarta.

Floods also affected the Maritime Museum, which is located next to the Pasar Ikan sluice gate in North Jakarta.

Sukma Wijaya, a security guard at the museum, said the museum was flooded with one centimeter of water on Friday morning. However, he said the museum's courtyard was flooded with 30 centimeters of water, forcing the museum's management team to close it down.

He said sandbags were only useful to prevent seawater from entering the museum, with very little that could be done about the rain that had been pouring down since Thursday evening.

"We will keep the museum closed until we can dry the floors. We don't want visitors to slip over and get injured," Sukma told The Jakarta Post.

He said museum staff moved a lot of items to the second floor in November when high tides flooded the building.

Several other buildings in the area were reportedly free from flooding on Friday.

"The city administration should finance flood control efforts in the Old Town. I'm optimistic with technology and sufficient funds, the Old Town could be revitalized regardless of the floods," Danisworo told the Post on Friday.

He said the city should involve the Public Works Agency in revitalization efforts.

"But the agency should not work alone. It should carry out any work in accordance with the master plan," Danisworo said.

"The administration should be more serious in its efforts to address flood problems in the area. Otherwise investors won't want to go there."

Menara Jamsostek to design new parking lot following fatal accident

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The company that manages the Menara Jamsostek building, PT Sangu, is planning to redesign the building's parking area after a fatal accident Tuesday.

Sangu finance director Jefry Haryadi said Friday construction consultants appointed by the company were working on a new design for the 11-year-old parking building.

"The team is drawing up a new design for the building and is calculating which design is the most economical and can be immediately implemented," he told The Jakarta Post.

"The team is also taking into account construction standards according to current regulations," he said.

Jefry said the team was working with the city property management and control agency on its design to prevent a "possible correction or rejection".

The team's final design will be submitted to an independent panel authorized to determine the feasibility the project during a hearing next Wednesday, Jefry said.

Previously, agency head Hari Sasongko said the building's management team was required to submit a new design for the parking lot that complied with its 2007 decree on buildings and structures.

Hari said the decree stipulated that walls in parking buildings must be resistant to collisions.

He said the agency had ordered the building's management team to temporarily close the parking area until renovations were completed to make it safer following Tuesday's accident, which claimed the life of a 42-year-old man.

The victim of Tuesday's crash was identified as Heryawan, a resident of Pesanggrahan in South Jakarta, who had worked as a driver for an insurance agency for 15 years.

He backed his vehicle through a barrier in the parking building and plunged to his death.

The incident occurred at around 10:30 a.m. after Heryawan drove his employer to a meeting in the building on Jl. Gatot Subroto in South Jakarta.

The car hit a passing vehicle before coming to rest upside down on the ground.

Two people inside the car that was hit sustained minor injuries.

According to Jamsostek's operations and services director Ahmad Ansyori, the company offered Heryawan's family Rp 99 million (US$10,550) on Friday, including Rp 200,000 every month for the next 24 months.

"We will also give Heryawan's eldest child, who is still at university, a Rp 150,000 scholarship every month," Ahmad told the Post.

Two car park accidents occurred last year at the Permata Hijau International Trade Center in Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta.

A family of three was killed when their vehicle fell from the sixth floor of center's parking building earlier in the year.

The second accident, which resulted in no injuries, occurred when a driver lost control of his vehicle and rolled backwards, smashing through a meter-high wall in the parking building.

VP urges earthquake-proof housing

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Vice President Jusuf Kalla on Tuesday urged the wider use of earthquake-proof housing, to prevent the kind of mass casualties seen in previous disasters.

He said that although efforts had been made to mitigate the impact of disasters, people continued to die unnecessarily.

"Although the number of victims in recent disasters has not been as high as the 2004 tsunami, we still need to better apply regulations and technology, and improve people's preparedness to reduce the damage," Kalla said at the opening of an international seminar in Jakarta.

"There's a different culture in housing inside and outside Java. Most houses in Java use ceramic roofing tiles, while houses outside Java use corrugated iron roofing, which results in fewer victims."

Last year, earthquakes devastated Yogyakarta and surrounding areas in Central Java, claiming nearly 6,000 lives, displacing 1.5 million residents and damaging hundreds of thousands of buildings.

Bantul in Yogyakarta and Klaten in Central Java were the worst-hit regions.

The most recent earthquake, which rattled North Bengkulu regency on Sept. 12, damaged more than 30,000 houses and killed dozens of people.

Director of the Center for Earthquake Engineering Dynamic Effects and Disaster Studies, Sarwidi, said Indonesia was obviously a disaster-prone country.

"So in order to create a safe living environment for people, the construction of houses needs to focus on how to reduce the impact of disasters," Sarwidi said during the seminar.

"According to the studies we've conducted, houses with brick walls, or semi-technical houses, were the most frequently damaged in earthquakes, causing the biggest losses in terms of human lives and materials."

He said this type of housing, built on little or no foundation, with poorly reinforced walls and heavy roofing was more likely to collapse when hit by the massive tremors typical of the earthquakes that frequently affect Indonesia, such as Yogyakarta in Central Java, Blitar in East Java and Banggai in Central Sulawesi.

"The foundations for earthquake-resistant houses are simple and cheap, and the houses can be designed in simple symmetrical shapes, such as a rectangle," said Sarwidi.

"The foundation should be placed at the right depth, and have a strong, connecting frame. The use of a light roof, made from material such as corrugated iron, helps make a house more earthquake proof."

He said securing ceramic tiles to wooden or bamboo frames in traditional tile-roofed houses could also reduce damage and fatalities.

Construction expert Wiratman Wangsadinata said any planning of earthquake resilient houses should take into consideration earthquake intensity and frequency.

"Buildings in Jakarta, for example, should be able to withstand 5 to 8.5 magnitude earthquakes within a distance of up to 500 kilometers," he said in a paper. (ndr)

Apartment life becoming popular

Burhanuddin Abe, Contributor The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Living in an apartment has become the choice of many, from ordinary people, celebrities to prominent businesspeople. This trend has spurred developers to quickly build apartments. Meanwhile, banks are no longer hesitant in extending home loans.

Consumer demand coupled with developers' acumen and bank involvement has seen the apartment market boom. Even Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), which has conventionally extended home loans only for landed property, now finances apartment buyers.

"Apartment development is enjoying huge growth and is a market with much potential," said BRI consumer director A. Toni Soetirto recently after signing a cooperation agreement in Jakarta between BRI and the Pikko Group, the developer of three apartment buildings, namely Sahid Sudirman Residence, Hampton`s Park and Maple Park.

A similar opinion was also voiced by Siswanto Widjaja, property consultant of Procon Indah. The Property Market Review for the third quarter of 2007 and Outlook 2008 reveal optimistic indications that there will be robust growth in the property business, especially in office buildings and condominiums.

The huge potential of the market, said Siswanto, can be seen in the fact that the number of apartments and condominiums keep surging. This year there will be about 56,895 units, including 13,093 condominiums. "There will be a 12 percent increase in the condominium market in 2008," he said.

He stated further that the general election would have an impact on the condominium market, with investments expected to decrease by about 40 percent. He also said there would be fewer new units coming on the market in 2008 compared to 2007, take up would be less, but the occupancy level would remain stable. Demands are projected to be stable up to mid-2008 and slow down thereafter. Current low interest deposit rates offered by banks and attractive mortgage rates for housing creates demand. "The prices of prime projects will increase slightly," Siswanto said.

In almost in every strategic corner of Jakarta there is an apartment project, each with its own unique design and concept. New apartment blocks include Pakubuwono Residence in South Jakarta, Palladian Park in North Jakarta and Casablanca Mansion in South Jakarta. Indonesia Property Watch has recorded that East Jakarta has the fewest apartment projects as currently there is only one, Patria Park, which is being developed by PT Pembangunan Perumahan (PP). In total 12,104 apartment units will be completed this year.

Tight competition is occurring in the middle income segment for apartment purchases. In South Jakarta one can find the Thamrin Residence, The 18th Rasuna Residence, Jakarta Residences, Casablanca Mansion, Latumenten City, Mediterranian Garden and Hollywood Residence, which are being marketed for between Rp 8 million and Rp 12 million per square meter.

Many marketers are of the opinion that the low and middle income segment are making the most demands for apartments in Jakarta. In this sector, developer Agung Podomoro rules the roost in that the company is doing brisk business. Some of the developer's projects are Sudirman Park, Thamrin Residence, Jakarta Residences, Latumenten City and Mediterranian Garden.

All these projects are experiencing stiff competition with the projects of other developers, for example the reputable The 18th Rasuna Residence belonging to Bakrieland Development and Palladian Park owned by PT PP, which is working with Bank Mayapada, a relative newcomer to this business.

However, the competition is also tough in the premium market with the emergence of new projects recently. Agung Podomoro, for instance, has three major projects, namely The Peak, Pakubuwono Residence and Senayan City. Then there is the Gapura Prima Group with The Bellezza and Bellagio Mansion, Djarum Group with its Grand Indonesia, Dharmala Intiland has The Regatta, Tan Kian together with Tommy Winata have Pacific Place, Tommy Winata with Mahaka have The Capital Residence in the Sudirman Central Business District. Premium property developers place a price tag of between Rp 10 million and Rp 17 million per square meter, with Regatta, The Peak and Pacific Place commanding the highest prices.

Currently there is a "hot" project under construction, Kemang Village. This mixed use 12-hectare project in the exclusive Kemang area, South Jakarta, will have various first-class property products: apartments, a star-rated hotel, an international school, a hospital and a luxury mall. Many call it a superblock as almost everything will be available.

Yes, superblocks apparently can be a suitable choice for living in Jakarta. Superblocks are believed to be able to reduce traffic as residents will have everything within reach and have no need to venture far. Some superblocks, each with a different variant, can be found in the Sudirman Central Business District and Mega Kuningan. Other megaprojects are worth trillions of rupiah, such as Central Park (developed by Agung Podomoro), Gandaria City (Pakuwon Group), Grand Indonesia (Djarum) and Rasuna Bakrie Area (Bakrie Group).

The concept of a superblock is something that is focused and integrated. It should measure between seven and 20 hectares consisting of condominiums, townhouses, hotel, plaza or mall, health centers, hospital, school, offices, recreation centers, food courts and places of worship.

According to landscape architect Nirwono Joga, the development of superblocks is a logical answer to the city's problems, such as limited land space, environmental degradation and worsening traffic. Kompas daily, in its Nov. 8, 2007 edition, said superblocks were a great idea that could make a metropolitan city more comfortable and efficient to live in.

The concept of an integrated superblock is beneficial to our city as it maximizes the use of land at a balanced capacity. This means not all land in the city needs to be developed as there should be balance between developed and open, green areas.

"However, the city administration and developers must consistently abide by the spatial regulations by not developing areas that are designated as open, green spaces, such as cemeteries, sports fields, natural or man-made lakes and mangrove forests. All must adhere to the principle of environmental preservation," Nirwono said.