HOW WE FAILED TO PLAN FOR HABITABILITY

Authors

  • Lee Lik Meng School of Housing, Building & Planning UNIVERSITI SAINS MALAYSIA
  • Aldrin Abdullah School of Housing, Building & Planning UNIVERSITI SAINS MALAYSIA
  • Tan Sook Fern School of Housing, Building & Planning UNIVERSITI SAINS MALAYSIA
  • Nurwati Badarulzaman Department of Urban and Regional Planning UNIVERSITI SAINS MALAYSIA
  • Ahmad Sanusi Hassan School of Housing, Building & Planning UNIVERSITI SAINS MALAYSIA

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v4i1.50

Keywords:

Habitability, Housing, Legislation, Public Policy

Abstract

A quality housing development should not only take into account the physical aspects of design but also be sensitive to human needs. Habitability in housing involves several components, including environmental factors, man-made designs, socio-cultural operations and psychological impacts. Elements of habitability can be observed in various concepts of residential developments including classical concepts such as the Garden City Movement and the Neighbourhood Unit. In Malaysia, the Malay Kampung and the Chinese New Village exemplify some ideal living practices relating to habitability. Both the classical and traditional concepts influenced subsequent residential developments in Malaysia such as the Jengka Project, Kampung Tersusun, Town 8, Cyberjaya and Putrajaya. However, not all residential developments succeeded in creating a quality living environment. More recent concepts such as the New Urbanism and the China Healthy Residence have placed greater emphasis in dealing with such issues. In Malaysia, legislations and policies have not adequately addressed the problems on habitability. We lack a thorough planning system, which prepares and monitors the quality of our residential development. Failures in planning policies have also created other planning issues that affect habitability, as portrayed in the case of the Rifle Range Low-cost Flats in Penang. The top-down approach in housing policy and
planning should be geared up to match the growth of community towards achieving habitability.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Books:

Abraham, C. E. R. 1982. Microcosms of Malaysian Settlement Patterns: Case Studies of Indigenous Development - Pahang Tenggara Regional Master Plan. Penang: Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Bih, Heng-Dar. 2001. The Power of Space. Taipei: PsyGarden Publishing Company.

Cheng, Lim Keak. 1976. Mengkuang: A Study of A Chinese New Village in West Malaysia. Singapore: NanYang University.

Lim, Bin Hui & Song, Wan Ying. 2002. 50 Years of Malaysian Chinese New Village. KL: Centre for Malaysian Chinese Studies.

Lowe, Marcia D. 1991. Shaping Cities: The Environmental and Human Dimensions. Washington: Worldwatch Institute.

Ministry of Local Government and Housing. 1967. The settlement structure in the regional plan for the JENGKA Triangle in West Malaysia: An attempt at controlling in-migration of persons from rural to urban centres. Pacific Conf. on Urban Growth, Honolulu, Hawaii.

Ratcliffe, John. 1993. An Introduction to Town and Countiy Planning. London: UCL Press Limited.

Taylor J. L., Ekroth D. C. HBP, USM and Lembaga Kemajuan Pahang Tenggara. 1975. Pahang Tenggara New Town 8: Final Report. Penang: Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Internet:

Bahrin T. S., Lee B. T., and Dorall R. F. 1988. The Jengka Triangle: a report on research in progress. In Manshard W. and Morgan B. W. Agricultural Expansion and Pioneer Settlements in the Humid Tropics. Tokyo: The United Nations University.

http://www.unu.edU/unupress/unupbooks/80636e/80636E0d.htm#7 .The%20Jengka%20Triangle:%20a%20report%20on%20research%20in%20pro gress (19 Apr 2004)

Chen, Ya You et al. “The Story of New Villageâ€. Kwong Wah YitPoh [Penang].

http://www.kwongwah.com.my/village/vll.htm (14 Apr 2004)

Dasimah Omar. Urbanisation, Urban Fringe Development and the Quality of Life: Evidence from New Town Development in Peninsular Malaysia. 2003. http://www.planning.sa.gov.au/congress/pdf/Papers/Dasimah.pdf (27 May 2004)

Habitat International Coalition, Housing and Rights Network, Midde East/ North Africa, http://www.hic-

mena.org/14%20Elements%20of%20RAH/05habit.htm (1 Apr 2004) Kai, Y., Liu, D. W., Zhang, W. H., Zhao, X. et. al. 2002. Healthy Residence Technical Report 2002. Beijing: National Housing Development Centre. http://www.build.com.cn/health/health-2002-0.htm (25 April 2004) LegalDefinition.com. http://www.legal-definitions.com/real-estate/habitability.htm (1 Apr 2004)

Leshler, Jim. 2000. Online News Hour. Kansas: MacNeil-Lehrer Productions.

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/newurbanism/keypoints.html (3 Apr 2004) Lucey, Norman. 1973. The Effect of Sir Ebenezer Howard and the Garden City Movement on Twentieth Century Town Planning.

http://www.rickmansworthherts.freeserve.co.Uk/howardLhtm#sne (1 Apr 2004)

“Malaysian Should Change Their Mindâ€. Sin Chew Jit Poh [KL]. 6 Mac 2003. http://news.sinchew-

i.com/article.phtml?artid=200303070620&data=news (25 May 2004) New Urbanism. VA: New Urbanisim.com

http://www.newurbanism.org/pages/416429/index.htm (3 Apr 2004) Pejabat Daerah dan Tanah Manjung. District Profile: Human

Settlements. http://pdt-manjong.perak.gov.my/ENGLISH/index.html (15 May 2004)

Perbadanan Putrajaya. (2003). Pus at Pentadbiran Persekutuan Putrajaya. http://www.putrajaya.net.my/ (19 Apr 2004)

Downloads

Published

2006-11-30

How to Cite

Lik Meng, L., Abdullah, A., Sook Fern, T., Badarulzaman, N., & Hassan, A. S. (2006). HOW WE FAILED TO PLAN FOR HABITABILITY. PLANNING MALAYSIA, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.21837/pm.v4i1.50