TUTONG

THE development of 1,500 houses on 127 hectares of greenfield land in Bukit Beruang is close to completion and will be ready by the end of next month, the Brunei Economic Development Board (BEDB) said.

The national housing scheme, a project by the BEDB, is aimed to meet the increasing demand for houses and to reduce the waiting time for Bruneians who have applied for housing.

Another aim of the project is to meet Brunei’s vision of achieving a high quality of life for its people among the Top 10 nations of the world in line with the Wawasan 2035 objectives, BEDB said in a press release.

The BEDB said that the construction was at final stage overall, with all house structures already completed.

Remaining works include architectural finishes and infrastructure works, BEDB added.

The 1,500 houses (1,000 terrace houses and 500 semi-detached houses) are built in six zones.

The housing scheme will also feature public amenities such as schools, mosques, commercial facilities, a community centre and a playground, among others.

Other works include primary and secondary road systems, drainage systems, water reticulation and elevated water reservoir, power and electrical network, sewerage reticulation and treatment plant, telecommunication fibre optic system, soft and hard landscape within the housing scheme, community areas and parks.

BEDB said that local businesses will benefit from the influx of new residents to the area.

The surrounding communities and existing housing residents in the area are also expected to benefit from the shared public amenities brought in to serve the housing scheme.

BEDB added that the project will also improve the land value of nearby localities with the increase in local businesses, public amenities and supporting infrastructure facilities.

The $147.5 million housing scheme project commenced in January 2011 and is estimated to be completed by the end of April, BEDB confirmed during a site visit for media earlier this year.

Inclement weather conditions and difficult soil conditions in the area caused delays in the project, which was initially scheduled for March 2013 completion.

In addressing those challenges, the BEDB implemented an overall action plan which includes increasing machinery by 50 per cent, increasing manpower by 30 per cent to date, engaging more experienced subcontractors, investing $6 million worth of heavy machinery and equipment, providing financing to subcontractors and increasing working hours to fully optimise on good weather.

TEE International Limited from Singapore was appointed the contractor of the project, while the BEDB project management consultants are HSS Integrated Sdn Bhd from Malaysia in affiliation with Petar Perunding Sdn Bhd from Brunei.

The master planner for this project is L & L Consultants from Singapore, while the engineering design and architectural design are handled by Baharuddin PMS Associates and Arkitek Ibrahim respectively from Brunei.

The Brunei Times