DREDGING ships, sand barges and excavators dot the offshore of Gurney Drive, preparing the seabed for the Gurney Wharf project. The project to reclaim 54ha, almost twice the size of the Penang Botanical Garden, will soon see the creation of an iconic seafront park and lifestyle precinct at Gurney Drive, the island’s famed tourist destination. Once developed, the area will house dining facilities, waterfront and seaside promenade, a pier, gardens, pond and wetlands.
Besides the park, the reclamation project involves two separate islands of 307ha for a new township and industrial use.
These islands are part of the state’s growth plan, including the construction of three highways and an undersea tunnel that will be the third link after the two bridges connecting Penang island to the mainland.
However, the plan to transform Penang has met with protests from environmentalists, Barisan Nasional and local fishermen. They allege the project is a risk to marine life and the shoreline ecosystem. The highway and undersea tunnel will also impede the movement of cargo ships to Penang port.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, chief promoter of the island’s economic transformation agenda, says the island needs to solve its traffic problems to make it a liveable place. – March 13, 2018.
The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.Dredging activities at phase 1 of the reclamation project, Gurney Wharf off Gurney Drive foreshore, Penang. The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.Dredging activities at phase 1 of the reclamation project, Gurney Wharf off Gurney Drive foreshore, Penang. The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.A cutter suction dredger at phase 1 of the reclamation project, Gurney Wharf off Gurney Drive foreshore in Penang. The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.A cutter suction dredger at phase 1 of the reclamation project, Gurney Wharf off Gurney Drive foreshore in Penang. The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.A barge unloading a dredger at phase 1 of the reclamation project, Gurney Wharf off Gurney Drive foreshore, Penang. The proposed seafront park comprises of a beach, coastal grove, water garden and seaside retail food and beverages area. – The Malaysian Insight pic by David ST Loh, March 13, 2018.
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