Bandar Meru Raya poised to become a Second City Centre in Ipoh

IPOH residents used to see Meru, an area next to Jelapang in Ipoh, as a sleepy place largely filled with trees.

Today it is poised to become a second city centre in Ipoh, now named Bandar Meru Raya, with major developments such as the Amanjaya Bus Terminal, Mydin Hypermarket, Tenby International School, new government agency buildings and fast food outlets.

But this is just the tip of the iceberg.

By 2018, people will soon see immense changes to the cityscape as works are now in the pipeline to create an iconic hub of tourist attractions.

This includes the RM400mil Movie Animation Park Studio, a massive recreational park within the roundabout fronting Casuarina@Meru Hotel, and the Aquaventure Theme Park.

At the helm of this tourism development phase, Perak Development Corporation (PKNP) chief executive officer Datuk Aminuddin Md Desa is striving to create Bandar Meru Raya as the iconic destination of the silver state.

Bandar Meru Raya now has a convention centre attached to Casuarina@Meru Hotel.

It is his utmost desire to ‘sell’ Perak.

No doubt, there are many places one can visit here but to Aminuddin, the “onereal, outstanding icon is not there.”

“When you want to go to Hong Kong, what is the first thing that comes to mind?”

“Of course it is Hong Kong Disneyland.”

“For tour packages to the United States, you’ve got Universal Studios, Disneyland, and Las Vegas. Likewise in Singapore, there’s Universal Studios Singapore.”

“These are all tourist attractions. For Perak, there’s not much buzz about Royal Belum or the Perak Man in Lenggong.”

The master plan for Bandar Meru Raya’s tourism development.

“This is what we are trying to create for Bandar Meru Raya, for it to be the iconic destination of Perak,” he told MetroPerak.

Aminuddin is excited to introduce the recreation park as a place for families to enjoyand relax in, as there will be water fountains, children’s playground, waterspray parks, wall climbing, and a skateboard park, inspired by the tropical landscape of KLCC Park in Kuala Lumpur.

“In the middle of the park will be an amphitheatre, where we’ll pull in shows of different cultures almost every other weekend. It’s going to be a place that could attract thousands of people.”

“We’ll even have the park fully lit by floodlights so that people can move around easily at night,” he said, adding that PKNP will be the one over seeing the park’s maintenance in terms of cleanliness and security.

Aminuddin said he is very particular about these two aspects, as he wants to ensure that the park is always clean and safe for the public.

Tenby International School moved to its new campus in Bandar Meru Raya in 2014.

The park is slated to be opened next May, the same time as the Movie Animation Park Studio.

Another major game changer to Perak’s tourism, the Aquaventure Theme Park, will have about nine to 11 major attractions, or as Aminuddin puts it, “it will be bigger than Sunway Lagoon Water Park.”

“It is now in the designing process, and its theme will revolve around Perak’s defining features, like a tin mining attraction, and limestone caves.

“We will have 400 units of service apartments built behind the theme park, so families can enjoy a more affordable, cosier stay,” he said.

Aminuddin said people can also look forward to having an open-air retail mall running on solar energy that will be located next to the theme park.

“Electricity is free as heat is immediately absorbed using the solar panels on the roof to generate it, so although light may enter the mall, you won’t feel it’s hot.

“The same will be applied to pedestrian walks that connect all these attractions, so that tourists can walk from one place to another during rain or shine,” he said.

Work is in progress for the upcoming Movie Animation Park Studios in Bandar Meru Raya.

Other features to Meru’s tourism development also include a five-star hotel and wellness resort, Malay traditional house (food village), a performing arts and culture centre, and a multi-storey parking facility.

MetroPerak also met with several Meru residents to find out their views on the place’s rapid development in recent years.

Abdul Manan Wahab, 64, a retiree who lives in Chemor, is happy with the Mydin Hypermarket which opened a few years ago.

“Parking here is easy, plus I think there is more variety of things sold at very reasonable prices compared to what you can find in Chemor.

“My wife and I are willing to travel a bit further to come here twice a week just to buy groceries,” he said, adding that he was also impressed with how quickly Meru has advanced compared to how it was 10 years ago.

As for businessman Jeremy Yong, the 30-year-old is excited about the Movie Animation Park Studio set to open next year.

“Is till cannot believe that there is going to be a theme park here in Perak. I cannot wait to go there with my wife. She loves animated characters a lot.”

“Hopefully it will be as fun as Universal Studios Singapore or even Disneyland. “I trust that this will also give our state’s tourism a much-needed boost,” he said.

On the other hand, lawyer M. Kulasegaran, who has lived in Meru for more than six years, said while any development for the community is good, other factors must be considered.

“When you have such a phenomenal commercial growth in Meru, many other aspects are compromised. For instance, you can hardly see a big football field or a park,” he said.

Kulasegaransays that a green lung was something that should be provided without folk having to ask for it.

Kulasegaran, who is also Member of Parliament for Ipoh Barat, said the road entering Meru should also be widened, as traffic coming in and out of the place has increasedby 300% over the past few years.

“Development is inevitable, and it is good that they are trying to bring in amenities for those who are living quite a distance away from the city. But I think there should also be a vision and mission for Meru, especially in terms of connectivity,” he said.

（Source: The Star MetroPerak）