City Living

I have been taking her for granted. When I decided to look around, I realised the city has changed somewhat.There are more people and more buildings.There are more things to do.

It deserves to be called a city. But,many friends in the property market do scratch their heads at the number of the shopping complexes coming up. Can the spaces be filled up with retailers, they wonder? There are some who think that we are overbuilding.

Do we have that many people with high disposable incomes?Or, are they being snapped up by the same people over and over again?

Whatever, the case maybe, Kota Kinabalu has grown up, at least in the city centre.Every available space is being developed. The city has an air of modernity about it.Then, a friend said he noticed that there are too many eating places around!

The city is well situated too, it has the islands nearby, and the mountains a bit further up. You take your pick if you have some time to kill.

It is not overcrowded,in fact, it’s a pleasant city, furthermore, it’s generally friendly minus the callousness of a big city living.

Some foreigners I talked to liked the unhurried pace, the high cultural tolerance displayed by the people, and some might even consider coming back to stay under” Malaysia My Second Home Programme.”

Well and good.

What I think is missing is that city planners need to make the city a lot more noisier with music, and other cultural activities as part and parcel of our city living.

Designate certain spots for buskers, clowns and other street performers, and get the management of some of the complexes to organise concerts or to provide live music on a more regular basis.

The recent well attended Jazz Festival at Jesselton Point tells us that city folks do appreciate good music. Introduce as many musical genres as possible. I know it costs money, I am sure with planning, it is not impossible.

I understand the old Hone Place Padang in Tanjung Aru is being turned into a park, I hope a stage can also be built by the contractor so that the people can enjoy public concerts there.

A city needs plenty of soul to make it a place worth living and for outsiders to want to stay put.