Hidden rule could let developers build taller towers, activist warns
Unknown to the public, a quiet move by the authorities in Penang could allow developers to put up taller and denser towers by shifting unused building rights from one plot to another, according to a noted activist.
Heritage campaigner Khoo Salma Nasution said most Penangites had never heard of this idea, called transfer of development rights, even though it was already being discussed in developer circles.
She said that the concept of transferable rights was not recognised in planning law and could be challenged in court.
Clues about the policy were seen in the draft 2030 Penang island local plan shown to the public in 2022 before it was binned, she said. Even though the draft plan was no longer in effect, the idea of transferable rights it contained “seems…
