Kota Kinabalu: The State Government is studying a proposal to relocate the Kota Kinabalu Central Market out of the city centre to provide a new market that is more comprehensive, spacious and modern, said Chief Minister Datuk Seri Hajiji Noor.
“Today we visited the proposed sites and the Government will decide later which site is suitable for us to build the new Central Market,” he told reporters after visiting the proposed sites at Alamesra Jalan UMS and Likas Bay along Jalan Tun Fuad Stephens adjacent to Anjung Selera.
The existing Kota Kinabalu Central Market dates back to the 1970s and is located along Jalan Tun Fuad Stephens, fronting the city’s coast. It is well known for its wide variety of fresh seafood, local produce, tropical fruits, spices and traditional delicacies.
Hajiji said City Hall (DBKK) will prepare a working paper on the matter, which would then be discussed at a State Cabinet meeting before a decision is made.
On plans for the current market site once it is vacated, Hajiji said this would depend on a separate proposal to be put forward by the Mayor, adding that no decision had been made as the process was still at an early stage.
He said the priority for now was to identify a suitable site for a larger and improved market that would incorporate the range of activities found around the existing market, rather than an ordinary market.
Asked about the cost of the project, Hajiji said no value had been determined yet, noting that the Government was still at the site selection stage.
Among the amenities proposed for the market hub are a dry market, a wet market, a cultural local and tourism products centre, a hawker’s centre and a fish wharf.
Posters on display during the site visit showed the proposed development envisioned a flagship public marketplace combining a modern wholesale and retail market, a cultural tourism destination and a lifestyle hub, aimed at serving the fast-growing northern corridor of the city.
The posters indicated the project ties in with DBKK’s long-term urban planning strategy to decentralise commercial activities away from the congested city centre while creating a new economic growth node for the northern part of the capital.
Present were State Secretary Datuk Zainudin Aman, Assistant Minister to the Chief Minister Datuk Joniston Bangkuai and Datuk Ceasar Mandela Malakun, Mayor Datuk Seri Dr Sabin Samitah and DBKK Director-General Datuk Lifred Wong, among others.
