Rooftop garden development in Iskandar, Malaysia: growth and perception

Abstract

The rooftop garden is a part of sustainable development aspirations that modifies the modern landscape and has growing potential in property markets worldwide. However, it is considered new in Malaysia. Although this development is growing especially in the urban areas such as Klang Valley, the contribution of this concept is only seen as an addition to the open space provision for property development with limited land area. Considering this situation, this study attempts to examine the current growth of this concept particularly in Iskandar Malaysia. Twenty property developers have been selected and interviewed and the results have been analyzed qualitatively. Among the property developers, 11 of them have included the rooftop garden concept in 14 of their service apartment projects. Based on the interview, this preference was driven by their awareness of the benefits of the rooftop garden to the environment and occupants. Meanwhile, the non-preference of the other nine developers on this concept was due to the development costs that may indirectly affect property price. The outcome of this study concludes that the development of the rooftop garden concept is growing steadily in Malaysia. However, high cost in its development and maintenance has become one of the major barriers of its implementation and expansion in Malaysia.

Rooftop gardening complexities in the Global South: Motivations, practices, and politics

“…3 Meanwhile, the "Greening of Seoul" initiative subsidised up to 70% of rooftop garden construction costs, resulting in 550 new rooftop gardens on residential, public, and commercial buildings from 2002 to 2013 (Matthews, 2013). However, studies in Iskandar, Malaysia (Maryanti et al, 2014), and Dhaka, Bangladesh (Hossain et al, 2019), point to insufficient government incentives and support for limited green roofs in their cities. These findings hint at the potential benefits and challenges Hanoi's rooftop gardeners face, and emphasise the role of strong governmental support to encourage positive change and citizen participation.…”

“…Both within and beyond Vietnam, such a lack of support has been identified as an important barrier to more residents taking up urban agriculture, as noted by Maryanti et al (2014), Hossain et al (2019), andPham Thi Minh Khuyen (2019). One respondent pointed out that the Singapore government was actively encouraging rooftop gardening, suggesting that the Hanoi municipal government should do the same.…”