Story by Danny Ooi
Pix by Law Suun Ting
THE Penang Arts District, which was originally to be at Sia Boey (old Prangin Market) in Jalan Dr Lim Chwee Leong, will be moved to an
area situated off Gat Lebuh Macallum and Lebuhraya Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu.
The new site for the Penang Arts District – the 9.2-acre land owned by the Penang Development Corporation (PDC) and the state government – is just 500 metres away from the originally proposed site.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the new site was also larger than the original 5.5-acre plot.
“With a much larger land area minus the limitation of existing buildings and structures, the site provides better flexibility and new possibilities
for the Penang Arts District,” he told newsmen in Komtar on June 22.
Also present were Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau director Tony Pua and PDC general manager
Datuk Rosli Jaafar.
Lim said Sia Boey had been identified as a likely site to be transformed into a transportation hub for the planned Light Rail Transit (LRT) and
monorail interchange.
He commented the new site could cater to the single largest collection of art galleries and cultural museums, creative boutiques, art schools and
workshops.
Lim also announced that the Penang State Art Gallery committee vicechairman and prominent art collector Datuk Dr Tan Chee Khuan had been
appointed the adviser for the Penang Arts District project.
The Penang Arts District (PAD) will be an incubation centre for aspiring and emerging artists who are looking for support and opportunities
to expand their creative career.
It will also be a creative network that unifies the dispersed arts scene in Penang.