Download November 2005 Issue - Malaysian Institute of Planners

26NEWS FROM NORTHERN BRANCH & SARAWAKFORMATION OFMIP NORTHERNBRANCH, AGAIN!Reported by Lee Lik MengYes, now weare really,t r u l y ,absolutelylegal!After three previous AGMs, wewent back in time to conductour 1st AGM for the MIPNorthern Branch on the 24thSeptember, Saturday 2.37 pmat the Boardroom II, GurveyHotel, Gurney Drive, Penang.Due to an oversight (a very bigone which other aspiringBranches should learn from),we finally managed to secure the approval of the Registrarof Societies to set up the branch on 31st June 2005(thanks to the effort of the MIP Council). Hence, the entirehistory of the previous 4 years have now been designated“Pro-Tem”.A few of the Pro-Tem Committee Members did not seek“re-election” to encourage new blood to come forward toserve MIP and the community. For the new line-up, seeaccompanying group photo.And interesting thing happened to the MIP CouncilRepresentative (the Honorary Secretary) on the way fromKuala Lumpur to Penang. He arrived just as the AGM hadconcluded and the group photograph was being taken.Apparently, he run into some car problems in KL and washeld up by the mechanic. Nevertheless, in appreciation ofhis sacrifices and MIP Council’s continued support, MIPNBpresented the Council with a token of appreciation.In the morning prior to the AGM, a free half-day PlanningApproval Seminar was organised by MIPNB. It was wellattended with 41 participants including 17 Corporate MIPMembers and a few graduate members. A few participantscame from as far as Kedah. Limited seats were alsoallocated to PAM and REHDA members. Three paperswere presented by Prof. Abdul Ghani Salleh (Pro-TemBranch Chairman), Maimunah Mohd Shariff (Director ofTown Planning, MPPP) and T.K. Lim (a developer with amasters degree in planning).The Seminar was followed by a buffet lunch hosted byMIPNB for all MIP members present.(See pictures on Page 27)WHAT-IF PLANNINGSUPPORT SYSTEMIN KUCHINGA short talk on What-If Planning SupportSystem in KuchingReported by Bong Khin Fah(KUCHING 24-8-05) It is a great honour for MIPSarawak/Sabah Chapter to have invited Prof. Dr. RichardE. Klosterman, a renounced professor in town and countryplanning from University of Akron, Ohio, USA, to visitKuching City, to give a short briefing to the planningcommunity in the cat city.The brief session was held at Menara Pelita, Petra Jaya,Kuching, with Prof. Dr. Richard E. Klosterman sharing hisvast experiences in urban modelling and gave a previewfor the new version of What-If Planning Support System.There were about twenty five attendees comprise ofplanners from the private sector and planning officers fromvarious departments including Sarawak State PlanningAuthority, Land and Survey Department, Kuching NorthCity Council, Land Custody and Development Authority.Prior to the event, Prof. Dr. Richard E. Klosterman made acourtesy visit to the Land and Survey Department’sAssistant Director of Planning, Mr. Lai Hua Lee, and actingDirector of Lands and Surveys, Mr. Sudarsono Osman,and attended a luncheon at well known hotel in the citycentre.Prof. Dr. Richard E. Klosterman is the founder of a stateof-the-artGIS-based Planning Support System (PSS)called “What-If”. “What-if” is a scenario-based, policyorientedPlanning Support System that uses increasinglyavailable geographic information system (GIS) data tosupport collective decision making. It incorporatesprocedures for conducting land suitability analysis,projecting future land use demands, and allocating theprojected demands to the most suitable locations. It allowsusers to create alternative development scenarios anddetermine the likely impacts of alternate public policychoices on future development patterns. It is a useful toolin plan making.MIP Sarawak/Sabah Chapter would like to thank Prof. Dr.Richard E. Klosterman for his generosity in sharing ideaswith the local planners. The Institute would also like tothank the Land and Survey Department for hosting theevent and to the International Islamic University ofMalaysia (IIUM) for co-organised the event.(See pictures on Page 27)BERITA PERANCANG