After more than six months of upgrading and maintenance work, Kuala Lumpur’s iconic Dataran Merdeka has been reopened to the public, as of 10am today.
Mayor Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal Talib said upgrades to the landmark had been completed.
Late last year, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) initially responded to complaints of the square being in a dilapidated state by stating that no major maintenance work would take place until 2015, as DBKL was expecting the square to host several events for Visit Malaysia Year 2014, but on January 22 the square was closed to the public for major upgrade work anyway.
“It will open at 10am and I hope that it will become an attraction once again for the public,” he said after visiting the field yesterday.
“We’ve appointed a contractor to monitor and maintain the field with grass-cutting every week and weeding every month.”
He said additional trash bins would be put in place as soon as the plastic barricades were removed.
Ahmad Phesal said the upgrade project cost RM4 million, a cost which includes the installation of an upgraded drainage system and the planting of longer-lasting grass.
“We’ve allocated RM200,000 annually for the maintenance of the field.
“Sprinklers will be turned on at 4am every day and we will constantly monitor the field,” he told The Malay Mail Online.
Despite major upgrade work having been completed on April 21, DBKL held off reopening Dataran Merdeka to the public until today to ensure the field was in a good and sustainable condition.
With the reopening, the mayor invited the public to catch the live broadcast of the World Cup semifinal match between Holland and Argentina on the square’s big screen at 4am tomorrow. He also suggested that Muslims break their Ramadhan fast on the field, but reminded them to keep the area clean.
