“As tall as the sky permits, as wide as the land reaches, Diamond Inya Palace is nothing short of the iconic crowning glory of Yangon.”
That’s the motto on the website of Diamond Inya Palace, a planned high-rise that will be Myanmar’s tallest condo if developers are permitted to continue building.
But the development is one of two that have been suspended and placed on a ‘watch-list’ by Yangon’s regional parliament, raising the possibility that they would be canceled for good.
According to the Myanmar Times, officials in parliament said on Tuesday that they would raise objections if development continues before an investigation of the structures is completed.
Sandar Min, head of the regional Finance, Planning and Economic Committee, said that the 34-floor Diamond Inya Palace Condominium in Mayangone Township is in a low–rise part of a draft city zoning plan.
While the plan is yet to be approved, no high-rises should go ahead in that zone, she said.
“We don’t think this building should have 34 floors and the mayor has said he will use existing rules and regulations to handle the issue,” she told the Times. “If the developer continues construction, our parliament will object.”
Although 26 floors have already been built, construction of the condo has been suspended after the Yangon City Development Committee found the developer had reportedly not received a final construction permit.
“We are still deciding whether it should continue or not,” said Than Htay, head of the Engineering Department (Building) at YCDC.
Construction was previously halted last November after a fire caused by a falling searchlight.
An 11-story building near Yangon’s parliament was also under discussion yesterday. The developer, Waiminn Group, told the Times that work had been suspended and the firm would follow the rules if the project were to be cancelled.
According to the Times, Yangon’s Regional government has placed all buildings above nine floors under review – raising the possibility that even those already underway could be suspended.
The report says that the previous administration approved more than 200 high-rises, with more than 60 granted permits to begin construction and more than 120 already underway.
