Bangsar

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Bangsar
Fire		Pantai

Bangsar is a residential suburb on the outskirts of

which have their municipal councils. Neighbourhood residents' associations and business councils play a part in communicating with the local authority, but they exercise no legal or administrative power. Malays make up most of the population at 61%, followed by the Chinese at 24%, Indians at 15%.

History

In the year 1906,

The Bangsar Estate was owned by its plantation firm Société Financière des Caoutchoucs (Socfin), before it was developed into a residential area.^[3] Bangsar Park was the first area to be developed for housing in Kuala Lumpur in 1969. From there Socfin began selling its land to private buyers and from then on, Bangsar began experiencing rapid development.^[4]

During the 1950s, several companies housed their staff and families in Bangsar due to its convenient location. The Malayan Railway (now

) housed their staff in Bukit Bangsar since its headquarters is in Pantai Hills. Staff quarters are still found and used in Bangsar today.

Among the earliest government building here is Bangsar Hospital (European Hospital), built in the early 1900s.[5] Towards the end of 1965, an eight-floor building for the Public Health College costing a million ringgit was built in Bukit Bangsar. In 1966, the Health Inspectors Training School and the Nurses Training School was shifted to the new premise in Bangsar. In 1967, the Institute for Public Health was officially inaugurated and eventually expanded to its present form.^[6]

During the

Eng Lian Enterprise Sdn Bhd developed the Bangsar Baru neighbourhood, comprising 1,125 houses and a thriving business community in 1974.

.

Geography

Bangsar lies respectively to the north and south of the neighbouring areas of

.

Bangsar is bounded by

, Bukit Bandaraya, Taman SA, Bangsar Baru, Lucky Garden, Pantai Hills, and the areas off Jalan Bangsar. Jalan Maarof is Bangsar's main thoroughfare, dividing Bangsar into two main areas: east and west. On the east side lies Taman SA, Bangsar Park, Bukit Bangsar, Bangsar Utama and one-half of Bukit Bandaraya. The remainder of the other neighbourhoods lie on the west.

Bangsar is rather flat in the southern neighbourhoods of Bangsar Utama, Bangsar Park and the Off Jalan Bangsar area. This makes Jalan Bangsar in the south prone to flooding during heavy downpours.[9]^[10][11][12] The terrain progressively rises towards the north up Bangsar Baru before making a steep drop in elevation after Bukit Bandaraya.

Demographics

Its earliest settlers were railway workers living next to the KL-

Culture

Food

douhua

beancurd dessert stall in Lucky Garden.

Typically Malaysian, Bangsar has a wide array of cuisine. Indian Muslim

and seafood restaurants are a little harder to find outside Lucky Garden.

There is also a hawker centre in Bangsar Baru, sometimes referred to as Bangsar Mamak, at the former

and milk is also sold on motorcycles and vans.

Mutiara Bangsar Tower located at Jalan Liku is another one of the most popular place in Bangsar, at 2nd floor food court, there are several Malay foodstalls like Nasi Beringin, Lontong Mak Cik, Telur Yoges and Meehun Sup Makcik Misai.

The Telawi area in Bangsar Baru is sometimes known as "the strip". It has often been compared to Singapore's Holland Village. "The strip" can be skirted on foot in about 15 minutes. A large pasar malam, or night market, each Sunday lends the Bangsar Baru a colourful flavour. There is also a daily wet market in Lucky Garden. Another lesser-known pasar malam is held in Bukit Bangsar on Wednesdays.

Recent additions include One Bangsar (a string of new restaurants in Jalan Ara, a hillside street near the Telawi area), Bangsar Village and a remodelled Bangsar Shopping Centre.

Art and theatre

The Actors Studio was located at Bangsar Shopping Centre but has moved to Lot 10. There are several art galleries scattered around Bangsar, especially in Bangsar Baru. Roving

, usually performing covers, may be found in Bangsar Baru.

Silverfish, a high brow independent bookshop at Jalan Telawi 3, focuses on literature, philosophy, religion and Malaysiana.

Infrastructure

Medical

Bangsar's first hospital, Bangsar Hospital or European Hospital, was built in the early 1900s.

(UMMC), a public hospital, is situated within a five-minute drive through Petaling Jaya. There are also many private clinics spread throughout Bangsar to meet the health needs of the residents.

Education

Kindergartens and nurseries are usually operated out of houses. Many

for school-aged students run out of shop lots and homes. Drama, ballet, and music schools also operate similarly.

Bangsar has three primary schools, which are Sekolah Kebangsaan Bukit Bandaraya,

(UM) is five minutes from Bangsar. Also in the vicinity is the Maktab Perguruan Raja Muda (Raja Muda Teachers' College) and the Maktab Perguruan Bahasa (Language Teaching College).

Sports and recreation

The Bangsar Sports Complex has a swimming pool, a multipurpose hall with badminton courts as well as squash, tennis and basketball. Prospin Tennis management is based here. Several parks and playgrounds are scattered around, namely those at Jalan Bangkung, Jalan Rumpai, Jalan Terasek 7, Jalan Tempinis 5 and Jalan Kurau.

The Kilat Stadium is on Tenaga Nasional's grounds. The Kuala Lumpur Hockey Stadium is near Jalan Pantai Baharu, next to

in 1998.

Religion

Bangsar is a diverse community with a Muslim mosque and 'suraus', Buddhist centres, Christian churches, Hindu temples and other places of worship.

Muslim

community.

Ti-Ratana Buddhist Society, Kuala Lumpur & Selangor (HQ) is located at 17, Lorong Maarof. The centre is mainly focused on community and religious services to the neighbourhood and welfare projects to the poor and needy.

Sri Ramalingaeswarar temple, located near the junction of Lorong Maarof and Jalan Bangsar, serves

.

Bangsar Gospel Centre (originally an offshoot of Jalan Imbi Chapel, in the Christian Brethren tradition) operates from a shophouse along Jalan Telawi Tiga. Bangsar Lutheran Church was restarted in 2000 and convened in a house along with Jalan Abdullah. The St Peter's Anglican Church is situated at Jalan Tempinis Kiri 1 near Lorong Riong, and there another church is located in Bukit Bandaraya near a primary school.

Development

Bangsar's population has increased in recent years and led to an increase in traffic congestions and parking shortages. Developments in neighbouring

have caused increased traffic to pass through Bangsar, especially along Jalan Maarof.

New shops and attractions are sprouting up in Bangsar, but many do not survive for long, particularly food and entertainment outlets. Other long-standing outlets have been successful, and some have opened branches within Bangsar itself. Some examples of successful long-standing businesses are Alexis, La Bodega, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, and McDonald's, on Jalan Telawi and Bangsar Shopping Centre.

The most luxurious condominiums are primarily situated in the vicinity of Bangsar Hill on Jalan Kapas and include Araville, Bangsar Peak, Inara, D'9 Condominium, Contessa, and KEN Bangsar.

Araville was one of the earliest luxury condominiums on the hill. It is a low-density residential housing of only 60 units with 30 units per block.^[14] From the unit, residents can view the Bangsar Hills and Damansara Heights, or Kuala Lumpur city. Genting Highlands is also visible during clear weather. Araville, D9 Condominium, and Casa Vista are most well sought after by local investors and expatriates. These are the only three condominiums that offer an unobstructed view of the city.

Transport

This article needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (February 2011)

Bangsar is four kilometres from the Kuala Lumpur city centre. It is also connected to

.

The

.

Bus services running through Bangsar are as follows.

• 822: (previously 5 and 621) Bangsar LRT – Mid Valley – Lucky Garden – Bangsar Baru – Bukit Bandaraya – Bangsar Shopping Centre – Bangsar Park – Bangsar LRT (loop service)
• T817: (MRT Feeder Bus) Pusat Bandar Damansara MRT – Bangsar Shopping Centre – Bangsar Park – Bangsar Baru - Mid Valley - Bangsar Baru - Bukit Bandaraya - Bangsar Shopping Centre - Pusat Bandar Damansara MRT (loop service)
• T850: (previously 908B and 634) Bangsar LRT – Bangsar Park – Bangsar Shopping Centre – MRT Semantan - Pusat Bandar Damansara – Jalan Semantan – Pusat Bandar Damansara – Bangsar Shopping Centre – Bangsar Park – Bangsar LRT (loop service)
• 309: (operated by Triton Commuter; ceased operation) KL Sentral – Jalan Semantan – Mont Kiara – Pusat Bandar Damansara – Bangsar Shopping Centre – Bangsar Park – Bangsar LRT – KL Sentral (loop service)

Many other

Rapid KL buses

head towards the city centre, and Selangor suburbs also ply Jalan Bangsar.

• 821 (previously 518): KL Sentral – Bangsar LRT – New Pantai Expressway – Jalan 1/112 – Jalan Pantai Murni (Hillpark) – Jalan Pantai Permai – Rumah Panjang
• 751 (previous T64'): KL Sentral – Bangsar LRT – Jalan Pantai Baharu – Federal Highway – Persiaran Tengku Ampuan – Persiaran Selangor – Persiaran Sultan – Persiaran Jubli Perak – Persiaran Perusahaan – Persiaran Budiman (Seri Muda)
• 750' (previously T80): KL Sentral – Bangsar LRT – Jalan Pantai Baharu – Federal Highway – UiTM Shah Alam
• 772' (previously T81): KL Sentral – Bangsar LRT – Jalan Pantai Baharu – Federal Highway – Jalan Lapangan Terbang Subang – Jalan Bukit Badak (Subang Baru)

First Coach runs bus services from Lengkok Abdullah (near Bangsar LRT and Jalan Bangsar 7-Eleven) to Singapore's Novena Square (near Novena MRT station).

References