Gravit8, Kota Bayuemas, Klang South, Klang

Kota Bayuemas, Klang South: Where is it again?

Whether one spells it Klang or Kelang, the fact remains that it’s impossible for one to never have heard of this place.

Klang was after all the former capital of the Selangor state, before Shah Alam took over the throne. Located around 35 kilometres west of Kuala Lumpur city centre, it covers a land area of around 573km² and divided into North Klang and South Klang. These two parts of Klang are separated by the Klang River, the river that runs from Port Klang all the way to the Kuala Lumpur city centre, and supposedly the river that inspires the naming of Klang and Klang Valley (that’s formed by the districts along the river).

Falling mostly under the jurisdiction of the Klang Municipal Council (some areas are governed by the Shah Alam City Council), Klang has a total population of around 800,000, a number that has growned positively over the past 40 years (it was recorded that in 1970, the total population was only around 250,000).

As with Shah Alam that faces distance issue (with KL city centre being the benchmark) back in the 90s, Klang however isn’t as fortunate in that department unlike Shah Alam that has slowly but surely accepted as being “not too far” nowadays. Nevertheless, this district is now connected by major highways like the New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) that gets one to Damansara area, the Federal Highway that leads to Petaling Jaya and KL, the Shah Alam Expressway (KESAS) that leads to Shah Alam and Subang, and the South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE) that leads to Kajang and Putrajaya. The earth hasn’t shifted and Klang is still where it is, far from KL but connectivity-wise, it’s much less of a hassle and commuting time to get there.

02 – Gravit8 – Location of Klang South and Highways surrounding Klang

There are sufficient cabs and buses within Klang (RapidKL even serves this area) with Klang Sentral acting as the terminal for these public transportations but alas, there are only a handful of train stations there by KTM Berhad, part of its Batu Caves-Port Klang route, like in Bukit Badak, Kampung Raja Uda, Klang, Teluk Pulai, and Teluk Gadong. Future LRT and MRT routes are said to include Klang as well which is indeed a good news.

Central to the economy of Klang is of course Port Klang where the shipping industries are. In the world-ranking, Port Klang is the 13^th busiest trans-shipment port and the 16^th busiest container port, having house about 100 shipping companies, 300 custom brokers, 25 container-storage centres, and more than 70 freight and transport companies.

Infrastructure-wise, Klang has many amenity offerings.

In the education sector for example, Klang has many schools to cover the needs of primary and secondary levels like Klang High School, La Salle School Klang, SRK Bukit Tinggi, and Methodist Girls School Klang, to name a few. Though not much, there still are quite a few colleges and universities there as well like the Wawasan Open University and Institut Teknologi Klang.

In terms of healthcare, both public and private hospitals are made available for the people of Klang like the Klang General Hospital (also known as Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah), the Manipal Hospitals Klang, and the Sentosa Specialist Hospital.

Where entertainment and conveniences are concerned, Klang doesn’t disappoint either. There’s the likes of AEON Bukit Tinggi Shopping Centre, Giant Hypermart Bandar Bukit Tinggi, Klang Parade, and the famous GM Klang Wholesale City (where you can buy clothes, shoes, etc. in bulks). So for those who kept saying “Klang has nothing!” may want to reconsider that thought.

Klang, or more specifically the parts near Port Klang, are also famously known for one thing: Seafood! Though not as famed as Melaka (think Umbai), being at the coastal area is still good enough for fresh seafood to make their way to many local restaurants in Pulau Ketam, Pandamaran, and Tanjung Harapan.

Gravit8 is located within the township of Kota Bayuemas, one of the many newer townships of Klang South, Klang. Developed mainly by I&P Group, this township spans nearly 545 acres worth of freehold land. Containing residential and commercial properties alike, it takes one around 20 minutes drive without traffic (obviously) to get there from Shah Alam city centre, and around 50 minutes from Kuala Lumpur city centre.

05 – Gravit8 – A look at the location of Gravit8 from Wikimapia

Used to be a palm estate, Kota Bayuemas was completed in 2012 and is surrounded by other well-established townships like Bandar Botanic, Bandar Parklands, and Bandar Bukit Tinggi 2. This area however is prone to land subsidence problems with cases of the early housing phases encountering wall-cracks due to the problem. Many basis amenities are provided for this township like a park, playground, mosque, and schools, and at the same time, more unconventional ones like a Cricket field, and a Lawn Bowl stadium.

The Shah Alam Expressway (KESAS) is recommended for if one were to come from KL, exiting there whether from the New Pantai Expressway (NPE) or from the Federal Highway since it cuts the traveling distance by as much as 5-7 kilometres.

03 – Gravit8 – Heading towards Klang from KL 1

04 – Gravit8 – Heading towards Klang from KL 2

Being close to the coastal areas however, Klang and all the townships it encompasses however can be quite hot at times. Plus, whenever there’s forest fires in Indonesia that causes the Southeast Asian Haze crisis, Klang is the place in whole Malaysia to be affected the most.

Loaction-wise, one would need to make a huge lifestyle changes if one were to move here, like saying goodbye to tall skyscrapers for an example. Kota Bayuemas is definitely more suitable for families and own-stay, though once Gravit8 is completed with corporate offices and even supposedly a university, there’s the possibility of rental-purpose investment here as well.