O2 Residence @ O2 City Puchong South

If you are intrigued by the name 02, you might be even more intrigued by the shape it comes in.

“02 means oxygen,” explained the sales person regarding the equation moniker of the stratified mixed integrated development with those startling structures constructed to resemble it.

The first impression was that they seemed breathy and shape-shifted like oxygen. Some looked like they were attempts to look futuristic.

But definitely it could be seen that their concept believed in incorporating lots of breathing space, if indications from their very spacious, 10,000sq ft, purpose-built showroom were anything to go by.

On that day, Perfect Eagle Development Sdn Bhd (PED), the developer, was having a little mooncake festival do and guests were expected to arrive any time.

There was a small flurry of activity where staff were setting up tables and sound systems but all eyes of guests were on the enigmatic structure glowing within the glass confines in the middle of the hall.

Imagination was first sketched in tangible form, then translated into physical form

“This is the model of the whole integrated development,” said the sales personnel, brandishing a hand across a stretch of some of the most astonishing pieces of architecture ever seen in recent times.

“The gated and guarded community spans 64.33 acres in total, comprising a corporate tower, offices, boutique shops, possibly a hotel, a university and of course, the residential units called 02 Residence.”

Left: Some of the 1,000 trees at the entrance. Centre:The entire development, planned to be completed over a course of 12 years called 02 City, spans 64.33 acres. The residential structures are the 6 towers in the foreground of this picture . Right: A closer look at the residential towers and the green recreational areas in between

The corporate tower replica looked especially impossible.

“We will be moving into this corporate tower when it is built,” he said rather excitedly. The company will be handling the management of the development when it is built over a course of 10 to 12 years but right now, the focus will be on Phase 1 − the serviced apartments called 02 Residences.

Puan Sri Datin Alice Su, the CEO of PED and wife of Tan Sri Dato’ Koo, co-founder and director of PED will be hands-on on the job, informed the sales person, and buyers can rest assured that 02 Residences will be given loving and personalised attention, much like one’s own precious baby.

Currently, the only structures seen rising from up from the ground are the residential units made up of six different-sized, oval-shaped towers comprising different numbers of floors and different numbers of units.

Taking shape – The car park floors and all the different towers. Picture was taken in August 2015. To date, the towers have risen considerably and are almost completed

The residential units are built on a 13.35-acre parcel (out of that 64.33 spread), out of which 5.5 acres on the podium above the three-storey spread of car park bays will be reserved for the planting of some of those 1000 trees for the 13.35 acres. Yes, 1000 trees, not including plants and landscaped gardens that will make a veritable forest with its own, living eco-system.

But more about this development’s conservation and ecology later.

Highrise Lowrise with Unique Oval Towers

Strange shapes exist at 02 Residences. From this angle, it looks somewhat like a slightly flattened Pagoda

02 Residences is actually a low-density, lowrise, highrise.

Tower A, comprising 15 floors has 90 units. It is now 80% sold.

Tower B1 comprising 11 floors has 66 units. It will be linked by two walkways, one on the 6^th floor and one on the 12^th floor to Tower B2 which comprises 12 floors with 96 units. Tower B1 will be open for sale in October 2015.

Tower C comprising 12 floors has 84 units. It is completely sold out.

Tower D1 comprising 16 floors has 120 units. And Tower D2 (the smallest tower of the lot) comprising 16 floors with only 52 units is exclusively reserved for the titled class and will not be on sale. Tan Sri Dato’ Koo and family as well as friends will be moving into Tower D2.

“Which is why we call this block the ‘Datuk’ block,” said the sales person with a wide grin, confiding that in Chinese belief, people always want to make their homes where the upper echelons of society reside.

“It makes the whole place very ‘ong,’” he said, the colloquial term “ong” meaning lucky, prosperous and full of auspices.

People should see the prospect of that, he hinted.

There are 508 units in all ranging from 1,000sq ft to 2,600sq ft. These range from one-bedroom-one bathroom units to four bedroom three bathroom units. All the apartment units regardless of size are different shaped as one can choose one’s own balcony design, making the units very individualised and perfect for singles and families, turn them into dual-key units or even those who wish to rent the whole apartment out to students. Indeed 02 City would be ideal for student rentals especially when UCSI or SEGi College move their campus there.

Great for Building Scholarly Attributes

Another look at the strange shapes. Some people are enamoured of these uncommon, intriguing features

In terms of tertiary education, the closest universities in existence are currently Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), and a little further away − Kim Kok Wing University, Multimedia University, and Binary College.

As for schools, there is the newly-opened SRJK (C ) Serdang Baru and the established Alice Smith, Australian International School and other private institutions.

Puan Sri Datin Su did say in an earlier article elsewhere, 02 City would be where people can live, work, play and study in one place and with the ecology-friendly and sustainability theme assimilated into the project, this would be a dream come true for her.

Education in particular, seems to play a big role in her dream and that is why Tower D2 where she will reside, would also feature a huge library to promote reading and research, said the salesman.

He also said it is likely the British Council would be taking over the sales gallery once the building is no longer required play its role as a sales gallery.

A view of the towers from another angle showing Tower C announced as being fully sold out

A view of the towers from another angle

Tower D2 on the right is the ”Datuk’’ block which has a sign that says – Exclusively Sold Out

Animated, Organic Concept

02 Residence is so low in density, only six units occupy each floor and these are served by three lifts. The exception to the rule is Tower D2, the “Datuk block” which only has three units per floor but that tower is already exclusively reserved and not for sale to the public.

A dissection of the Floor Plan (see below) shows that angles have been minimised in the design of the buildings. That applies not just to the individual units but also to the corridors as well. This is because the shape of the corridors will be determined by void or vent areas in the centre of the towers.

Think of the unit configuration as a cored apple or a doughnut where the centre called Void Area is an empty air duct or atria. For safety reasons, the walls surrounding the voids will be 5ft high. There will be nets placed below every three floors for safety reasons. The corridors are built around the voids and the units are arranged around like sliced pieces of pie

To understand this, think of a doughnut, or a cored apple where the entire centre has been removed. This is the void area or “hole” or vent that allows for fresh air to flow throughout the building as natural ventilation.   Crossing this vent on each floor will be the corridors that lead to the individual units.

“This rounded design also allows for added security,” said the showroom personnel.

“In a normal rectangular configuration, some units will be hidden from neighbours’ views because of corners and they would not be able to watch out for each other.  But in this instance, every neighbour would be able to keep an eye on each other’s unit when say, a neighbour goes for vacation, as every unit is within every other neighbour’s line of sight.”

This promotion of neighbourliness is also in line with the concept of 02 Residence as the very first words in their website say: “It’s not just a place to live, it’s a community. It’s designed to rekindle that old familiar sense of neighbourliness, harking back to a time when everyone knew each other’s names, visited each other’s homes, played together and lived together. Here in 02 Residence, home is more than just four walls.”

Curvy Units, Minimal Angles

The showroom only featured one unit at 2200sq ft but it sufficed. All units in the actual tower more or less resemble this unit but as bigger or smaller versions and with the addition or subtraction of one bedroom or a bathroom.

Due to the oval shape resulting in irregular shaped units, some people might say it represents a design challenge but that needn’t be so if one used imagination.

On the contrary, interior designing a non-angular structure allows for greater creativity because one does not have to think inside a box (literally) anymore.

The pictures below show some interesting possibilities. Pixes are videograbs  from their website www.o2city.com.my.

The wide, curved, long balcony is just outside the glass doors on the right.

Layout design possibility 1

Layout design possibility 2

You can design your apartment in many ways. Below is what is shown in the showroom in a 2,200sq ft unit. Only an empty unit will be given save for walls (which you can hack down if you like or build additional ones if you like.)

Bathroom fittings, tiles and flooring will be given except for the sinks and mirrors (in the master bedroom) as you may have your own preferences.

In the kitchen, only the double steel sinks will be given.

The flooring of porcelain tiles and laminated wood textured flooring for the unit will be given.The walls will be plain. It is up to you to add colour and texture with the wallpapers you prefer.

Pix from actual showroom: The hall, the dining, the kitchen

Pix from actual showroom: The hall, taken from balcony

Left: The shared bath. Centre: View of dining from the rooms and Right: The Master Bath. The mirrors and sinks will not be given with the unit

The Master Bedroom. Note the balcony

The other side of the Master Bedroom showing the built-ins. However, the built-ins will not be included in the unit

The second room. Outside the glass door is the balcony

The 3rd room or maid’s room with the attached bathroom or third bath

Everything but the kitchen sink will NOT be given. In other words: only the kitchen sink will be given in the kitchen ensemble

The dining area again as you emerge from your rooms. It is an auspicious arrangement!

Balconies as Living Spaces

“The balcony is our top selling feature,” piped the young man after stepping into the show unit. Sliding open the glass door from the living room, one can see why. The balconies traverse all along the bedrooms and can be accessed from any of the bedroom and the hall. It is so long and wide and opens up to such a beautiful worldview, you can practically hold a party and have all your guests there.

Here is a videograb of the balcony from their website.

The balcony starts from the living room

The balcony continues from the living room, past the master bedroom into the third bedroom

It was after the rain. Picture was taken on a particularly hazy day

Balcony sizes can be chosen from a range, along with unit sizes. Below is the range in picture form. The strips drawn above units (resembling pie slices) are your balcony shapes and sizes. There is a range of widths and lengths. You can find out more by visiting http://www.o2city.com.my/

Find out more layout plans and balcony variations by visiting http://www.o2city.com.my/

Find out more layout plans and balcony variations by visiting http://www.o2city.com.my/

The plans offer you individualised balconies as can be seen in the picture

Green Facilities

Life at 02 Residence and 02City as envisaged by the developer will be akin to living in a park planted with 1000 trees and landscaped to provide abundant greenery as far as the eye can see.

There will be the employment of green and natural technologies to minimise energy and water consumption, precious commodities that must be saved and recycled in order to achieve sustainable living on Mother Earth.

Solar Photovoltaic System

For instance, on top of every tower will be a Solar Photovoltaic System to harness the sun’s energy which could lessen electrical bills.

“The maintenance fee for the first year has been set for 33sen which works out to be RM400 for the first year,” explained the sales person in how this is going to work out. “But after that, we will sell back the electricity to TNB and this could actually drop the maintenance fee, apart from lessening the individual’s utility bills.”

Natural Air Ventilation and Rainwater Harvesting

(See picture above) as to how the vents or void areas built within the core of the towers will help circulate fresh air into the inside of the towers and units. This can help lessen airconditioning and fan bills.  Of course, having high ceilings, as high as 3.8m, also helps in allowing stale air to rise and circulate and improve chi within the structure.

The roof top of the towers have Rainwater Harvesting Systems installed to save on using treated water, a problem Selangor had recently. The harvested water will be collected in an Eco Pool where the water will be used for watering plants and flushing toilets.

The eco pool where rainwater will be used to water the plants, flush toilets thereby minimising household water usage by 38%

On the green podium, there will also be a Compost Maker where dead leaves and residents’ refuse will be collected and made into organic compost fertiliser.

Videograb of jogging track. See the red lane specially made for jogging? It will be 2km long

Other than these facilities, there are other outstanding ones such as the 2km jogging track built away from traffic, bicycle tracks, bubbling pool and other water recreation areas, yoga deck and so on and so forth.

There are about 27 green-and water-based recreational facilities built for communal living and at least 10 other amenities like a Childcare Centre, Convenience Store, Laundrette built for residents’ convenience.

On top of that, an MRT will be built just 500m away for residents’ public transport access.(See above on MRT convenience).