From Practical to Boldly Ambitious: The Seven Jurors Reveal Their Selections
KUCHING – The top 11 finalists for the ‘AIR’ masterplan competition – focused on a parcel of land opposite Kuching International Airport – have been unveiled.
The shortlisted proposals span a wide range, from practical designs to audaciously innovative concepts.
Conventional entries proposed phased developments of high-rise residential units integrated with mixed-use commercial spaces.
In contrast, bold proposals envisioned “horizontal high-rises” elevated on stilts, preserving much of the natural undergrowth.
SHORTLISTED: The top 11 finalists comprised conventional to bold entries.
A jury of seven experts — including five architects and two representatives from construction firm Hock Seng Lee (HSL) — selected the finalists from 75 qualified submissions.
The shortlist comprises 11 entries due to the tying of scores among top entries. The jury deliberated for over two hours, and the shortlist was a unanimous decision.
SITE: Aerial shot of 13.5acre piece of land opposite Kuching airport.
Jury chair Ar Adrianta Aziz, president of the Malaysian Institute of Architects (PAM), praised the high quality of the submissions. “Many entries demonstrated deep thinking, with several offering creative, out-of-the-box solutions for the 13.5acre site, which is uniquely intersected by a stream.”
PANEL: The seven jurors, comprising pan Malaysian architects and two directors from Hock Seng Lee, deliberating at HSL Tower during the shortlisting meet on Oct 12.
He added, “The AIR competition showcases the wealth of architectural, town planning, and landscaping talent in Malaysia. As the only competition of its kind in the country this year, the participants really gave their best. We saw everything from feasible high-rises to bold visions for building with nature.”
The jurors, who had two weeks to review the submissions, convened at HSL Tower on October 17 for the shortlisting process. “HSL’s property team had arranged for A1 boards of all entries to be displayed, allowing us to closely examine each concept before making our final decisions,” Adrianta said.
LANGIT: HSL’s first architecture competition was for Langit, which resulted in a joint development with Singapore’s CapitaLand to build Langit Citadines Kuching.
HSL will exhibit concept boards off the shortlist at its headquarters soon.
The AIR masterplan competition, a collaboration between PAM and HSL, marks their second partnership following the success of 2021’s Langit high-rise competition. That earlier contest resulted in the development of Langit Citadines Kuching, a joint venture with Singapore’s CapitaLand.
The winning proposal for AIR will receive RM120,000, with RM60,000 for second place, RM30,000 for third, and eight honorariums of RM5,000 each. HSL has committed to developing one of the winning designs, as they did with Langit.
HSL, the developer behind La Promenade — which was designed as "a town within a park" — aims for AIR to set a new benchmark in eco-friendly development. The competition’s tagline, “The AIR Above Us & Di Bawah AIR Mengalir” (translated as "The Water Beneath Us"), reflects this aspiration.
AIR: All shortlisted AIR entries demonstrate good understanding of the site context and make good use of the river that bisects the 13.5 land.
HSL managing director Datuk Paul Yu expressed excitement about the shortlisted proposals. “The jurors’ shortlist is full of strong ideas, from those that could be built tomorrow to more adventurous concepts. Who knows? We might be able to turn one of these bold visions – the forward-thinking rule breakers – into reality.”
The top 11 finalists will present their proposals to the jurors at PAM HQ in Kuala Lumpur on Nov 11. Each team will give a presentation, followed by a 15-minute Q&A session. The entries will be evaluated with the scoring system developed by PAM.
The results will be announced on Dec 7 at HSL Tower, with Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg as the guest of honour. The event will be live-streamed on HSL’s social media channels.
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