George Town Central Business District, Penang

George Town Central Business District
George Town Central Business District
Central business district
	From top, left to right: Gurney Drive ; Colonial-era bank buildings at Beach Street ; Komtar at night; Skyline as seen from the Penang Strait ; A ferry departing the Raja Tun Uda Ferry Terminal ; Skyscrapers along Northam Road ;
	Coordinates: 5°24′52.1″N100°19′44″E / 5.414472°N 100.32889°E
Country	Malaysia
State	Penang
City	George Town
Time zone	UTC+8 (Malaysian Standard Time)
Postcode	100xx
Area codes	+6042
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Part of	Melaka and George Town, the Historic Cities of the Straits of Malacca
Criteria	Cultural: ii, iii, iv
Reference	1223-002
Inscription	2008 (32nd Session)
Area	109.38 ha
Buffer zone	150.04 ha

Last updated February 25, 2024

The George Town Central Business District (CBD) is the financial and political centre of the city of George Town, the capital of the Malaysian state of Penang. The financial district, which was first envisioned by the Penang Island City Council's Local Plan 2030, lies entirely within the city centre, and is home to much of the city's banking and financial services.^[1] The term CBD is often used interchangeably with Downtown George Town, encompassing both the historic core and modern sections of the city centre.

Background

Beach Street is one of the oldest streets in George Town, and has been the mercantile and financial hub of the city since its early days. During the 19th century, the street was located adjacent to the old Port of Penang; European traders and merchants were concentrated around its northern end, near the piers and administrative institutions at Light Street.^[2] In 1875, the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China (now Standard Chartered) became the first international bank to establish a branch at Beach Street.^[2]^[3] Several other banks and mercantile firms followed suit, such as the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (now HSBC), the Netherlands Trading Society, and the Oversea-Chinese Bank Limited (now OCBC).^[4]^[5]

Between the 1870s and the 1890s, land reclamation was carried out to provide more land for mercantile trade, eventually pushing out George Town's eastern coastline.^[4]^[6] Following the reclamation, Beach Street no longer served as a coastal road, causing many trading firms to relocate to the newly created eastern side of the road, which was closer to the port.^[4]

In the 1990s, as the city's banks began reassessing their spatial requirements to accommodate greater business volumes, a number of commercial developments commenced along Northam Road.^[7]^[8] The commercial skyscrapers along this road quickly attracted various banking, auditing and other ancillary services, as the newer buildings offer more space and amenities that the colonial-era buildings at Beach Street lacked. By the early 2000s, Northam Road and the adjacent Gurney Drive emerged as a new financial precinct.^[9]

It was not unitl 2022 when the Penang Island City Council, the local government that administers George Town, released a draft of its Local Plan 2030, which formally proposed the CBD as one of the economic corridors within the city.^[1]^[10] Covering a significant portion of Penang Island's northeastern promontory up to the northern banks of the Pinang River, including areas such as the city's UNESCO World Heritage Site, Pulau Tikus, Kampung Siam, Kampong Serani and Ayer Rajah, the CBD was envisioned as the hub for financial and service sectors, with the aim of bolstering George Town's standing as a global city.^[1]

Economy

Much of George Town's financial, services and retail activities are concentrated within the CBD, home to several international banks including Standard Chartered, HSBC, Citibank and Bank of China. The CBD also houses federal financial institutions like Bank Negara and the Employees Provident Fund, along with various auditing, business intelligence and legal firms.

Tourism plays a significant role in the economy of the downtown area due to the UNESCO World Heritage Site's popularity as a tourist destination. Swettenham Pier and Raja Tun Uda Ferry Terminal are the two major entry points within the CBD, facilitating ease of access for tourists. The ongoing refurbishment of shophouses and alleys throughout downtown George Town has contributed to the growth of the area's retail centres and medical tourism.^[11] Among the well-known healthcare facilities within the CBD are Penang Adventist Hospital, Gleneagles Hospital Penang and Island Hospital.

CBD

Swettenham Pier

Gleneagles Hospital

Loh Guan Lye Hospital

Penang Adventist Hospital

Island Hospital

Ferry Terminal

HSBC

Bank of China

OCBC

Standard Chartered

Al-Rajhi Bank

Citibank

UOB

China Construction Bank

KPMG

IHS Markit

Informa

Deloitte

PwC

Chinese Consulate

Indonesian Consulate

Thai Consulate

Japanese Consulate

UNESCO
World Heritage
Site

class=notpageimage|

Locations of international firms and other major facilities within the CBD, outlined in red.

Governance

The CBD also functions as the political centre of the entire State of Penang, where the executive and legislative branches of the Penang state government are located. The Chief Minister's Office, along with state government agencies and departments, are situated within Komtar, the tallest skyscraper in George Town. The Penang State Assembly Building is where the 40-member Penang state legislature convenes, while the Penang High Court is the highest court in the state. The Penang Island City Council's headquarters is also located at the City Hall. Additionally, all four consulates in George Town - China, Indonesia, Japan, and Thailand - are situated within the CBD.

Related Research Articles

Penang is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay Peninsula. These two halves are physically connected by the Penang Bridge and the Second Penang Bridge. The state shares borders with Kedah to the north and east, and Perak to the south.

George Town is the capital of the Malaysian state of Penang and the core city of the George Town Conurbation, Malaysia's second largest metropolitan area with a population of 2.84 million and the second highest contributor to the country's GDP. The city proper spans an area of 306 km² (118 sq mi) encompassing Penang Island and surrounding islets, and had a population of 794,313 as of 2020.

Butterworth is the city centre of Seberang Perai in the Malaysian state of Penang. It lies about 3 km (1.9 mi) east of George Town, the capital city of Penang, across the Penang Strait. As of 2020, Butterworth had a total population of 80,378 residents.

Balik Pulau is a suburb of George Town within the Malaysian state of Penang. Located 12.7 km (7.9 mi) southwest of the city centre, it lies near the southwestern corner of Penang Island and is also the administrative seat of the Southwest Penang Island District.

Perai is a suburb of Seberang Perai in the Malaysian state of Penang. It lies at the southern bank of the Perai River and borders Butterworth to the north.

Pulau Tikus is a neighbourhood within the downtown core of George Town in the Malaysian state of Penang. Named after a rock just off the coast of Penang Island, this upper class neighbourhood is home to Eurasian, Thai and Burmese communities.

Tanjong Tokong is a suburb of George Town in the Malaysian state of Penang. It is located at the northeastern coast of Penang Island, 4 km (2.5 mi) northwest of the city centre. Over the recent decades, the former fishing village has been transformed into an upper class residential suburb of the city, with high-rises such as Straits Quay lining the coast.

Sungai Pinang is a residential neighbourhood within the downtown core of George Town in the Malaysian state of Penang. The neighbourhood lies along the southern bank of the Pinang River and is bounded by Jalan Sungai Pinang to the south.

The South-West District is a district within the Malaysian state of Penang. The district covers the southwestern half of Penang Island and borders the North-East to the north-east. It has an area of 175 km² (68 sq mi) and a population of 197,131 as of 2010. Balik Pulau is the district's administrative centre, while Bayan Lepas is the largest town within the district.

The North-East District is a district within the Malaysian state of Penang. The district covers the northeastern half of Penang Island, including the centre of George Town, Penang's capital city. It has an area of 122.79 km² (47.41 sq mi) and a population of 510,996 as of 2010. The district borders the South-West District (Penang)|South-West District to the south-west.

Beach Street is a major thoroughfare in George Town within the Malaysian state of Penang. Part of the city's central business district, it is also one of the oldest streets in Penang, having been created soon after the founding of the state by Captain Francis Light in 1786.

The Greater Penang Conurbation, also known as the George Town Conurbation, is the built-up urban or metropolitan area within and around the Malaysian state of Penang. Encompassing all of Penang, and parts of the neighbouring states of Kedah and Perak, the conurbation was home to over 2.84 million people as of 2020, the second largest in the country after the Klang Valley.

Weld Quay is a coastal road in the city of George Town within the Malaysian state of Penang. One of a handful of places worldwide that was named after a Prime Minister of New Zealand, the road runs along the city's eastern shoreline, connecting the Tun Dr. Lim Chong Eu Expressway with Light Street and Beach Street.

Burmah Road is a major thoroughfare in the city of George Town within the Malaysian state of Penang. The 3.7 km (2.3 mi) long road is a major artery leading out of the city centre to the suburb of Pulau Tikus, serving as the main thoroughfare for the suburb as well.

Cycling in Penang Island refers to the use of bicycles in the city of George Town and elsewhere on Penang Island, Malaysia, either for recreational, touring or transportation purposes. While bicycles have long been in use in Penang, with rickshaws becoming a unique application of the pedal-driven vehicle in the state, the usage of bicycles has noticeably declined since the late 20th century due to the proliferation of cars as the main transportation mode.

LinkBike is a public bicycle sharing system serving the city of George Town in Penang, Malaysia. Launched in 2016, it is the first such system in Malaysia. Currently, there are 250 LinkBike bicycles and 25 stations throughout the city, including its UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well as suburban places like Queensbay Mall.

Padang Kota is a state constituency in Penang, Malaysia, that has been represented in the Penang State Legislative Assembly since 1974. It covers George Town's historic city centre, including its old administrative core and the central business district (CBD) at Beach Street.

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Ayer Rajah is a residential neighbourhood within the downtown core of George Town in the Malaysian state of Penang. This leafy, affluent neighbourhood, situated adjacent to the Penang Botanic Gardens, mostly consists of landed properties such as bungalows and semi-detached houses, surrounded by tree-lined avenues.

Central George Town is the city centre of George Town, the capital of the Malaysian state of Penang. It corresponds to the eponymous mukim of George Town, which is mostly identical to the original city limits established when George Town was granted city status in 1957.

References

1 2 3 "Draf Rancangan Tempatan Pulau Pinang (Pulau) 2030 Jilid 1". Penang Island City Council .
1 2 Khoo, Salma Nasution (2007). Streets of George Town, Penang . Penang, Malaysia: Areca Books. ISBN 9789839886009.
↑ Hockton, Keith (2012). Penang: An Inside Guide to Its Historic Homes, Buildings, Monuments and Parks. Kuala Lumpur: MPH Group Publishing. ISBN 9789674153038.
1 2 3 Langdon, Marcus. A Guide to George Town's Historic Commercial and Civic Precincts. Penang: George Town World Heritage Incorporated.
↑ "Banking in on preserving city's heritage - Community | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2016-11-27.
↑ Cheah, Jin Seng (2013). Penang 500 Early Postcards. Editions Didier Millet. ISBN 9789671061718.
↑ "Penang's new financial hub - Business News | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2017-11-18.
↑ Goh, Beng Lan (2002). Modern Dreams: An Inquiry Into Power, Cultural Production and the Cityscape in Contemporary Urban Penang, Malaysia. SEAP Publications. ISBN 9780877277309.
↑ "Penang DAP rep: Put all projects in Gurney Drive on hold". 2015-05-22. Retrieved 2016-11-27.
↑ McIntyre, Ian (20 Oct 2022). "Penang unveils island's draft local plan after long delay". The Vibes. Retrieved 28 Nov 2023.
↑ Ferrarese, Marco (24 Jun 2018). "George Town marks UNESCO anniversary amid debate". Nikkei, Inc. Retrieved 28 Nov 2023.

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[:2-1] 1 2 3 "Draf Rancangan Tempatan Pulau Pinang (Pulau) 2030 Jilid 1". Penang Island City Council .

[:1-2] 1 2 Khoo, Salma Nasution (2007). Streets of George Town, Penang . Penang, Malaysia: Areca Books. ISBN 9789839886009.

[:3-3] Hockton, Keith (2012). Penang: An Inside Guide to Its Historic Homes, Buildings, Monuments and Parks. Kuala Lumpur: MPH Group Publishing. ISBN 9789674153038.

[:03-4] 1 2 3 Langdon, Marcus. A Guide to George Town's Historic Commercial and Civic Precincts. Penang: George Town World Heritage Incorporated.

[5] "Banking in on preserving city's heritage - Community | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2016-11-27.

[:4-6] Cheah, Jin Seng (2013). Penang 500 Early Postcards. Editions Didier Millet. ISBN 9789671061718.

[:02-7] "Penang's new financial hub - Business News | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2017-11-18.

[8] Goh, Beng Lan (2002). Modern Dreams: An Inquiry Into Power, Cultural Production and the Cityscape in Contemporary Urban Penang, Malaysia. SEAP Publications. ISBN 9780877277309.

[:0-9] "Penang DAP rep: Put all projects in Gurney Drive on hold". 2015-05-22. Retrieved 2016-11-27.

[10] McIntyre, Ian (20 Oct 2022). "Penang unveils island's draft local plan after long delay". The Vibes. Retrieved 28 Nov 2023.

[11] Ferrarese, Marco (24 Jun 2018). "George Town marks UNESCO anniversary amid debate". Nikkei, Inc. Retrieved 28 Nov 2023.

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