PHOTO: Forest City was supposed to be home to one million people – but only a handful of its units are occupied. SUPPLIED
In this expansive development, an acute problem plagues the residents: the conspicuous absence of neighbors.
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Within the state of Johor in Malaysia, occupants of the Chinese-built Forest City complex express their dissatisfaction, asserting that the vastness of space coupled with the scarcity of inhabitants has rendered life insufferable.
IT engineer Nazmi Hanafiah, who spent six months renting a one-bedroom unit in one of the mega-project’s towers, shared with the BBC his experience of escaping the desolation. “It’s lonely around here — it’s just you and your thoughts.”
Originally touted by China’s largest property developer, Country Garden, in 2016 as an eco-friendly “dream paradise” complete with amenities like a water park, golf course, and eateries, Forest City was envisioned to host a thriving community of one million residents. However, after eight years, this vision remains unrealized, with only a handful of individuals inhabiting the seemingly abandoned complex, transforming it from a utopia into what Mr. Hanafiah describes as a “ghost town.”
Forest City was supposed to be home to one million people – but only a handful of its units are occupied. Picture: Getty Images
Remarkably, a mere 15 percent of the development has been constructed, and a mere 1 percent of the apartments are occupied, while Country Garden grapples with debts approaching $200 billion, according to the BBC.
Despite these challenges, the developer maintains an “optimistic” outlook, envisioning a future where Forest City will be completed. However, disillusioned renters like Mr. Hanafiah recount their disappointing experiences, emphasizing the lack of activities and the unsettling feeling of isolation.
Reflecting on his time in Forest City, Hanafiah, who abandoned his deposit to escape, remarked, “There is nothing to do here,” adding that even a return visit gives him “goosebumps.”
Visitors describe the place feeling like ‘an abandoned resort’. Picture: Getty Images
In a stroke of fortune, Mr. Hanafiah, as a renter, had less at stake when he decided to leave, realizing that his new home fell short of the promises and instead became a casualty of China’s ambitious real estate boom in the early 2000s. Joanne Kaur, another Forest City resident, sympathizes with those who invested and bought property in the development, lamenting that it failed to materialize as the project promised to the people. Currently, Kaur and her husband find themselves as the sole occupants on their floor, highlighting the stark disparity between the envisioned thriving community and the present reality.
SOURCE: NEWS.COM.AU