Town planners involvement in the planning and design process of Green Building Projects in Malaysia

Nor Kalsum Mohd Isa

Abstract

Green building is a holistic project that requires integrated planning and design approaches through the involvement of multidisciplinary professions. Green building projects in Malaysia usually involve developers, architects, engineers and energy consultants to make decisions in planning and design. The role of town planners in the project is limited especially when it comes to getting the approval for planning from the local authorities. This study aimed to identify the level of town planners’ involvement in the planning and design process of green building projects in Malaysia. It also offered recommendations on how the green building projects could be supported by the town planners. The data were collected in two tiers of interviews. A first series of interviews was conducted among 22 town planners who represented town planning organizations from the private and public sectors in Malaysia. The data were analyzed qualitatively using the content analysis technique. Then, a second series of interviews were conducted among the town planners who had been involved with the planning and design process of three selected green building projects in Malaysia. The data obtained from this in-depth case study interviews were analyzed using the cross-case analysis. Findings indicate that the involvement of town planners and the input given to the green building projects were very limited which had led to disagreement throughout the planning and design process. The early contribution of town planners to the projects in the planning and design process will enhance the opportunity of the project to become ‘green’ in the true sense of the word.

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