This article first appeared in City & Country, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on November 24, 2025 – November 30, 2025
Every great city begins with a dream and, sometimes, a touch of defiance.
When Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah, founder of Sunway Bhd (KL:SUNWAY), unveiled his bold plan to build Malaysia’s first fully integrated and sustainable township, the idea sounded almost too ambitious to be real. Banks hesitated and industry veterans doubted. After all, he was not a seasoned property developer, and his chosen site — an abandoned 800-acre mining wasteland in Petaling Jaya, Selangor — seemed an unlikely canvas.
Yet, with a strong, dedicated and capable team guided by his vision, Sunway succeeded in transforming the wasteland into a flourishing, fully integrated and sustainable city named Sunway City Kuala Lumpur (SCKL).
Today, SCKL is home to more than 200,000 people who live, work, play and learn within a safe, connected and sustainable community. The township also houses three leading private universities — Sunway University, Monash University Malaysia and Taylor’s University — which together form the Triple Alliance, fostering academic collaboration and innovation.
Built on the 15-minute city concept, SCKL is connected seamlessly through elevated canopy walkways for pedestrians, a free shuttle service, and Southeast Asia’s first elevated electric bus rapid transit (BRT-Sunway Line) that links to the KTM, light rail transit and mass rapid transit networks, ensuring major amenities are accessible within 15 minutes.
The township also features residences, commercial hubs, hotels, a theme park and the country’s first themed mega mall. Its latest addition, Sunway Square, comprises twin commercial towers; a retail mall; a 1,200-seat, world-class performing arts centre; a university component; a 24-hour library housing several million books; and a public square overlooking South Quay Lake.
“In Sunway, advancing sustainability is not a choice; it is essential for navigating a rapidly evolving world.” — Chong
“SCKL has become a benchmark for integrated urban living, shaping the blueprint for other townships across Malaysia, including Sunway City Ipoh and Sunway City Iskandar Puteri, our third and largest township to date,” Sunway Property CEO (Central and Northern Region) Chong Sau Min tells City & Country in an email interview. Sunway Property is the property division of Sunway.
Chong says sustainability has always been at the heart of SCKL’s development. It was Malaysia’s first township certified by the Green Building Index and later recognised by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability as the country’s first smart, sustainable and low-carbon city.
Most recently, the master plan received a three-diamond recognition for carbon reduction at the Low Carbon City Awards 2024, reaffirming the group’s long-term commitment to sustainable urban transformation.
“From 2025 onwards, all new developments will meet certified green-building standards, in line with Sunway Group’s goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050,” says Chong. “Our latest example is Sunway Square, which has achieved six green-building certifications across its key components. Both of its office towers received LEED Gold and GreenRE Platinum certifications respectively; the Sunway Square Mall attained GreenRE Platinum; while Sunway University and the Sir Jeffrey Cheah Performing Arts Centre jointly earned GreenRE Gold. The entire development will be powered by an energy-efficient district-cooling system, complemented by solar PV (photovoltaic) installations and an RM18 million water treatment plant that converts lake water into potable supply for the township.”
The 15-minute city concept has also been enhanced through new elevated linkages connecting Sunway Square, Sunway University, Sunway Medical Centre and other key components across the township, improving walkability and encouraging low-carbon mobility.
“Our goal is to make SCKL a net zero-ready township and set new benchmarks for sustainable city living,” Chong envisions.
The township was first recognised by The Edge Malaysia Property Excellence Awards in 2013, winning The Edge Malaysia Outstanding Property Award, followed by Excellence in Integrated Township of Residential, Resort, Office and Retail Award in 2022. The one-of-a-kind master plan has not only transformed a former mining land into a vibrant and sustainable township, the latter has also continued to evolve with the times, adapting and thriving.
SCKL is the recipient of The Edge Malaysia Property Development Excellence Award for Master Plan Excellence of The Edge Malaysia Property Excellence Awards 2025. This prestigious recognition celebrates developments that stand as beacons of national pride, shaping communities and creating enduring legacies for future generations.
The elevated, covered walkway that connects the various components within SCKL
Fostering an inclusive community
While everyone is aware that balancing development with ecology is an ongoing challenge, especially in a mature urban ecosystem like SCKL, the question has always been on how to strike that balance between the built environment and natural preservation.
“Balancing development and ecology has always guided how we build. In SCKL, we have rehabilitated 800 acres of former tin-mining land into a modern, green township while preserving nearly 40% of greenscapes and bluescapes and planting over 30,000 trees representing more than 150 species of flora and fauna,” says Chong.
He adds that the master plan’s landmarks such as Sunway Lagoon and South Quay Lake are more than recreational icons. They also serve vital ecological roles as natural retention ponds and thriving biodiversity zones, which are closely monitored by the group’s sustainability division, ensuring that the built environment never comes at the expense of nature.
“Anchored by our values of Integrity, Humility and Excellence, we have fully embedded the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into our decision-making and business practices. In Sunway, advancing sustainability is not a choice; it is essential for navigating a rapidly evolving world,” he stresses.
Apart from that, Chong emphasises that community well-being is fundamental to the long-term sustainability of the master plan. He highlights that connectivity serves as the key to fostering an inclusive community within SCKL.
Building on the core principles, the 15-minute city concept was developed for SCKL under the Sustainable Intelligent Transport Ecosystem (SITE) initiative by the group. This model is now being replicated at Sunway City Ipoh in Perak and Sunway City Iskandar Puteri in Johor.
“SCKL pioneered Malaysia’s BRT system on a 5.4km elevated track powered by electric buses, the first of its kind in Southeast Asia. Meanwhile, our free Sunway shuttle bus service is GPS-enabled and connected through the Sunway Super App, allowing users to track routes in real time — improving convenience and reducing car dependency,” says Chong.
Meanwhile, the master plan inclusivity also extends to education, he continues.
“In 2010, our founder gifted his entire equity stake in the Sunway Education Group to the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation, ensuring education remains a not-for-profit endeavour. Today, the foundation is Malaysia’s largest education-focused social enterprise. It has awarded over RM967 million in scholarships and grants, and is on track to surpass RM1 billion by 2026, reinvested to expand access, facilities and research,” says Chong.
Similar to education, health and wellness are equally central to the master plan. Sunway Medical Centre, Malaysia’s largest private hospital with 1,100 beds, anchors an ecosystem that includes Sunway Home Healthcare, Sunway TCM Centre and Sunway Sanctuary, an integrated senior-living complex connected directly to the hospital.
Moving forward, Sunway Square will be the next major milestone for SCKL to further enhance the master plan’s value and liveability. Located opposite Sunway Medical Centre and Sunway University, Sunway Square’s components will become new cultural landmarks that bring together education, the arts and the community once completed.
Notably, a new state-of-the-art security command centre in Sunway Square will feature real-time surveillance, facial recognition and advanced emergency-response tools, which further reinforce SCKL as a safe, smart and sustainable township.
Beyond its architecture, Sunway Square represents the next evolution of the group’s 15-minute city vision, creating a walkable, connected precinct where academia, healthcare, business and culture intersect.
Chong (centre) with (from left) The Edge Media Group publisher and group CEO Datuk Ho Kay Tat, The Edge Malaysia editor emeritus Au Foong Yee, editor-in-chief Kathy Fong and City & Country senior editor E Jacqui Chan.
Moving into the digital era
In line with Malaysia’s low-carbon goals, Sunway Property is expanding its electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure and enhancing green-mobility links. The newly launched RM10 million Zeekr Space Sunway City includes display bays, a premium lounge, EV charging stations and dedicated delivery bays. It is complemented by the 10,000 sq ft Zeekr Sunway Service Centre, designed for future expansion to meet growing demand.
“To support the city’s growth, we are upgrading key infrastructure, including a new flyover from Jalan Lagoon Selatan to the Subang–Kelana Jaya Link, improvements to the SS15 roundabout, and other enhancements via both the Sunway Pyramid and Sunway Square underpasses, all aimed at improving traffic flow and accessibility for residents, visitors and businesses,” says Chong.
Additionally, the group continues to upgrade its energy monitoring and traffic management systems to enhance both efficiency and safety.
Together, these initiatives reflect SCKL’s evolution into a more connected, resilient and people-centric city — one that meets the demands of an increasingly information-driven and digital era.
“We are integrating AI (artificial intelligence) and IoT (Internet of Things) technologies for predictive maintenance, real-time air quality tracking and digital-twin modelling to enhance planning and asset performance. We are also strengthening our Integrated Operation Centre (IOC) as a central command hub that consolidates data on buildings, the environment and assets to enable faster, data-driven decisions in city operations,” he explains.
Over the next decade, Chong envisions SCKL strengthening its role as Malaysia’s and Southeast Asia’s leading model for integrated, sustainable development, guided by Cheah’s vision.
“As the former prime minister of Singapore, the late Lee Kuan Yew, remarked during his visit to SCKL in 2004, we have ‘transformed a wasteland into a wonderland’. Our goal is to further position SCKL as a living laboratory for sustainable innovation, where academia, government and industry collaborate to create real-world solutions for Malaysia’s low-carbon, resilient future,” he says.
Chong sees the township evolving into a self-sustaining city centre, vibrant in its digital, cultural and social life, all guided by the group’s philosophy of “doing well by doing good”.
“Sunway will continue to build communities that thrive across generations, grounded in our 3P principles — People, Planet and Prosperity … As a master community developer, Sunway Property has built a strong reputation for creating innovative, integrated and sustainable developments that enable people to live, learn, work and play in a connected, healthy and secure environment.
“Our build-own-operate (BOO) model underpins this approach, allowing us to co-invest and grow alongside the communities we develop, ensuring long-term sustainability and shared prosperity. With integrity as our compass, humility as our virtue and excellence as our pursuit, we remain committed to developments that contribute to nation-building and long-term resilience,” says Chong.
As demand grows for integrated, transit-oriented and mixed-use townships, he believes that the BOO model positions the group to meet evolving lifestyle needs while reinforcing its role as a trusted community builder.
“Ultimately, we believe no corporation can exist apart from the communities it serves. This conviction shapes our master planning approach — one that continues through Sunway City Ipoh and Sunway City Iskandar Puteri — ensuring every township we build remains sustainable, inclusive and future-ready for generations to come,” says Chong.
