This article first appeared in City & Country, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on May 2, 2022 - May 8, 2022

You can do a wide range of activities on Jalan Menara Gading 1 in Taman Connaught, Cheras, from sipping hot milky tea at Lucky Kopitiam and getting your hair done, to savouring Middle Eastern food and grabbing some groceries.

This short stretch of road of about 200m also has hotels, financial institutions, F&B outlets and other conveniences. These cater not only to the residents living in the area but also the students of UCSI College and UCSI University, which sandwich this street.

The commercial activities operate out of the 3-storey shopoffices that line Jalan Menara Gading 1. One stretch has only one row of shopoffices, while the rest of it has two rows of shopoffices.

“The shopoffices are located at a highly strategic and established location in Taman Connaught. It is surrounded by a highly populated area, comprising apartments, higher-learning institutions, a petrol station, McDonalds drive-through, ikon Connaught, shopoffices, houses and others. Jalan Menara Gading 1 is also located within walking distance of the Alam Damai MRT station,” says Chan Wai Seen, director of CCO & Associates Sdn Bhd.

“Although the MRT station has contributed positively to demand for the shopoffices, the overall developments in the immediate surrounding areas — McDonalds, UCSI University, Giant, IKON Connaught — and the Cheras locality are the main elements driving the demand for properties in this location. The presence of established brands along this road, namely Maybank, Starbucks, Secret Recipe, Watson and others, also improves the image of this commercial area,” he adds.

Chan notes that there have been limited transactions along this street.

“In 2018 and 2019, the intermediate 3-storey shopoffices were transacted at between RM2.4 million and RM2.8 million, while the corner units with land area of about 3,000 to 3,500 sq ft were transacted at between RM3.85 million and RM5.1 million.

“Asking rent for the ground-floor shops is between RM6,000 and RM6,500 per month, while that for the upper levels is RM1,300 to RM2,500 per month,” he says.

Chan is conservative in his outlook for this street, despite its accessible and strategic location, and numerous amenities. “This street is located further away from the East-West Link Expressway [than other roads], hence it may not see considerable benefit from the heavy vehicular traffic flow along the highway. Its growth will continue to be driven by developments in the surrounding areas and Cheras’ locality as a whole. Overall, a stable to positive outlook is observed for the commercial development along Jalan Menara Gading 1,” he says.

Despite being off the beaten path, Jalan Menara Gading 1’s wide variety of amenities and popularity prove that good things do come in small packages.

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