Karambunai Integrated Resort City Master Plan
Nestled between the rugged hillside terrain and the South China Sea, KIRC will be a world class integrated resort that is responsive to environment, conducive to a low carbon footprint, and reactive to economic development. KIRC shall be a high yield low impact development catering to a wide milieu of users – families, couples, individuals, and groups. Upon completion, Karambunai IR shall be South East Asia’s largest Integrated Resort and a World class showcase of Sustainable Development.
As an integrated resort, KIRC will create an ecosystem of support industries including tourism (international and domestic), hospitality, transportation, food and beverage and luxury goods sales. This process will immediately stimulate job creation as well as providing sophisticated lifestyle and entertainment solutions attractive to high end international tourists. Collectively, these achievements will upgrade the regional and national GDP as well as positively upgrade the brands of both locales.
KIRC’s spatial form involves a Trinodal Development ‐ three nodes consisting of 6Star Hotel & Marina, MICE & Entertainment Centre, and Commercial Centre & Cable Car Station nodes. As the anchor locators, the 3 components are fundamental to the success of the downtown center, Downtown Karambunai. In its built form, the area is an agglomeration of key buildings designed to fit into the environmental context of resorts.
Each structure is envisioned to offset impacts by subscribing to green building design and technology with particular reference to solar energy use. Site planning places major emphasis on the elements of the environment including but not limited to sun paths, the monsoon winds, wind shadows, and tidal flows. In essence, the built form will be a showcase of world class architecture that is complementary to the environment.
At the centre of the development, the lagoon will be transformed into an entertainment water theme park, featuring the most spectacular light and sound water show in South East Asia. The public realm extends further inland with the Festival Plaza ‐ a pedestrian concourse flanked by duty free retail shops of international brands. With 4 kilometers of promenades and beachfronts, the Karambunai Festival Plaza shall offer the most diverse shopping experience in South East Asia.
Downtown Karambunai is envisioned to be the preferred destination for MICEs. With its natural features, Karambunai shall be The Venue for international events (e.g. beauty pageants, water sports, WHO conventions, environmental conferences, FIFA football, culinary conventions, etc.). To complement downtown activities, Karambunai shall showcase its environmental jewels through ecotourism programs that promise to captivate tourists with fascinating sceneries of Karambunai and to impart a heightened and lasting awareness on the environment.
Ultimately, Downtown Karambunai will be the facilitator of economic growth that takes cognizance of its responsibilities to nature, to the constituents of Sabah, and to the Malaysian economy. When completed, it shall be the first truly integrated resort in a rainforest.