feature-as tourism drives residents out, malaysia\'s heritage city turns to millennials

Georgetown, Malaysia, May 22 (
Thomson Reuters Foundation-
Square in the center of Georgetown, Malaysia, comes to the hair salon with faded white walls and wooden doors that stand out on a street full of souvenir shops, cafes and colored murals.
But not much time. After a four-
In just five years, her rent doubled, and Fong plans to close her business when the lease expires 50 years later-joining the ranks of a large number of residents and traditional businessmen.
In 2008, the Malaysian port city of Georgetown became a UNESCO World Heritage site, but since then, a large influx of tourists, rising rents, and forced residents and businesses serving them to leave.
\"What else can we do?
Fang said she was cleaning and drying the hair of a regular visitor.
\"There are many others who are eager to rent even if I don\'t want.
All I need to do is pack up and retire.
\"Once an important trade center, Georgetown, located in Penang, northern Malaysia, is a melting pot of rich cultural diversity in Malaysia, and British colonial buildings sit with Chinese shops, mosques and Hindu shrines.
Since gaining world heritage status, it has become one of the best in Asia.
The famous tourist attractions attracted 3.
8 million tourists in 2018
Official figures show that more than twice as much as 2007.
But like other world heritage sites
Hoi An from Venice to Vietnam
It is feared that as the influx of tourists and the outflow of residents threaten the unique features of the city, the city may become a victim of its own success.
The parliament is eager to find a way to rebuild the city and is renovating six dilapidated former
War shops designed to attract a new generation of residents
Students and technology
Savvy entrepreneurs
Enter the center of the city.
The new plan is shared.
From London to Hong Kong, there is a living space in a crowded and expensive city, with tenants sharing a kitchen and living room.
They will follow the traditional design with shops on the first floor and living areas on the upper floor.
Yao dongsang, mayor of George Town, led the pilot program, which he hopes will increase people\'s affordability and help attract young tenants who would otherwise not be able to move to the city.
\"Everything has become a hotel, a hotel, a hotel-
\"It has become a tourist town,\" Yew told Thomson Reuters Foundation . \"
\"In the end, what we want to see is a vibrant city where people live.
According to a government report, the population of the town of George has been declining since the abolition of the rent control law in 2000, causing some rents to double
Link, Institute of State Treasury Holdings, Malaysia.
According to the report, the number of permanent residents in the city decreased by almost half between 2007 and 2009, with only 10,000 people, as the owners of the estate sold or renovated these properties for higher rents.
Meanwhile, the number of hotels in the city increased by nearly 60% between 2009 and 2013.
There are no figures for the current population. “Co-living and co-
I know that work is not easy to succeed . \"
\"Our final idea is that people will move back to Georgetown and live here.
\"The plan to relocate to Georgetown will also be tested in another row of private venues for 10 people --
Store with 17 rooms for rent as a technical commercial space
Coding Training Camp and other related activities.
Yeap Leong Huat, a businessman, said he hopes the project will become a \"catalyst for change\" and inspire other private owners to do the same.
\"Georgetown is an old town.
We have the romance of the past, but we want to show that there is also the power of the future in this old city, \"said Chang ie Chang, an entrepreneur who manages 10 stores.
But activists fighting to protect Georgetown\'s heritage are skeptical about whether these projects will pull people back to the city.
\"It\'s too late,\" said Mark Lai, a New Zealander who has been living in the city since 2012. Established a non
George Town Heritage Action Group
He said that the city is rapidly losing its intangible heritage-traditional merchants who are forced to leave-and lax enforcement means that heritage buildings are demolished or renovated without complying with protection guidelines.
He said that the government should give priority to existing residents who are difficult to live in the city due to high costs, including opportunities to improve public services and access to financial assistance, and limit the number of hotels.
\"If the government can take good care of the locals, everything else will be solved.
Visitors can see what the authorities are doing-it\'s just a fake Disneyland.
\"According to Joann Khaw, the shift to a tourist town has also disappointed visitors, and Joann Khaw is a tour guide for more than 25 years and a heritage conservation activist.
In recent years, Khaw has had to stay away from the Heritage District to meet the needs of tourists who have asked to see a more authentic side of local life.
\"How many residents are left?
There are trinkets, cafes, guest houses and bars.
\"The tourists will tell me, \'We have this in our house, and we don\'t need to come all the way to see this, \'she said. \'. \".
When asked about these concerns, UNESCO said by email that it was \"following up on protection issues\" with Malaysian authorities \".
Even Penang\'s chief minister, Zhou ye, said projects such as renovating old shops were \"a drop in the ocean \". “Even if (the project)
The store will no longer have the same deal (as)
Before the renovation, \"Zhou said in an interview.
Today, the leader himself is lined with trinkets shops and cafes, including shops and cafes inspired by the Harry Potter novel.
\"It\'s hard and challenging-there may be no solution.
The city will slowly but surely change itself and lose the universal values that have won us the UNESCO list.
This is a big challenge.
\"Old Georgetown will disappear a little bit,\" he said . \"