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roperty firm PT Bakrieland Development (ELTY), through subsidiary PT Bukit Jonggol Asri, will open a theme park on its Sentul Nirwana township project in Sentul, Bogor, in the first half of this year in an effort to attract potential residents to the new development.

The park, dubbed Jungleland Adventure Theme Park, would offer 41 rides, 20 attractions and a science center during the first stage of its operations, Bukit Jonggol Asri president director Marc Dressler said, adding that the company was in the process of signing a memorandum of understanding with Science Center Singapore to run Jungleland’s own science center, which it claims will be the biggest in Indonesia.

“We hope the center will be able to attract weekday crowds as there are many schools in the surrounding areas. The science center and all its facilities will be ready for operation in June before the school holidays. It is now 75 percent complete,” Dressler said during a visit to The Jakarta Post’s office in Palmerah, Jakarta, on Thursday.

During the first stage of its operations, the park will offer four zones, such as Explora for science enthusiasts and students, Tropicalia with small rides for children, Mysteria for adrenaline seekers and Carnival.

According to Dressler, Carnival will offer various unique rides and will stay open longer than the other three zones.

The company expects to see about 4 million people flock to the center annually by 2014 from Jakarta and its neighboring areas. The entrance fee will be set below Rp 200,000 (US$20.60) per person.

 “It is possible [to reach the visitor target] because we have the population here. People do need recreation,” he said, adding that Jungleland held an advantage as being one of the closest theme parks to Jakarta.

Jungleland will also benefit from the large numbers of Jakartans traveling to Bogor and Puncak during weekends, according to Dressler.

So far, Bukit Jonggol Asri has spent Rp 900 billion, excluding land purchase, in the first stage of Jungleland’s development, which covers an area of 23 hectares.

In total, the park occupies a 35-hectare site. The company is also considering adding another three parks in the area.

With the planned development, Dressler said that Jungleland was expected to play a role in attracting new residents to Sentul Nirwana. The residential complex itself provides housing units and apartments in a 12,000-hectare site.

“We have disbursed a total of Rp 1.3 trillion so far to develop Sentul Nirwana. The figure excludes the purchase of the land,” he added.

Meanwhile, according to Bakrieland finance director Feb Sumandar, Jungleland is expected to contribute to between 10 percent and 15 percent of Bakrieland’s total revenues this year.

Bukit Jonggol Asri is 50 percent owned by Bakrieland and 50 percent controlled by publicly listed property developer PT Sentul City (BKSL). —JP/ Tassia Sipahutar