The notorious Muong Thanh Group has been found building over 100 apartments that defy approved designs in the central Vietnamese city of Da Nang.

The high-rise developer unilaterally adjusted the original design of a hotel and apartment complex in Ngu Hanh Son District, Da Nang, to add a total of 104 apartments for sale.

Although local authorities had detected the violation last year, and ordered a cessation of the construction at the time, Muong Thanh ignored the order and completed the extra properties.

The firm has since been advertising the illegitimate apartments for sale.

According to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper reporters’ observation on Thursday last week, the building was 42 stories high and nearing completion.

The project’s building permit was issued on February 17, 2016 and indicated that the structure would include 42 floors and a two-story basement, with apartments allowed from the sixth floor up.

The original design showed that the second to fifth floors of the building would be reserved for communal facilities like parking, kindergartens, swimming pools and gyms.

However, Muong Thanh has constructed 104 flats on these floors.

The violation was discovered by local authorities in September last year, Vu Quang Hung, director of the municipal Department of Construction said, adding that the firm had been fined VND40 million (US$1,753).

As Muong Thanh continued with their unapproved construction, it was suspended on April 11, Hung continued.

Dau Xuan Minh, project director of the building complex, told Tuoi Tre that the sale of the 104 additional apartments had been publicly advertised.

Regarding the cessation order, Minh said that they had only built the exterior of the floors so that they were in sync with the rest of the building, while the interior construction had been stopped.

Following another order from the municipal administration, Muong Thanh has not handed over the flats on these floors to their clients, he added.

According to Hung, the case has been submitted to the local People’s Committee, Party Committee, and the Ministry of Construction for a decision.

Based on the directions of these higher authorities, the Da Nang construction department has requested the developer submit the necessary documents to seek approval of an adjusted design.

If the process is complete, the 104 apartments will be legitimized.

However, Muong Thanh has found an alternative location to build the community facilities, the official elaborated.

If Muong Thanh wins the rental auction on this property, the facilities are expected to be constructed on 4,500 square meters of land 200 meters from the original building complex.

If the firm does not win the auction, it will be forced to build the community facilities on the second to fifth floors in accordance with the original design, Nguyen Thanh Tien, deputy head of the office of the Da Nang People’s Committee, asserted.

“The city’s authorities have yet to approve the adjusted design of the building,” Tien added.

Muong Thanh was previously found building a hotel without a permit in the Central Highlands in December 2016.

In September last year, the firm was still constructing a mixed-use building in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa despite violating its height limit.

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