Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur
Urban Skate Plaza by Vans is a free, purpose-built street skate plaza beside Ampang Park MRT station on Jalan Ampang, Kuala Lumpur, opened on 12 August 2023 as a joint placemaking project between MRT Corp and Vans Malaysia, with the obstacle layout designed in consultation with homegrown professional skateboarder Pa'din Musa. The plaza occupies part of the site of Ampang Park Shopping Centre, widely regarded as Malaysia's first purpose-built shopping mall, which opened on 15 March 1973 with an atrium design that later influenced malls such as Pertama Complex and Sungei Wang Plaza, before closing on 31 December 2017 and being demolished in 2018 to make way for the Klang Valley MRT2 Putrajaya Line. The plaza's opening weekend, the Vans Showdown from 24 to 27 August 2023, drew skateboarders from across Asia. Most recently, from 20 December 2024 to 13 January 2025, MRT Corp partnered with Netflix to install a giant Young-hee doll and Squid Game set pieces at the plaza to mark the release of the show's second season.
Urban Skate Plaza @ MRT Ampang Park Station
colloquial name used by MRT Corp and local media since the plaza's opening in August 2023, alongside the official brand name Urban Skate Plaza by Vans
15 March 1973
Ampang Park Shopping Centre opens on the same stretch of Jalan Ampang, developed by Low Keng Huat Brothers Realty Sdn Bhd for around RM15 million and designed by Singapore's Design Partnership (architects of People's Park Complex) with local architect Thomas A.S. Tiang. Its enclosed, air-conditioned atrium layout makes it Malaysia's first purpose-built shopping mall, a format later copied by Pertama Complex (1976) and Sungei Wang Plaza (1977).
2015
The government announces compulsory land acquisition of the Ampang Park site for the Klang Valley MRT2 (Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya) Line, prompting a legal challenge from 39 strata-title owners and tenants opposed to the demolition.
1 June 2017
The Federal Court dismisses the owners' and tenants' final appeal against the acquisition, clearing the way for the mall's closure and demolition.
31 December 2017
Ampang Park Shopping Centre closes its doors after almost 45 years of trading, with long-running tenants such as Haby & Wools and Cozy Corner among the last to leave.
2018
The mall structure is demolished between May and September to clear the site for construction of the new underground MRT station.
16 March 2023
Ampang Park MRT station opens on Line 12, the Putrajaya Line, built on part of the former mall's footprint and connected by covered walkway to the older Ampang Park LRT station on the Kelana Jaya Line.
12 August 2023
Urban Skate Plaza by Vans opens on the surface plaza beside the new station, a joint project between MRT Corp and Vans Malaysia with the rails, ledges, banks and quarter pipes laid out in consultation with Malaysian professional skateboarder Pa'din Musa.
24-27 August 2023
The plaza hosts its first major event, the Vans Showdown skateboarding competition, drawing competitive skateboarders from across Asia alongside a community market of local skate and fashion brands.
20 December 2024 - 13 January 2025
MRT Corp partners with Netflix to stage a Squid Game season 2 activation at the plaza, including a giant Young-hee doll and a live-action Red Light, Green Light game, timed to the show's second-season release.
Street-style obstacle layout
The plaza is fitted with rails, ledges, banks, manual pads and quarter pipes arranged to mimic real street furniture rather than a conventional bowl or ramp park, catering to skateboards, BMX bikes, inline skates and scooters.
Design input from Pa'din Musa
Vans Malaysia worked with Pa'din Musa, a Malaysian professional skateboarder whose company PH Skatepark Sdn Bhd advises on skatepark design, to shape the obstacle placement and flow of the plaza for the local skate community.
Built on Malaysia's first shopping mall site
The plaza sits on part of the footprint of Ampang Park Shopping Centre, which traded from 1973 to 2017 as the country's first purpose-built, air-conditioned shopping mall before its demolition for the MRT Putrajaya Line.
Two-line station plaza
The open-air plaza forms part of the public realm linking the Putrajaya Line's underground Ampang Park MRT station (opened 2023) with the older, separate Ampang Park LRT station on the Kelana Jaya Line via a covered at-grade walkway.
Round-the-clock access with night patrols
The plaza is designed to stay open continuously, with authorities conducting patrols in the area after midnight to manage crowds and maintain safety rather than closing the space outright.
The plaza occupies part of the site of Ampang Park Shopping Centre, which opened on 15 March 1973 and traded for almost 45 years before closing on 31 December 2017. The mall was demolished in 2018 to make way for the MRT Putrajaya Line and the Ampang Park MRT station that now stands beside the skate plaza.
Developed by Low Keng Huat Brothers Realty Sdn Bhd and designed by Singapore's Design Partnership with local architect Thomas A.S. Tiang, Ampang Park introduced Kuala Lumpur's first enclosed, air-conditioned atrium-style mall in 1973. The format was later replicated by malls such as Pertama Complex in 1976 and Sungei Wang Plaza in 1977.
Vans Malaysia developed the plaza in consultation with Pa'din Musa, a homegrown professional skateboarder whose company PH Skatepark Sdn Bhd advised on the layout of the rails, ledges, banks and quarter pipes to suit the local skate community.
The site was compulsorily acquired by the government for the Klang Valley MRT2 Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya Line. After a legal challenge by 39 strata-title owners and tenants was dismissed by the Federal Court on 1 June 2017, the mall closed on 31 December 2017 and was demolished the following year.
The Vans Showdown, a skateboarding competition held from 24 to 27 August 2023 shortly after the plaza opened, drew competitive skateboarders from across Asia along with a community market of local skate and fashion brands.
Yes. From 20 December 2024 to 13 January 2025, MRT Corp partnered with Netflix to install a giant Young-hee doll and other Squid Game set pieces at the plaza, including a live Red Light, Green Light game, to mark the release of the show's second season.
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