Thursday, April 03, 2008 [ manilatimes.net ]
By Chino S. Leyco Reporter
THE country’s largest mall developer and operator has secured a property deal that would allow it to put up a shopping mall just outside the sprawling University of the Philippines (UP) campus in Diliman, Quezon City.
In a statement, state-run Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) said it entered into a lease agreement with SM Prime Holdings Inc. The deal covers a three-hectare GSIS property along the Elliptical Road that is seen to earn P1.3 billion for the pension fund.
The GSIS property is a stone’s throw away from an ongoing commercial development at the UP campus undertaken by the Ayala group, which bagged a long-term contract to develop and manage a huge tract of land owned by the university along Commonwealth Avenue. The Ayala project involves the construction of office space for business process outsourcing (BPO) firms.
The SM group’s lease would run to 25 years and is renewable upon mutual consent by both parties. SM Prime will develop the property into a commercial complex, GSIS said. At present, the property is home to the GSIS Quezon City Satellite Office.
“For the duration of the construction period, the GSIS QC Satellite Office will still be open for business in the area. The satellite office will then be housed in the new SM commercial complex after completion of the development,” the pension fund said.
The GSIS published its offer to interested parties for the development of the GSIS QC property in 2006.
Three interested parties made an offer for the development of the property with the SM Group coming up with the best offer after a thorough evaluation process, the pension fund said.
The GSIS Board of Trustees authorized the pension fund’s management February 6 to negotiate with the SM Group for a long-term lease of the property.
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