Friday, 21 January 2011 00:00 [ manilatimes.net ]
BY KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE REPORTER
PROPERTY firms are ramping up their tourism portfolio across the country ahead of the summer season.
In a statement, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) said its unit, Ayala Hotels and Resorts Corp. (AHRC), began construction of a boutique hotel in Davao City to cater to the growing number of tourists in the southern Philippine city.
AHRC partnered with Mindanao-based Anflo Management and Investment Corp. (Anflocor) in putting up a nine-story, 148-room hotel within the Abreeza complex-a 10-hectare mixed-use development operated by the ALI unit.
"Like Metro Manila and Cebu, Davao needs more hotels to serve the increasing number of tourists and business travelers," said Alex Valoria, Anflocor president and chief executive.
Visitor arrivals in Davao have grown, with a number of business process outsourcing (BPO) firms scheduled to operate in the city
The new hotel, slated for completion in mid-2012, features meeting facilities, communal spaces, a business corner, gym and swimming pool.
This project is the second in a series of hotel properties that will rise in key cities nationwide under the AHRC portfolio. Other similar hotel ventures are slated to rise in Cagayan de Oro, Alabang and Quezon City.
The masterplan for Abreeza includes a mall, an office facility designed for BPO firms and traditional offices, and subsequently, a residential tower.
Set to break ground by mid-2011, Abreeza's residential development will offer studio-type, one- and two-bedroom condominium units.
The Abreeza complex, a project of Accendo Commercial Corp., was patterned after self-contained ALI developments such as Ayala Center and the Cebu Business Park. Accendo is a joint venture between ALI and the Anflocor Group.
In a separate statement, Robinsons Land Corp. (RLC) said it is set to open its first full-service mall in Palawan by November this year.
The property arm of the Gokongwei group said it began construction of Robinsons Place Palawan, the company's 31st mall in the country.
The new mall is located on a 19-hectare property in Barangay San Manuel, where RLC also plans to develop a residential subdivision and the Puerto Princesa branch of its budget hotel, gohotels.ph, said Arlene Magtibay, Robinsons Malls general manager.
The mall would be located along National Highway, the main access road to the El Nido resort, the world-famous Underground River, and the Honda Bay Islands.
The site is also a few minutes away from other tourist spots such as Palawan Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center, the Crocodile Farm, Bakers Hill, Mitra Farm, Plaza Cuartel and Immaculate Conception Cathedral.
The two-storey mall, which was designed with a glass façade to fill the mall with a lot of natural lighting, will have a gross floor area of more than 30,000 square meters and will be the only such establishment with cinema facilities in Puerto Princesa.
Robinsons Place Palawan will offer a wide variety of retail shops and restaurants, as well as entertainment and recreational facilities. It will also feature al fresco dining and wellness centers that will cater to both local residents and tourists.
RLC said its net income for the fiscal year 2010 grew by a tenth to P3.59 billion on the strength of the commercial center, office buildings and hotel division.
RLC shares fell from P13.76 on Wednesday to P13.48 on Thursday, while those of ALI fell from P15.10 to P14.56 each.
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