[ manilatimes.net ] July 18, 2011
PHILIPPINE Realty Holdings Corporation will launch the second tower of its residential development in Quezon City as it is looking at possible joint venture projects with its major shareholder.
Amador Bacani, Philrealty president, expects more than P2 billion in revenues from the second building at Andrea North, a cluster of luxury high-rise residential condominiums located at the two-hectare former Pepsi Cola plant on the corner of Balete Drive and N. Domingo Street.
The 30-storey tower named Sky Breeze would have about 350 units, offering 45-square meter one-bedroom units to 400-square meter four-bedroom units.
Philrealty would launch another tower of the residential cluster after it has sold 60 to 70 percent of the project within the year.
“By developing other towers in Andrea North, we hope to build up our capital base. Right now, we’re constrained by one tower at a time,” Bacani said.
A lot of the firm’s properties were used to pay off creditors through dacion en pago when it went into a court-approved rehabilitation in 2004. Its last piece of land bank in Bonifacio Global City was developed into the Icon Residences and Icon Plaza, prompting the company to look for joint ventures for future projects.
Bacani said Philrealty is in “very preliminary talks” with Greenhills Properties Inc., the holding company of the Lanuza family, to develop the latter’s landbank in Bonifacio Global City and Ortigas Center. Greenhills Properties owns 35.6697 percent of Philrealty.
Greenhills Properties’ 6,400-square meter property in Fort Bonifacio could be turned into a mixed-use development consisting of high-end residential towers, office buildings and retail establishments.
The Lanuza-led firm also has a 5,900-square-meter lot near El Pueblo, situated on the corner of Julia Vargas and San Miguel avenues and could house two or three office towers.
Greenhills Properties has another 4,000-square-meter property behind the Discovery Hotel that could be developed into a residential project catering to a niche market looking for bigger units.
Bacani said Vista Land & Lifescapes Inc. is also open to a possible joint venture with Philrealty. Senator Manuel Villar, the founder of Vista Land, attended Philrealty’s 30th anniversary celebration last week.
Philrealty may also bid for the former headquarters of the Philippine Stock Exchange, which the company earlier donated as part of the functional merger agreement between the Makati and Manila stock exchanges. Under the deed of donation, Philrealty has the right of first refusal, Bacani said.
“It depends on the kind of plan we can come up with. It’s not just an ordinary office space. This is still the biggest building here [in Ortigas],” said Bacani.
PhilRealty shares added P0.02 to close at P0.64 each on Friday.
KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE
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