By Neil Jerome C. Morales (The
Philippine Star) | Updated April 8, 2014 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines - Megaworld Corp.
of property tycoon Andrew L. Tan is increasing anew its investment in its first
township project in Cebu.
In a disclosure, Megaworld said
capital spending for the Mactan Newtown project would reach P30 billion in the
next five to seven years to reflect the inclusion of a beach area.
In February, Megaworld jacked up its
investment commitment in the 28.8-hectare township project to P20 billion from
P10 billion.
“This is the most exciting time for
The Mactan Newtown. With the new beach area up for development, we are spicing
up our pioneering live-work-play-learn concept,” said Noli D. Hernandez,
president of Megaworld Cebu Properties Inc.
The Mactan Newtown project would allow
residents, workers, retail partners and customers in the township project to
take advantage of the beach lifestyle, Hernandez said.
Megaworld is expected to build five
hotels in the township, which would include two beachfront hotels overlooking
the Hilutungan Channel.
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It is also building an exclusive,
world-class beach club at the township’s beachfront, and sports facilities that
would promote active lifestyle by the beach.
“The beach vibe of The Mactan Newtown
will definitely make the township stand out from other mixed-use developments
in Cebu. We envision this township to be the next big thing to happen in
Central Visayas,” Hernandez said.
Aside from the hotels and beach club,
Megaworld is also adding at least five more office towers in the township by
2020, offering around 150,000 square meters (sqm.) of office spaces that can
accommodate an estimated 45,000 workers in the information technology-business
process outsourcing sector.
For the residential segment, Mactan
Newtown has 10 luxury condominium towers in the pipeline: four towers for 8
Newtown Boulevard that is expected to be completed by first half of 2015, three
towers for One Pacific Residence and three towers for One Manchester Place.
In 2016, Megaworld will open the
Newtown School of Excellence, a state-of-the-art educational institution that
would be supervised by the Lasallian Schools Supervision Office.
“We are fast-tracking the developments
in The Mactan Newtown. With the rehabilitation of the new Mactan International
Airport and the expansion of businesses to Lapu Lapu City, which is now the
second fastest-growing highly urbanized city in the country, we see The Mactan
Newtown rising to become Cebu’s next central business district in the booming
side of Mactan Island,” Hernandez said.
Megaworld is the property arm of
Alliance Global Group Inc., which is also into liquor (Emperador Distillers
Inc.), fastfood (McDonald’s franchise operator Golden Arches Development Corp.)
and hotels and casino (Travellers International Hotel Group Inc.).
In more than 20 years of operations,
the Megaworld group has completed more than 240 residential and office
buildings with a total floor area of around six million square meters (sqm.).
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