Posted on June 07, 2015 09:52:00 PM [
BusinessWorld Online ]
By Krista A. M. Montealegre, Senior
Reporter
AS PRIME real estate lots become
scarce, the SM Group is seeking more reclamation deals undiscouraged by the
snags hounding its P104-billion twin projects along Manila Bay.
THIS PHOTO taken on Jan. 7 shows the
world-famous Manila Bay sunset. SM Prime Holdings, Inc. President Hans T. Sy
said the property conglomerate is undiscouraged by the snags hounding its
P104-billion twin projects along Manila Bay. -- BW FILE PHOTO
“We kind of did a study all over the
country, where the shallow parts are. We filed applications in a couple of
them,” SM Prime Holdings, Inc. President Hans T. Sy said in an interview, but
declined to identify those areas.
Mr. Sy is cognizant of the unwieldy
process involved in those deals, citing the conglomerate’s experience in Cebu
where its reclamation contract languished for 20 years before being awarded.
“We’ll just keep on trying. Will I get
it in my lifetime? We’ll just continue,” Mr. Sy said.
“In the end, we want to prove to the
government or to the people what we’re trying to do for the country.”
The SM Group’s move to reclaim land is
part of a global trend towards coastal development, according to Claro dG.
Cordero, Jr., head of research and valuation at real estate advisory firm Jones
Lang LaSalle.
“Coastal development affords
unobstructed view of the coast and provides a premium on land valuation,” Mr.
Cordero said in a mobile phone message.
“Coastal development also provides a
general picture of the local property market (mainly outside Metro Manila),
where prime lands for development is getting scarce -- either because of the
maturity of developments in prime areas or the lack of new prime/developable
areas due to improper land use planning or lack of infrastructure to support
more inland developments,” he said.
‘NATURAL COURSE’
The SM Group has won three reclamation
deals over the last two years, the latest of which is a P138-billion project in
Cordova, Cebu.
“We’d rather look into that in the
future. We let it go through its natural course. If it gets approved then it
gets approved. There’s still a lot of process but at least we have our foot
into it,” Mr. Sy said.
The cities of Pasay and Parañaque in
2013 and last year, respectively, both awarded to the SM Group separate
contracts to reclaim and develop around 300 hectares each along Manila Bay
under their jurisdiction for P54.5 billion and P50.19 billion, respectively.
The SM Prime proposal is now with the
Philippine Reclamation Authority, which was supposed to endorse the project to
the National Economic and Development Authority for final approval.
Finding land for reclamation is not an
easy task, Mr. Sy said.
“In the Manila Bay, when you stand by
the seashore, the ships are a few kilometers away. What does that mean? It’s
very shallow. That’s the only one that can justify a reclamation [project]. If
you choose another area that’s very deep, it doesn’t make sense anymore,” he
said.
The SM Prime executive dispelled
environmental concerns that come with reclaiming land.
“We will not carve out a mountain
system and drop it into the sea. You get it from the sea bed and lump them
together. It doesn’t destroy the ratio of matter and water,” he said.
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