Metro Pacific to focus on vertical development of Ft Boni lot

Metro Pacific Corp. (MPC) and its partners in the consortium developing the Bonifacio Global City will sell the rights in the development of a 19-hectare portion of the property to other interested developers.

MPC president and CEO Ricardo Pascua said the plan will allow the consortium to concentrate on the vertical development of the Big Delta area and strengthen its balance sheet to augment early sustained cash flows and long-term recurring income.

"By enabling substantial developers access to the heart of the Bonifacio Global City, we will accelerate development and attainment of critical mass which is essential in a project of this scale and magnitude," he said.

The planned sale will be carried out by Bonifacio Land Corp. (BLC), the private consortium 67.5 percent controlled by MPC, which tied up with the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) to form the joint venture Fort Bonifacio Development Corp. (FBDC).

FBDC will spin off a separate wholly-owned company where the 18.9-ha, land portion will be transferred. In turn, BLC will sell its 55-percent development rights on the property to large, well-capitalized developers.

The area is located on the northern portion of the proposed central business district (CBD), just north of the existing S&R Price Club up to the Kalayaan gate of Fort Bonifacio. It is also adjacent to the University Park where three major international schools (Manila Japanese School, British School and the International School Manila) are situated.

FBDC is undertaking the full swing development of 150 hectares of land out of the entire 214-ha. area won in the 1995 bidding for the right to transform the former military camp into an integrated community of world-class standards.

The bulk of the development covers the so-called Big Delta and the Expanded Big Delta in the southwest portion, representing 75 percent or about 111 hectares of the land granted to FBDC for development.

The Big Delta area includes the commercial and entertainment complex, the CBD, and the high-end residential condominium buildings.