FBDC fasttracks P6-billion new projects in Global City

MANILA, Philippines - Fort Bonifacio Development Corp.(FBDC), the main developer of the Bonifacio Global City – Manila’s fastest growing business and recreation center – is accelerating a wave of new developments within the area, estimated to cost at least P6 billion.

Noel Kintanar, head of commercial operations at FBDC, said new developments will rise in BGC with a total of 136 vertical developments completed, ongoing and planned as of end-December last year. Of the total, 72 projects had been completed, 41 are ongoing and 23 are still under study.

According to Kintanar, BGC has increasingly become the battleground for real estate developers, multinationals and business process outsourcing (BPO) companies given its strategic location.

Kintanar said land values in the area have consistently trended up over time, rising 26 percent last year compared with the 2007 level.

Despite the tough business climate, Kintanar said BGC continues to attract a lot of potential buyers or tenants. “We continue to receive a lot of inquiries. The appetite for leasing continues to grow,” he said.

“While residential projects dominate the mix of developments, the office buildings sector has been growing significantly with BPO firms moving to BGC,” Kintanar pointed out.

From the current 100,000 square meters, the total office GFA (gross floor area) is forecast to increase to 500,000 square meters over the next five years, he said.

Kintanar said FBDC is allocating P4 billion to P5 billion for the horizontal development of the City Center North, which is being primed as a center for “play.”

In addition, FBDC is building a P1-billion Mind Museum, the first state-of-the art interactive science museum in the country, in partnership with National Geographic. The museum, a project initiated by property owners in BGC, is scheduled to break ground in late 2009 and open its doors to the public by the first quarter of 2011.

With over 175 interactive exhibits and displays, the Mind Museum is envisioned to be a learning facility that can accommodate more than 300,000 visitors annually. It will rise in the J.Y. Campos park, a prime 12,000-square meter lot.

Kintanar said FBDC is also putting up the Bonifacio E-Services Building, a 29-storey Grade A building project catering to the needs of BPO firms. It is slated for completion in April 2010.