Ortigas sets P40 billion for 2 projects

MANILA, Philippines - Ortigas & Co. is spending around P20 billion for the redevelopment of the Greenhills Commercial Complex and another P20 billion for its biggest residential development project to date, to be located in Quezon City.

Company chief operating officer Rex Drilon said that Phase I of the redevelopment of the 16.6-hectare Greenhills complex will involve putting up a new Crossroads building at the site of the existing two-story Gloria Maris building. The first phase will begin this year.

Ortigas & Co has the biggest landbank in terms of direct holdings of premium land. It owns around 58 hectares, all north of Pasig River (Mandaluyong, San Juan, Pasig, Quezon City). A subsidiary, Concrete Aggregates, which is 76 percent owned by Ortigas, has a 200-hectare property in Angono which is being quarried by La Farge. “After 15 years, we can develop that into a residential area,” Drilon said.

Aside from the Greenhills complex and the Quezon City development, Ortigas’ COO disclosed that they are also looking at developing a company-owned property in front of the Asian Development Bank in Ortigas.

Drilon said that all the existing structures in the Greenhills complex will be torn down in phases so as not to disrupt the conduct of business in the area. In addition, three residential towers and one office-hotel building, as well as a two-level basement parking that will increase the number of parking slots from the present 3,000 to 7,000, will be constructed.

The second phase will involve building a new Unimart, Drilon disclosed.

The redevelopment of the Greenhills Complex, owned by the Ortigas group, will be financed via internally generated funds. “Greenhills has a good cashflow,” he said.

The new complex, Drilon added, will have twice the number of spaces available for “tiangge” or stalls for lease.

Meanwhile, Ortigas & Co. yesterday unveiled its largest residential project called Circulo Verde to be located in a company-owned 12-hectare property along Calle Industria in Bagumbayan, Quezon City. It will have 15 residential buildings consisting of 5,000 of mostly residential units.

International design firm RTKL has developed a masterplan for Circulo Verde that maximizes the area’s natural features to strike a balance between nature and the demands of fast-paced living in the city. The Marikina River surrounds the perimeter of the project.

Inspite of the global crisis that is slowly affecting the local market, the company remains bullish about sales of its residential units this year.

Drilon said there remains a 1.2-million shortage of units in the mid-market, consisting of residential units with prices ranging from P2 to P6 million, which the firm intends to address with Circulo Verde.

“Even if you look at all the projects going on at this time, we are nowhere close to addressing the housing gap. And while there are many ongoing projects, we believe that we are able to offer something different,” he pointed out.

It is estimated that the backlog for the low-cost sector is around 3.6 million, and for the mid-market, 1.2 million. The higher end is well covered, Drilon said.

While Drilon considers the past year to have been a tough one, with the prices of oil and food commodities doubling he said 2008 is still good since the company’s residential project after a long hiatus, Luntala Valle Verde beside Medical City, was sold out.

The company intends to continue development inspite of the adverse economic environment. “We’ve been in this game long enough (78 years) and have built many residential communities like Greenhills and Wack-Wack. We will probably have a hiccup in the next two years, but after that, things will go back to normal,” he said.

“The average industry take-up last year was about 500 to 600 condo units a month. That shows how much is moving. And, if the shortfall is 1.2 million units, there should still be a lot of opportunities,” Drilon added.