Filipino Moderne Brownstone for the busy executive

For the convenience of having a home a few minutes away from the country’s largest business district, fairly successful executives and entrepreneurs must usually trade off entertainment and living space. In most residential developments in the heart of town where land values are prime, there usually is little room for such pleasures.

Nevertheless, keen real estate observers have identified Paseo de Magallanes (PDM), a residential and commercial development at the crossroads of Magallanes Village, Makati, as one of the few exceptions to the rule.

According to Tristan dela Rosa, senior vice president and head of the Sales and Marketing Services Group and Land and Community Development Group of Ayala Land, most lot owners are executives and entrepreneurs who fully appreciate the proximity of Paseo de Magallanes to the Makati business district but still want space for activities like gardening and outdoor barbecues.

Because all the lots in Phase 1 of the residential as well as the commercial portions of the subdivision have been sold out, a second phase of 17 residential lots ranging from 360 to 420 sqm. and six of 1,000 sqm. each was launched in May of 2003. To mark Ayala Land’s 15th anniversary, some commercial lots and a good number of residential properties are being offered on very special terms for a limited time. New buyers of the residential lots will enjoy either a 10 percent cash discount or an interest-free scheme that will cover one or two years. Both one-and two-year schemes for selected lots require a 30 percent down payment with the balance to be paid over a 12-or 24-month period.

Lot owner Jonathan Matti, an architect and design director of his own firm, relates that the advantage of being close to it all, in addition to more elbow room, were precisely what attracted him to the development. On a 310 sqm. lot, the architect, with a number of residential projects in Makati’s posh villages, intends to soon construct a residence that will allow him ample space to entertain friends; to relax, enjoy his privacy, and do some work when he wishes; as well as to house his household staff and support amenities.

Inspired by New York brownstones, the icons of genteel living, Matti intends to build what he calls a "Filipino Moderne Brownstone" at his Paseo de Magallanes lot. He explains that brownstones in New York City’s upper east and west sides were very popular in the early part of the century. These residences served as second homes in the city for the successful businessmen and entrepreneurs in the area who maintained their primary homes in the suburbs. Because New York real estate even at that time was already very highly-valued, these second residences were usually located on narrow lots. To compensate for the limited lot area, brownstones usually had several floors.

Matti’s version of the brownstone would be characterized by height as well as the incorporation of distinctly Filipino touches. These would include antique bricks saved from the carcasses of old buildings in Pangasinan as well as Capiz shutters. For the interiors, the "palikpiks" of altar tables and other features of the 19th century Filipino home would serve as ornamentation. All these would contrast with Matti’s liberal use of glass windows and walls to bring in the sunlight and to definitely situate the home in the 21st century.