President praises Megaworld for Newtown; Cebu, too, for its skilled workers

President praises Megaworld for Newtown; Cebu, too, for its skilled workers

By Elias O. Baquero

Thursday, February 21, 2013

PRESIDENT Benigno Aquino III reiterated a promise to make it easier for business owners to transact with the government and to avail themselves of competitive incentives.

He made the assurance in his speech during the unveiling yesterday morning of the Mactan Newtown, the flagship project in Cebu of Megaworld Corp.

“This is your first such (township-type) project outside Metro Manila, and the people from around here can assure you that you’ve made the right choice,” the President said.

“If there is any place where you can replicate your success in such projects in Metro Manila, it’s here in Cebu. The workers you will find here are skillful, creative, lighthearted, while possessing an unshakeable pride in the quality of their work,” he also said.

On the second day of his visit to Cebu, the President skipped a political sortie in Liloan town and instead went to Mactan. There, he thanked Megaworld executives, led by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Andrew Tan, for investing in Cebu, creating jobs and providing facilities for more tourists.

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Malacañang issued in June last year its Proclamation 407, declaring the 16 hectares of land owned by Megaworld in Mactan as a special economic zone.

Tan, in his speech, said the company is investing P20 billion for the project. He commended the Aquino administration for attracting more foreign retirees to the country.

Japanese retirees make up the bulk of buyers of two condominiums that Megaworld launched last year, 8 Newtown Boulevard and One Pacific Residence, the company said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange.

The President has instructed the Philippine Retirement Authority (PRA) under General Manager Ernie Atienza and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) to help Megaworld.

Higher target

The PRA processes documents of retirees who want to invest and reside permanently in the Philippines. Peza supervises economic zones.

“We see the Mactan Newtown as a major driver of growth for Lapu Lapu City and Cebu in general in terms of job opportunities, sports and recreation, retail shopping and of course, tourism,” Tan said.

President Aquino also reported the revised tourism target of 56.1 million travelers by 2016. That, after the tourism department confirmed that in 2011, the Philippines recorded 37.5 million domestic travelers.

“Just to put this number into perspective, this already surpassed our original 2016 target of 35.5 million domestic travelers…By then (2016), we expect that we will need more than 37,000 additional rooms in our destination clusters, which include Cebu,” Aquino said.

“Suffice it to say: we fully intend on sending more guests to hotels in Cebu—guests who will be riding in your boats, buying your dried mangoes, and eating your famed Cebu lechon. So, to Megaworld: If you have some extra space here after all your buildings are done, you cannot go wrong with building another hotel.”

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Megaworld Doubles Mactan Newtown Investment To P20-B

By Malou M. Mozo and Madel Sabater Namit

February 20, 2013, 8:03pm

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Cebu – President Benigno S. Aquino III vowed to “maintain” a “business environment” that will further attract more investments in the country and could propel the domestic economy to higher levels.

The President made this assurance at the inauguration of Mactan Newtown, a 20-hectare township development project of Megaworld Corp. on the back of the announcement by Andrew L. Tan, chairman and chief executive officer of the real estate firm, that he will double the investments for its first project in Cebu to P20 billion spread in the next five to seven years.

“Across all sectors, our administration, in the coming weeks, months, and years, will continue giving you reasons to invest in the Philippines and to stay in the Philippines – and so will the Filipino people, as they always have. We will maintain the business environment that has led to investments like this,” the President said.

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He stressed the government will continue to provide a level-playing field for both foreign and local investors “make it easier for companies to set up shop here, or to expand, as you are doing today.”

“Since assuming office, we have made a point to make it easier for companies to set up shop here, or to expand, as you are doing today. We are making sure that we provide competitive incentives to those investing in our priority sectors; and we are making sure that the keys to success in our country are hard work and innovation, and not simply a willingness to connive with crooks,” Aquino said.

He described the Mactan Newtown project as one sign of the country’s growing economy, which has vast trickle down effects from job creation to perking up activities of the other economic sectors.

“These projects are helping to grow the economy in ways that can be felt by ordinary people. Once this is completed, many of the businesses that will be established here will create tens of thousands of jobs for the local community both direct and indirect,” Aquino said.

He expressed optimism that more similar infrastructures will rise outside Metro Manila.

Driven by the strong optimism in Cebu’s economic landscape, Tan said Megaworld, one of the country’s leading real estate players, has doubled its investment from P10 billion to P20 billion for Mactan Newtown, a sprawling mixed-use commercial development expected to be completed within the next six years. It aims to duplicate Eastwood City in Libis, Quezon City, which is a mix of residential, and office condominiums, malls, hotel and business process outsourcing (BPO) centers.

“In the next five to seven years, we are investing P20 billion pesos in this township to build luxury residential condominiums, office towers, a world-class lifestyle mall, our very own Richmonde Hotel and soon- a sports and leisure facility,” Tan said.

The Mactan Newtown is said to be the biggest project so far of Megaworld in the southern Philippines. The township is inspired by the “live-work-play” concept. For this specific project, Megaworld has partnered with the Philippine Retirement Authority, allowing foreigners who want to retire at the Mactan Newtown to get a special resident retiree’s visa.

Aquino lauded Megaworld’s big ticket investment as it reinforces the Philippines’ capability to lure more investors both foreign and local. The President said that infrastructure projects like Mactan Newtown is a viable checkpoint for the Philippines having been recognized as “the next tiger of Asia.”

“Projects like this are valuable checkpoints for us — showing that, indeed, we have made progress. We are extremely thankful to companies like Megaworld — for nourishing the Philippines towards becoming the next Asian Tiger, by actually opening their checkbooks to make serious bets on our country. Nothing says confidence like P10-billion in investments. Nothing says confidence like planning to complete up to 14 buildings in the span of less than three years,” he said.

The President also expressed hope that he will lead the inauguration of the Mactan Newtown before the end of his term in 2016 and make a tour of the area as a regular tourist when he steps down in 2016.

“I am hopeful that this complex can be finished ahead of schedule — hopefully before July in 2016 — so that I can pay another visit to this beautiful place during my term, and if that isn’t possible, perhaps I can do so as a regular tourist and I can spend a lot more time here,” Aquino said.

According to Tan, a new residential cluster will be launched this year.Two luxury residential condominiums were launched in 2012- 8 Newtown Boulevard and One Pacific Residence-both are already sold out mostly to Japanese retirees.

As a cyberpark, Mactan Newtown is expected to generate employment for 25,000 full-time BPO workers in the next five to seven years.

“Two BPO companies- EnfraUSA and Results Manila, are ready to start their operations by April,” Tan said, adding that both are first-time locators in Cebu and will employ a combined 1,400 workers.

These companies will occupy the five-story One World Center, the first office tower to rise in the township.

Jericho Go, Megaworld first vice president for business development and leasing group, said that with the first office building already fully leased out, Megaworld will begin construction of its second BPO tower — Two World Center — this year, and is slated for completion in the first quarter of 2014.

When in Cebu City, please visit http://www.gregmelep.com for your real estate and retirement needs. Avail of the opportunity to own a condominium unit in Cebu City at the low amount of only P9,333.33 and House and Lot @ P 7,306.81/month only. Hurry while supply of units still last. Just call the Tel. Nos. shown herein: (053)555-84-64/09164422611/09173373687.

Megaworld aims to finish Mactan project in 5 years

By Ehda M. Dagooc

CEBU, Philippines - The country’s largest township developer, Megaworld Inc., targets to complete its P10 billion project in Mactan Island called “The Mactan Newtown” in the next five years.

The development, which is likened to Manila’s Eastwood City in Libis, is a 16-hectare development that will host several residential, commercial, retail, wellness, hotel, food, entertainment and leisure facilities, and is expected to be the next destination to watch for in Cebu, said Megaworld Corporation first vice president for sales and marketing Noli D. Hernandez in a press conference held recently at the Radisson Blu Hotel.

Its first cluster of towers, which are currently under construction are already sold out to young Japanese retirees. It has a total of 716 condominium units.

 Meanwhile, the company is set to construct its second cluster called “The Newtown Boulevard” which consists of four towers, the two towers are already contracted by another group of Japanese buyers, while the other tower will be offered to the local market. One tower of the second cluster will be built for the growing demand from the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) tenants.

Hernandez said in the next five years, the Mactan Newtown will be able to help in improving the local economy by building enough space to be able to accommodate 25,000 office and BPO seats. This is estimated to generate around 40,000 jobs.

Megaworld Corporation bought the 17-hectare property in Mactan in 1997. The company started to develop the property only recently, as the company sees the right timing while demand is considerably improving.

In November, the Lapu-Lapu City Government signed a memorandum of agreement with Megaworld Corp. for the joint venture project.

The firm is also getting accreditation from the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) to have the project declared an economic zone.

The One World Center, a five-level office building designed to serve the needs of top firms in the BPO and IT industries.

Some potential locators include Quantum Leap, Accenture, Hewlett Packard, Dell and IBM.

Megaworld Corp. is the developer of the 18-hectare Eastwood City, the firm’s pioneering “live-work-play township.”

The company is also forging a partnership with the Cebu Doctors Group, to establish a Wellness Center or Therapeutic Center to complete its “live, work and play” concept of the township development.
If Cebu has destinations like downtown, uptown districts, in the next few years, Cebu will have a third district destination—“The Mactan Newtown.”

This new development is adjacent to Shangri-La Mactan and Portofino along the Hilutungan Channel near Magellan Bay, making the beach resort lifestyle even more accessible.

This year, the company allocates P25 billion capital expenditure (capex) to complete the ongoing projects as well as develop new ones.

Megaworld is currently developing over 40 residential and BPO office projects in Metro Manila alone.
Last year, Megaworld posted a net income of P8.15 billion up 60 percent from a year earlier on strong real estate sales, higher income leasing incThailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam.

Founded in 1908, it currently has 16 production facilities and 43 sales companies operating in 44 countries in different regions. —(FREEMAN)