Megaworld Corp., one the biggest landlords in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig said it will study plans to participate in the proposed Swiss Challenge for the 33.1-hectare Bonifacio South Pointe being auctioned by state-run Bases Conversion Development Authority.
Megaworld senior vice president Kevin Tan said the company was very much interested in taking a look at the project located near McKinley West of Megaworld.
“We are still studying if we are going to participate in the Swiss Challenge. But of course the property is quite strategic. It is beside our McKinley West project,” Tan said.
Tan said Megaworld would wait for the final terms of the bidding before making a decision.
Aside from the 34-hectare McKinley West, Megaworld also owns several properties in Fort Bonifacio, including the 16-hectare Uptown Bonifacio, the 50-hectare McKinely Hill and the five-hectare Forbes Town.
After eight years, the government reportedly plans to conduct a Swiss Challenge for Bonifacio South Pointe. In 2009, SM Land, which is now under SM Prime Holdings Inc., made an unsolicited proposal with BCDA to develop the property.
BCDA issued invitations to real estate firms in August 2010 to submit comparative proposals to challenge SM Land’s unsolicited offer. The process was deferred and eventually dropped as BCDA opted to have an open bidding to get the best price for the property.
SM Group obtained a temporary restraining order in 2013, preventing BCDA from bidding out the property. The Supreme Court directed BCDA in 2014 to proceed with the Swiss Challenge on SM Land Inc.’s unsolicited bid.
Bonifacio South is composed of lands presently occupied in part by the Army Service Command and Security Services Unit of the Philippine Army and in part by the Bonifacio Naval Station and Philippine Marine Corps of the Philippine Navy.
Under the Bonifacio South master plan, the area could be developed into a medium- to high-density residential and mix-used complex, with a strong institutional component. It has a maximum allowable gross floor area of 1.355 million square meters.
Several property developers like Ayala Land, Filinvest Land and Robinsons Land earlier expressed interest in participating in the Swiss Challenge for Bonifacio South.