DRIVING through what was the country’s former “bagsakan,” otherwise known as the Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) complex, feels like you’ve wandered into a massive Mad Max movie set. The wide boulevards which used to house warehouses and refrigerated truck bays are now part of a sprawling construction site, with bulldozers and graders working the area.
The gameplan is to transform the place into a business district akin to the Makati’s Central Business District (CBD) and Taguig’s Bonifacio Global City (BGC). But with a twist: in the next five years when Ayala Land’s (ALI) 74-hectare development in the area reaches its first phase of completion, this part of the capital will not only become “a city in sync,” but it will turn into a gateway connecting key cities in the metro as well as growth centers in the North and South.
Modern, synchronized
Dubbed Arca South, the development is expected to become home to some 60,000 residents and 400,000 office workers in the coming years.
Situated at the heart of the government’s proposed transportation hub, Arca South will offer prime accessibility via three major infrastructures: the Skyway and C5/C6 connection road, a Skyway Exit, and the NLEX-SLEX connection road.
The government’s Southeast Intermodal Transport System (ITS) will likewise make it easy for commuters to access the city as this 5.57-hectare transportation hub, which will be right next to Arca South, is projected to accommodate 4,000 buses a day. This translates to 200,000 commuters served in 24 hours.
In all, ALI envisions a business and lifestyle district that will become the representation of a modern and synchronized city filled with opportunities, not only for the metro, but for the rest of Luzon.
Your own ‘veranda’
Last week, Alveo Land Corporation, ALI’s upper middle market unit, launched the last addition to its P8.2-billion signature residential condominium development in Arca South in Taguig City two years ahead of schedule.
Three ALI residential brands will be built in Arca South: Ayala Land Premiere, Alveo, and Avida, a big reason why families are welcome to make Arca South their dwelling place, while five BPO towers are expected to rise within the first five years.
In a press briefing, Alveo Land Senior Division Manager for Project Development Antonio Sanchez III said the P1.9-billion North Veranda will complete the four-tower development by 2020.
The Veranda was first introduced in 2014 as a rare, mid-rise residential project in Ayala Land’s latest business and lifestyle hub.
“All four towers were initially projected to sell-out in four years. However, in less than two years, we are now launching our final tower with current inventory substantially sold out,” said Sanchez.
The Veranda’s estimated property value has risen to about 8 percent in just two years. The first two towers, West Veranda and South Veranda launched at P130,000 per sqm in 2014, with East Veranda following at an average of P137,000 per sqm in 2015.
Urban professionals, early nesters
This year, North Veranda is set to launch with an average price of P140,000 per sqm. North Veranda will offer 195 residences at only 15 per floor, with a low-density mix of studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units.
Prodded by The Standard, Antonio revealed that the targeted market segment of Veranda “ will be composed of urban professionals and early nesters looking to buy a more relaxed lifestyle within the Metro.”
The Veranda covers a 12,988-sqm parcel, with forty percent of the total land area allocated to atrium gardens, open spaces, and amenities such as a gym, game room, function room, board room and children’s play area.
With environments planned to incorporate architecture within sight-lines and lavish open spaces, the Veranda also comes with an Aeroflux system, designed to usher in natural lighting and ventilation into one’s home with the bifurcated tower plan, atriums, skylight and corridor windows.
The Arca South development is primed with an P80 billion investment for its first phase alone. This will include a transit-oriented mall, a regional and lifestyle mall, the Arca South Corporate Center, Seda Hotel, and a 250-bed Qualimed hospital.