In a briefing yesterday, Ayala Land Premier project head for Park Terraces Leya Moya, said the third tower, which forms part of the P20-billion Ayala Center redevelopment program, is now selling at P169,000 per square meter including VAT - the group's most expensive project on a per sqm basis.

The third tower, which will comprise 49 storeys, will house 370 studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units. The smallest unit, with a size of 37 sqm, is selling at P6 to P7 million while the biggest, measuring 500 sqm, costs more than P55 million.

Turnover of the units to residents is targeted in the first quarter of 2017.

Moya said the public's response to the project has been overwhelming, with the first tower selling P4.3 billion worth of units in a single weekend during its launch in January 2010.

The second tower, consisting of 58 storys, likewise exhibited brisk sales takeup within the first six months since it was launched in October.

"It only proves that there is a real demand for premium living spaces within the city's most desirable address and the introduction of Park Terraces' final tower is the market's last opportunity to experience its promise of residential living," Moya said.

Nerissa Josef, senior division manager for the Strategic Landbank Management Group, said the facelift program for Ayala Center remains on target with most of the retail stores, office buildings and hotels slated for opening in 2012.

Josef said the Ayala Center redevelopment will transform Makati's premier shopping hub into a world-class mixed-use development that will feature an integrated community with new shopping, lifestyle and entertainment areas, office developments, residential condominiums, and hotels while enhancing traffic and pedestrian mobility through efficient use of open spaces.

Included in the ongoing redevelopment is the Palm Promenade that will have outdoor cafes and tree-lined walkways along Pasay Road.

The group will make available 700 new hotel rooms (with the opening of a Holiday Inn and a Raffles Hotel atop Glorietta 1 and 2), bringing its total portfolio to 3,000 rooms in Makati.

"We're all over the city, doing new developments with the aim of bringing out the best in different areas. In Sta. Ana, we intend to develop an entertainment district. We're also developing places for the young," Josef said.

The Philippine Star
By: Zinnia B. Dela Peña
29 July 2011