Manila wants to catch up in the race for the highest and brightest skyline.
Mayor Alfredo Lim yesterday said his city will soon host the tallest building in the country with the construction of a 101-story structure at the Manila Bay South Harbor as part of its revival as a business and amusement center.
Lim said a foreign-based group of investors led by Incheon Metropolitan City international adviser Rev. Dr. Jeon Dae Gu and Easy Led Corp. Phil. president Man Young Yoon will undertake the project.
In a statement, he said some $4 billion will go into the development of a “global hub (in Manila) that will rival those abroad with glittering business and amusement activities 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”
It is expected to generate some 15,000 jobs starting with its construction, with the towering building marking its financial center. “(It) will be the highest in the country that will be built at no cost to the national and local government.”
A 73-story, 302-meter high condominium in Makati City is currently considered the highest building in the country.
Saturday’s announcement marked the first time Lim spoke in more detail about the envisioned South Harbor Expanded Port Zone (SHEPZ), which will cover around 36 hectares stretching from Delpan Bridge to Bonifacio Drive.
In February, the city government and the Philippine Ports Authority formed a committee to discuss large-scale developments under the project.
Among the priority sites for development are the areas along A. Bonifacio Drive at the north-eastern side, according to PPA General Manager Juan Sta. Ana in a statement then issued by City Hall.
Lim said the SHEPZ project would help Manila “reclaim its stature as the country’s financial capital,” a distinction that has been held for decades by Makati. Nancy C. Carvajal