Parañaque eyes special investment district in Entertainment City

MANILA, Philippines - The local government of Parañaque is putting up a special investment district building within the Pagcor Entertainment City along Roxas Blvd.

Parañaque Mayor Edwin Olivarez said the SID building would include the extension offices of the city’s business permit and licensing office (BPLO) as well as the assessor’s office wherein local and foreign investors can process their permits.

He said this would make it easier for businesses to apply for their respective business requirements instead of going to the Sucat office.

Those who intend to work in establishments at the Entertainment City may also secure their work and health permits as well as police and National Bureau of Investigation clearances from the SID building, Olivarez said.

He said with businesses booming in Entertainment City, there is a need for an SID building to make it convenient and easy for investors and businessmen to conduct transactions and process documents that are usually done at the main city hall.

“Once the satellite city hall office is operational, we will designate additional traffic volunteers to supervise the traffic situation in the area and assign police to secure hundreds of local and foreign tourists who will visit the newly-constructed five-star hotel casinos,” he said.

The building is targeted to be in place by next year, with construction to commence possibly before the end of 2015.

Among the hotels and casinos now operational in the Entertainment City are Solaire Resorts and Casino, the first casino hotel and the first six-star hotel in Paranaque and the City of Dreams Manila, which is the second six-star hotel in the city’s Coastal Road, Barangay Tambo.

Projects in the pipeline include the Aseana City, a 204-hectare sustainable living and booming business community; Manila Bay Resorts of Okada’s Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment and Resorts World Bayshore City, a joint venture between Andrew Tan and Malaysia’s Genting Group.

Ayala Land Inc. will also develop a 500,000 square meter shopping mall, bigger than the 406,000 sq m. Mall of Asia, as well as a hotel project.

In his third state-of-the-city address last week, Olivarez said the city now has savings of P3.8 billion due to growing businesses in the gaming complex.

This is a turnaround from the P2.7 billion deficit incurred in 2013 aside from the P2 billion owed by the previous government from the Landbank of the Philippines.