Singaporean developer targets retirees, OFWs

CEBU, Philippines - Singapore-based property developer Syntech Properties, Inc., has formally broke ground its second residential project targeted to the growing active retiree market.

The company introduced the 37-hectare Amonsagana in Balamban, Cebu Friday last week.

This project, which comes next to the long been completed flagship project of the company in Cebu, the City Lights Garden Condominium in Busay, is going to target primarily the "active" local retirees, Overseas Filipino Workers, as well as foreigners married to Filipinas.

Amonsagana is master planned as a premier class retirement village community with subdivided residential lots, road networks, parks, gardens, nature trails, ponds, preservation areas and a host of amenities, covering a total area of 32 hectares (320,000 square meters). 

The project will be developed in four phases wherein each phase is named after the four basic elements of nature – Saga Tierra (Earth), Saga Lluvia (Water), Saga Viento (Wind/Air) and Saga Solare (Sun/Fire).

Green Architect, Master Planner and Environment Planner, Architect Maria Lourdes “Joy” Martinez Onozawa is commissioned to designed the entire green concept of Amonsagana Retirement Village project.

The first phase of Amonsagana, Saga Tierra, will offer 66 detached homes. Lot sizes vary from 452 to 674 square meters. A choice of three house models specially designed by Architect Onozawa is available.

The development will emphasize on green technology and will also tap the local farmers to manage its organic farm.

In an interview with Syntech Properties senior sales consultant Anita Blanco, who has also been selling and promoting real estate properties in Cebu over the years, said that the market now has started to move up and owning a house in a mountain is one of the in-demand "thing" of the growing affluent market.

She said that aside from going home to a serene, peaceful place in Balamban, one of the attractive selling points of the property is the experience of traversing in a picturesque transcentral road going to the place, a more or less one-hour-and-a-haft drive from Cebu City.

The development will also put up other facilities that are needed in the legitimate retirement village such as clinic, retail joints, among others.

Syntech has likewise started similar development projects in other countries like Japan and Australia.

Syntech Properties, in partnership with the Gallego family of Cebu, is one of the pioneers in developing condominium facilities in Cebu when it started to construct the two condominium Towers in Nivel Hills in 1997. — (FREEMAN)