Another Ayala mall set to open in Cebu

CEBU, Philippines — A second Ayala mall will open in Cebu City, particularly at the Cebu I.T. Park, by October this year, according to the park’s developer, Cebu Holdings Inc. (CHI).

During the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting last week, CHI chairperson Anna Ma. Margarita Dy said that the second Ayala mall is set to open by October this year.

Located within the two-hectare area at the heart of the 24-hectare Cebu IT Park, called Central Bloc, the mall is part of an integrated development that will also host Ayala Group’s hotel brand Seda, which will provide another 214 hotel rooms to Cebu’s hospitality sector.

The mall will add an almost 50,000 square meters of retail space to the company’s leasing portfolio.

Developed by Central Bloc Developers Inc., the development will also give rise to two new business process outsourcing (BPO) office towers.

“This year, we are on track to open Central Bloc within Cebu I.T. Park, particularly a new mall and the first of two office towers,” said Dy.

To note, CHI completed last year its merger with Cebu Property Ventures and Development Corporation (CPVDC), its former subsidiary.

Meanwhile, CHI president Aniceto Bisnar Jr. said the company continues to reinvest in Cebu. In fact, it is allocating more or less P4.2 billion in capital expenditure this year alone.

The Ayala Land affiliate now owns five estates in Metro Cebu: the Cebu Business Park, Cebu IT Park, Seagrove, Gatewalk Central, and the upcoming South Road Properties project.

The company hopes to double its leasing portfolio to almost 523,000 square meters once the three ongoing projects will be completed.

Seagrove, a seaside integrated facility developed on Mactan Island, is a partnership with the Metro Gaisano group.

The Gatewalk Central project in Mandaue City is CHI’s joint venture with its rival developer AboitizLand Inc. — JMD