Roxas Boulevard to get major facelift

MANILA, Philippines - The government plans to give Roxas Boulevard a major facelift to attract more foreign and local investors to the country.

Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) chairman Cristino Naguiat said the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and Department of Tourism (DOT) are looking at redeveloping the boulevard, which runs along Manila Bay.

Formerly Dewey Boulevard, the road, known for its yacht club, hotels, restaurants and parks, has become a trademark of Philippine tourism.

“There are plans to upgrade Roxas Boulevard, which will call for the clearing of roads, installing new light posts, and reinvigorating it to compete with other fast-growing cities in the metropolis,” Naguiat said.

A memorandum of agreement is now being drafted by the DPWH, DOT and Pagcor to help finance the project but details of the redevelopment, which can take a year or two, are still to be firmed up this month.

Naguiat said the project is expected to be completed before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit to be held in Manila in 2015.

The redevelopment of Roxas Blvd. will be a big boost to Pagcor’s efforts to pull more investors into the Entertainment City, a multi-billion-peso integrated gaming resort that is seen as the country’s answer to Las Vegas, Macau and Singapore casinos.