The Manansala: A more affordable Rockwell

How many square meters does your life need?" so goes Rockwell Land’s spiffy brochure of its new development, the Manansala towers. Once you’ve answered that, ask yourself this: How much money do you have in the bank?

You see, Rockwell is going "mid market" with its fifth residential development. The truth is, the first thought that came to mind upon hearing this was: Is that at all possible? And how mid-market is their mid-market?

Benjamin "Jay" R. Lopez, Rockwell Land vice president for project development, says the units are priced much lower than the existing Amorsolo, Luna, Hidalgo and Rizal towers, ranging from P3 million to P10 million. They’re also smaller compared to the cuts of the existing buildings.

"The Manansala has studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units," explains Jay. "We realized we had nothing to offer in terms of these sizes, so we decided to do it." The project includes a fourth category for those who want a place bigger than a studio but smaller and less expensive than a one-bedroom unit. It’s called the "junior one-bedroom." The word "half" is the keyword here: It has a bay window and a half and it’s like a studio and a half.

"Manansala is intended for smaller families, single yuppies, successful businessmen," he says. "Our selling point is the affordability. We stretch out the payment terms, we require a 15 percent down payment with a 30 percent payment over three and a half years, and then you have a lump sum payment upon the project’s completion in 2005." Of the 650 units in the two towers, they’re selling one unit a day and are about to hit 50 percent. Like hotcakes, yes?

Of course, there are advantages for cash buyers. Even in these belt-tightening days, there are apparently quite a number of people to whom "payment terms" is a foreign term. Cash buyers get a discount and their money doesn’t sleep even when the project is three years from completion. If, for instance, you choose a P5 million unit and you pay for it now, Jay explains, Rockwell will put the money in a unit in any of the existing residential towers for example a P20-million, three-bedroom unit in Amorsolo. "It’s like a co-ownership scheme; you have a five-million stake in a 20-million-peso unit, a one-fifth share. You have the option of using the unit one-fifth of the year or Rockwell will rent it out for you. The scheme enhances your capital. When Manansala is built, you can convert it back to a new Manansala unit or just continue with the present scheme should you change your mind about buying into Manansala."

The biggest problem of condominium dwellers is the lack of storage space for things that you don’t use every day yet can’t bring yourself to throw away (er, spouses not included).

For this, Manansala (as well as the existing towers) has a solution. Homeowners can rent storage space at the basement – for bikes, old stuff, boxes and things that inexplicably accumulate in every corner of one’s house every day – so your living space is not cluttered.

As for the unit itself, the layout is so efficient that when we saw the one-bedroom model unit, we could hardly believe that the space was only 78 square meters – we’ve seen townhouses with less elbow room but bigger floor area than this!

Jay relates that people from Rockwell went to the US and benchmarked some projects in the San Francisco area and "saw how spaces such as Manansala’s are being fixed these days." In the junior one-bedroom units, the kitchens are laid out single-sided like they’re part of a bigger room.

Conceptualized and interior designed by Butch Valdez, a Filipino based in Los Angeles, with Alice Erfe and her Manila-based firm Erfe and Associates, the Manansala model units reflect a very Filipino sensibility in a contemporary setting. Nothing overtly ethnic in this modern, open layout.

"For the one-bedroom unit, the homeowner we had in mind is young and already has his own collections, which explains the shelving in the dining room and the mix of western contemporary and Asian," says Alice. "We wanted to make it simple and neutral to make the small space seem big, and for each item to blend in with the room."

Because the unit has space for a dining set for six, a comfortably-sized living room and balcony for some units, hosting parties is not a problem. "It’s a place where the homeowner can entertain," says Alice. Well, you’re in Rockwell Center, you’d better entertain!

The designers’ choice of artworks is very modern – wall accent like works by Bobby Nuestro and Manarang; and the furniture very contemporary Filipino: pieces from Budji Layug’s B Home, Borders, Soumak, Touch Wood, Lising Crafts, Artemis, plus their own designs, and a few antiques.

The Manansala has two towers: one 38 floors and the other 41 floors. What makes it special is the six-floor podium where the towers sit. Located here are facilities that homeowners can enjoy – a little bit above ground: more secure, quieter, less polluted. On the 38th floor of one tower is a badminton court-cum-function room which can be used by Rockwell Club members.

Another advantage of buying into Manansala is that once you buy, you automatically become a member of the Rockwell Club (non-residents have to buy membership). The rights to the club go with whoever is using the unit. If you buy a unit now, you can use your membership since Manansala is still being built. When it is finished in 2005 and you lease the unit, that privilege goes to the lessee.

Educated at George Washington University in Washington DC, Jay Lopez worked for a trading company in Singapore before he went to the Lopez-controlled First Philippine Holdings and, seven years ago, to Rockwell Land.

The Manansala is his pet project and he says that buying into the tower is not just buying space in the building. The difference between the Manansala and others is the community that you’re going to be a part of. "We’re creating the facilities they need right here. That Rockwell is located a distance from EDSA has actually become an advantage because you’re away from the pollution and the noise. It is a destination in itself and an oasis."

The project is named after National Artist Vicente Manansala who, ironically, is famous for his "Madonna of the Slums" and "Barong-Barong" series showing the poverty of a war-torn Manila. (Perhaps he too would have enjoyed the views from the Rockwell towers?)

So why were the buildings named after painters? It’s the Filipino theme that Rockwell was looking for when they began developing the 15-hectare site. Jay relates that when the architects presented the plans, the owners commented that the buildings looked so western. And since the Lopez Museum has an extensive collection of Luna and Hidalgo, and because Rizal was also an artist himself, they decided to name them after the Filipino masters.

As for Rockwell’s next project, Jay says it’s another residential tower similar to Manansala’s market position.

The building’s name? Try to guess. You may need to brush up on your art history anyway.