It has been a decade and a half since former Metropolitan Manila Development Authority chair and Marikina City Mayor Bayani Fernando, who currently serves as the city’s incumbent first district congressman, invited me to, as noted in a previous column, serve as a project business adviser. At the time, he had just completed his third term as mayor and, during the time we worked together, he was already a private citizen and a mega businessman, which he established long before he became mayor.
At the time, I also served as technical consultant for his wife, Ma Lourdes Carlos-Fernando.
While working in Marikina City I would often take midnight drives through Eastwood City, which was a few kilometers from my home there. The place was alive and vibrant – full of everything a night could ask for. Offices for companies like Emperador Inc. and Citibank were also located within the complex.
Years later, I learned Eastwood City was developed by the Megaworld Corporation. At the time, the company’s visionary, Dr. Andrew Tan, was not yet well-known. Today, with the company venturing into urban development and townships, they have since soared in the industry. Among their properties include Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City; along with developments in Iloilo City, Lapu-Lapu City, and Bacolod City.
Megaworld also acquired the land where the old Mandurriao Airport, or Iloilo Airport, once stood, which has since been developed into the Iloilo Business Park. The property is currently home to the Iloilo Convention Center, Richmonde Hotel Iloilo, Courtyard by Marriott Iloilo, Festive Walk Mall, along with several business process outsourcing facilities.
They also built the Casa de Emperador, which houses an art museum and tells the story of the company.
The Iloilo Business Park also stands as a figure of township development, with residential condominiums rising.
Overall, it has become a tourist attraction, offering visitors shopping and dining experiences. Mactan looks to be undergoing a similar phase because of Megaworld; and, in a few years, Bacolod City will be next.
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This column greets Nico Velasquez, Natalie Lim, Boyet Ortaliz, Ping Jimenez, Darlyn Guerra, Devi Novero, Tintin Manzinares, Rani Ilarde, Gerard Tupas, Michael Trani, Chino Ang, Mark Jimenez, Karen Matti, and Reuben Tampos./WDJ