The city government of Manila stands to gain a huge tract of high-value land in the soon-to-be-built Solar City urban center in Manila Bay, aside from the billions of tax revenues it will earn yearly, Manila Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada said on Wednesday.
Under its joint venture agreement with Manila Goldcoast Development Corp., the city will own 35 hectares of the 148 hectares of land to be reclaimed for the multi-billion-peso project, Estrada said.
“The reclamation of 148 hectares will create for the city of Manila an expanse of land, which can complement the development plans for our urban renewal program,” he said.
With virtually no available space left for future development within Manila’s land area of 42.88 square kilometers, Estrada noted the Solar City parcel will create a new community and tourism center that will be beneficial to the city government and the city’s residents.
In a letter to Undersecretary Lloyd Christopher Lao of the Presidential Management Staff, Secretary to the Mayor Edward Serapio said Manila will get five hectares of “saleable” land and an additional 30 hectares of parks and open space between the Cultural Center of the Philippines and the Intramuros area.
“We foresee the need of such an expanse of land for tourism and leisure-oriented projects, particularly because of its proximity to CCP and the tourist belt of Manila,” Serapio pointed out.
A portion of the reclaimed land, he added, will provide vehicle access from Macapagal Avenue to Quirino Avenue, which will lessen traffic congestion in the area.
“The reclaimed land, once completed and developed, will create at least 250,000 jobs and generate hundreds of billions of new investments,” Serapio said.
It will also contribute substantial income to the local and national government in the form of real estate taxes, value added taxes, and income taxes among others, he added.
Once PRA issues a Notice to Proceed, Serapio said the reclamation will commence and would be finished in 18 months, followed by the construction of the cruise ship terminal and other vertical structures.
Solar City is a state-of-the-art, tourism, commercial and residential district to be built on three reclaimed islands where business centers, residential and commercial properties, and tourism facilities, including an international cruise ship terminal, will be put up.
Manila and MGDC, which won the contract to build Solar City in 1991, made an agreement to form a consortium to reclaim and develop the reclamation project on April 17, 2012. They then signed a joint venture agreement with the Philippine Reclamation Authority on June 7, 2012, which was subsequently ratified by the City Council.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources issued Solar City an environmental compliance certificate on Nov.13, 2014.
