Bakit may balak ba kayo mag-EB diyan?

Can't wait for GB5 to open completely because we finally get to see top Filipino export products on Filipino soil. It is somewhat shameful they don't put up shop in their own country.

Tapos pagdating dito, they've got world class prices, that only very few Filipinos can afford. I hope Rafe and other Pinoy exports would release a line of more affordable stuff for Pinoys.

^^ i guess some gb4 and gb3 shops will be relocating to gb5. i dont think phase 2 will disappoint. i heard a rumor that chanel, hermes and dior are coming to manila real soon. baka phase two will be their home. more luxury brands!! so, is the marc jacobs store at gb4 open already? it's kinda sad that YSL had to go but oh well.

YSL was given a small spot at Rustan's Makati. But well, a stand-alone shop is way better!

Anyway, I've noticed that some of the closed stores in GB 5 were only labeled as International Store Concepts, Inc. or something like that. It's not Rustan's SSI. Does anybody have an idea what brand franchise this company holds?

BTW, Bang and Olufsen is already open. The shop across Marc by Marc Jacobs is also opening soon, but its brand logo wasn't put up yet so I have no idea what store it was. There was this other store across Paul Smith that's about to open too. Again, I dunno what store that was. They're all unlabeled!

TIP: Parking is like TriNoma. Soft opening will also remind of you of TriNoma. It's very maalikabok inside the parking mall and the main mall as well.

great! are they transferring B&O at GB5?

looks like it. I guess it won't be profitable if you had another one across.

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/6726/dsc6568nf1.jpg

Diba ganito din yung plano ng SM City North EDSA? Yung parang blue weaved facade?

Foreign experts: No bomb in blast
By Marvin Sy
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
PhilStar
http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=2007103089

Foreign experts who helped police investigators in the Glorietta 2 explosion two weeks ago have ruled out the possibility of a terror attack, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Avelino Razon Jr. said yesterday.

Razon said the foreign investigators have furnished him a copy of the report which corroborated the police theory of a gas leak explosion.

The foreign experts who helped the PNP in the investigation of the blast include those from Israel, Australia and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Razon said all of the foreign experts were convinced that an accidental blast took place, pointing out the proximity of lethal gases and the absence of any explosives from the scene.

Razon earlier stressed the blast was caused by a deadly reaction of methane coming into contact with diesel fumes at a poorly ventilated basement of the high-end mall.

Local investigators led by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) and government occupational safety experts from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) also pointed to the poor ventilation in the basement that might have contributed to the gas explosion.

The explosion that rocked the upscale Glorietta 2 shopping mall in Makati City on Oct. 19 left 11 people dead and hundreds injured.

Authorities initially suspected a terror attack but the absence of any traces of explosives and the presence of volatile fumes at the scene led PNP investigators to believe the explosion was accidental.

Razon said the evidence gathered by the foreign investigators pointed to a destroyed portion of the mall indicating an accidental gas explosion took place.

Razon said the PNP is in the process of incorporating the findings of the foreign experts in its final report on the blast.

“It’s almost complete and the evidence gathered so far showed that it heavily tilted towards an industrial accident,” Razon said.

Once the findings are complete, Razon said the PNP will move to file the appropriate charges or assist the victims in filing a class suit against the mall owners.

National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Geary Barias, the designated spokesman for the police investigating the incident, said they are wrapping up the investigation.

Barias assured that once the police findings become final, the next thing is to pinpoint the culpability of the mall owners.

Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), the owners and operators of Glorietta, earlier debunked police theories of an accidental blast, insisting that the facility was in order.

ALI spokesman Alfonso Reyes said they will still wait for the official report on the incident before issuing any statements.

“We will wait for the issuance of their official report before making any reaction to whatever their findings are,” Reyes said.

“We are hoping that the PNP will release its report on the blast as soon as possible so that we will be able to evaluate the findings and be able to come up with a response,” he said.

Reyes said ALI will conduct its own investigation.



_______________________________________



Gas build-up caused mall blast--Aussie experts’ report
No evidence that bomb caused explosion, it says

By Thea Alberto
INQUIRER.net
Last updated 10:14am (Mla time) 11/01/2007
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metro/view_article.php?article_id=98106

MANILA, Philippines -- Australian forensic experts have concluded that the blast which killed 11 and injured over a hundred in a mall in Makati City last month was caused by a gas explosion and not by an improvised explosive device.

In its 13-page report, a copy of which was obtained by INQUIRER.net, the Australian Forensic Police (AFP) however did not say what had led to the blast although it noted that there were several “potential sources” which included the “sewer gas/fumes which can consist of sulphur dioxide, methane, ammonia; diesel fumes.” Australian experts also said that there were no traces of bomb parts.

Aside from the Australian experts, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also conducted its own investigation into the explosion at the Glorietta 2 last October 19.

The Australian police ruled out bombing as the cause of the blast because “there was no evidence to suggest that the explosion had been caused and/or initiated by an improvised explosive device.”

The report added that even the FBI forensic team “had not located any evidence to suggest the use of an explosive device at the crime scene.”

At the same time, the Australian police recommended the examination of maintenance records of Glorietta 2, specifically those of the basement, scene of the explosion.

The Philippine National Police refused to make public the report of Australian experts while investigations were ongoing.

The Ayala Land Incorporated, which operates the mall, had wanted to see a copy of the report so that they could comment.

The Australian police, who assisted the local task force in its own investigation, arrived October 20 and left on October 27, according to the official report.

In their seven-day investigation, the Australian experts established that “the gas explosion occurred and originated in the basement.”

This conclusion matched the results of the PNP’s initial investigation.

PNP Chief Avelino Razon and Police Director Geary Barias, National Capital Region Police Office chief, have said that their investigators were close to ruling out a bomb as the source of the explosion.

Barias said there was pressure build-up of diesel fumes and methane gas, emitted by the malfunctioning sewage pump.

Barias also said investigators have not seen any bomb component such as timing device, power source, initiator, switches and container.

And although RDX, an ingredient of bomb component C4, was found from pieces of evidence from the blast site, it was possible that this did not come from a bomb. RDX could be reportedly found in toothpastes or deodorants.

The Australian experts also said that based on their observations, the explosion occurred after a pressure build-up in the basement.

They noted that the lid of the diesel fuel tank, located at the basement, was “lifting upwards…suggesting a pressure build-up within the tank; that the damage penetrated from the inside-out, approximately 15 centimeters wide on the top section of the tank; no apparent strike marks or inward buckling to the tank; but there was insufficient damage to the tank to indicate it as being the source of the explosion.

“It is possible that the ignition source was remote from the area of greatest fuel build-up. From the detailed scene examination, physical evidence, blast damage effects, and background information provided, it appears the explosion has occurred in the basement of Glorietta 2 as a result of an explosive fuel-air mixture being initiated by unknown means,” the report also showed.

To fully determine the cause of the blast, Australian experts also advised its counterparts to: examine the floor area of basement to determine the extent of the damage; engage independent appropriate engineers/experts to examine machinery including septic pump, exhaust system, diesel tank, control panel switches and pumps; examine CCTV footage; examine maintenance records of Glorietta 2; ensure that all relevant witness statements would be collected and evaluated for significant information; examine post-mortem reports, including location of deceased, among others.

On Wednesday, authorities were also supposed to recover the submersible pump in the basement. Barias said police could not enter the basement unless it had been declared safe.

As soon as investigators have established conclusively that the explosion was an accident, charges of negligence resulting to multiple homicide and serious physical injuries are likely to be charged against the tenants and/or owner of the origin of explosion, local authorities have said.

If the explosion was really caused by methane gas, can you imagine how big a blast the lower basement level of Robinsons Galleria can cause with the parking area smelling like that for the longest time?

btw, with Greenbelt 5, there will be a designers' row, meaning a row of shops of famous local designers such as Kate Torralba, Cesar Gaupo and the like...can't remember who else, I'll post the designer's names as soon as I recall or bump into my notes.

If the explosion was really caused by methane gas, can you imagine how big a blast the lower basement level of Robinsons Galleria can cause with the parking area smelling like that for the longest time?

I don't want to imagine! :D My school is there, on the ground level even, just a level above parking B1.

Tapos we're only three spaces away from the only CR at the Ground Level, hehe, at least may tatlong store pa bago sa amin.

Kaya nga nung may nangyari sa Glorietta, hindi ako sinabihan na wag nang mag-mall, kasi nasa mall ang school ko eh, hehehe. :colgate:

P.S. Walang kwenta security ng Galleria, nakapasok nga ako na hindi chine-check ang bag ko eh, ang laki pa nga ng backpack ko eh tapos nagawa ko yun, dun ako dumaan sa Robinsons-Equitable tower kung saan di naman nag-iinspect ng bag, tapos nag-bridge na ako papuntang Galleria na wala din naman security check kahit may guard sa bridge.

GB5
http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/7074/dsc6587wz3.jpg

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/2517/dsc6612ft1.jpg




thanks kiben!

didn't know the exact location of gb5...i was disoriented at first until i saw prince 2 condotel building in the right background.

http://img132.imageshack.us/img132/6726/dsc6568nf1.jpg

keep posting, pls!:banana:

Just found out about those top "Filipino" exporters. I'm pleasantly surprised at the prestige some Filipinos have garnered. It's true they are Filipino, but from what I read Rafe and others are based in other countries, am I correct? So we are not technically receiving our own products, but instead we're IMPORTING Filipino-designed products from other countries? Maybe I'm not understanding something.

^^ Celestina by Tina Maristela-Ocampo and Aranaz make their products locally, at least that's what I think from what I've read about them. I'm not sure about Rafe. Patrice Ramos-Diaz, Kate Torralba, etc. are all local designers. And Cesar Gaupo is producing a local line called Gaupo.

Oh ok, I guess the majority is truly a product of the Philippines (as in designed and produced here) except for Rafe, which is actually the only one I looked up to be honest. :D

Makati, Ayala Land could face charges
By James Konstantin Galvez, Reporter
Manila Times
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2007/nov/02/yehey/top_stories/20071102top3.html


The Makati City Hall is in the police line of fire over the Glorietta 2 mall explosion.

Metro Manila police chief Geary Barias said Thursday that they will look into the city government’s possible lapses in granting permits to the mall owner, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI).

Barias earlier said “negligence” on ALI’s part was to blame for the October 19 blast that killed 11 and wounded more than 100.

Barias said Makati City Hall and Ayala Land could face criminal charges if investigation proved they were both negligent.

“Who is at fault here? We want to take a closer look at the contract [of the mall owner that the city government had approved],” Barias said. “We also want to see if city hall followed proper inspection procedures before granting the needed permits.”

He added foreign forensics experts supported the local police’s theory that a gas leak at the basement of the mall had caused the explosion.

Barias said the National Bureau of Investigation may lead the review of documents and permits granted to Ayala Land.

“We are now studying the permits and contracts covering mall operations as well as the contract between Ayala Land and its tenants to find out possible areas where negligence was committed,” Barias said in a statement.

Earlier, Mayor Jejomar Binay of Makati urged the Philippine National Police (PNP) to fully disclose the findings of foreign experts on the blast.

A similar request was made by Ayala Land. Binay said there should be “transparency” in the investigations.

He said police officials “opened their mouths too soon” on the blast investigation, adding they may have prejudged the matter.

The mayor noted the supposed lack of direct communication between the city government and the PNP chief, Director General Avelino Razon Jr.

Makati will still push for an independent probe of the deadly explosion and city officials will discuss the plan with business leaders on November 7 during the Makati Business Development Council meeting.

Binay said the council is expected to back the call for an independent inquiry.



_______________________________________



PNP findings show electrical malfunction caused Glorietta blast
By Rhodina Villanueva
PhilStar
http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=20071103123

Police said yesterday they are on the verge of concluding that an accident indeed caused the explosion at the Glorietta 2 mall in Makati City.

This, even as the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) yesterday revealed plans to solicit the assistance of experts from three department agencies in an effort to deepen their investigation into the Oct. 19 explosion.

A recent inspection conducted by the Multi-Agency Investigative Task Force showed that an electrical fuse in switchboards that holds one of several centrifugal pumps at the basement of the Glorietta 2 mall, which also serve as a source of energy for the establishment’s operation, caused the ignition.

Members of the Task Force observed that instead of replacing the busted fuse with a new one, a jumper cable that was not properly insulated was attached to it.

National Capital Regional Police Office Director Geary Barias said, “What they have right now will most probably trickle down to a point that a gas explosion occurred in the area and cost the lives of a number of people.”

Eleven people were killed and more than a hundred were injured in the incident.

Barias said they have already forwarded the results of the recent probe to the NBI and the Anti-Arson Task Force that will be responsible for the announcement of the final report on the matter.

Members of the Task Force recovered a centrifugal motor pump in the mall’s basement late Friday afternoon.

Barias said it would take three more days to retrieve three submersible pumps and other materials relevant to the probe. The submersible pump reportedly contributed to the buildup of methane gas.

An electrician, who was sought by the police to examine the latest discovery at the site, said that the fuse blew up but instead of seeking a replacement a jumper cable was just attached to it.

“The problem here is that the jumper left no existing ‘safety mechanism’ unlike if they replaced it with a new one. In the event of an overloading of electric current, the system will just automatically shut down,” he explained.

The source said the jumper resulted in sparks that led to the explosion.

He said the types of fuse used can only accommodate a maximum of 60 amperes, and that the blast could have resulted because the current reached more than the required amperes.

Probe welcomed

Barias expressed confidence that investigations to be conducted by independent bodies on the Glorietta blast will yield the same findings as the police and foreign experts.

In an interview at the weekly program “Para Sa Iyo Bayan” of Vice President Noli de Castro, Barias said that an investigation by the mall owners and the city government is welcome.

“I’m very confident that if there will be other investigations by independent bodies, they will yield the same result as the FBI, Australian and Israeli experts,” Barias said.

“Our findings and report will be separate from the foreign experts’ report but we can cite their findings. Ours is purely from the bomb data center, Anti-Arson Task Force of the DILG, PNP and the NBI,” he added.

Charges will be filed

Chief Superintendent Luizo Ticman, director of the Southern Police District and head of the Multi-Agency Investigative Task Force, said that the PNP is now studying laws on negligence in preparation for the filing of charges against those responsible for the explosion.

He said police were also studying building codes to see if the mall administrators or tenants had violated any of these regulations.

Barias said that if indeed a gas explosion caused the accident, then appropriate charges would have to be filed against those who were responsible for it.

“But we have to check first who is in charge of the maintenance and management of the basement,” Barias added.

Charges of negligence resulting in multiple homicide and serious physical injuries will be filed in court against those who will be found responsible.

Head Agent Romulo Asis, of the NBI-Anti-Terrorism Division (ATD), said he would be sending letters to Public Works and Highways Secretary Hermogenes Ebdane, Environment and Natural Resources Secretary Joselito Atienza and Science and Technology Secretary Estrella Alabastro on Monday.

“From the DPWH, we would be requesting their mechanical and sanitary engineers to determine if the sewage treatment facility was properly installed. We would also be asking the scientists from the DOST to testify if methane was evident and explain the ramifications of the methane gas,” said Asis.

The Inter-Agency Arson Task Force (IAATF) turned over to the NBI evidence recovered from the blast scene in Glorietta 2 last Friday afternoon. They were placed inside 10 boxes.

The NBI-ATD now has in its safekeeping the control panel for the submersible pumps number 1 and 2; manual train for switch, circuit breaker, motor control panel for pumps number 3 and 4, motor control for diesel pumps, fluorescent lamp, two convenient outlets, water pump (transfer pump motor) for electrical matters; and a water pump (transfer pump motor) for mechanical matters.

“These boxes would be examined sometime next week in the presence of representatives from the Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), Philippine National Police (PNP), NBI and from other units in order to preserve the integrity of the evidence. We don’t want any speculations that the pieces of evidence were contaminated,” Asis added.

Members of the Multi-Agency Task Force went back to the blast site yesterday in an attempt to retrieve other evidence.

When asked when they would conclude their investigation, Asis said they could not afford to hasten the pace since the basement of the mall is already unstable and they have to consider the safety of the investigators.

The NBI official added that they would be working in dangerous conditions.

The team that went to the blast site was composed of representatives from the ALI, the private contractor, Makati Rescue Team, Bureau of Fire Prevention (BFP), NBI and the PNP.

Although , operating pa naman..I would like to wish that Ayala will form joint-venture redevelopment with the Martel's ( the surname even sounds good for a mall ,IMO ) of Harrison Plaza . The entire mall complex is so huge , flanked by hotel developments on CCP and booming VitoCruz-Taft , Sports Complex and LaSalle campus.
Take the before and after result of the Robinson-Ermita complex as an inspiration which is now a vibrant mixed-used development of mall and several high-rise residentials . Location-wise , Harrison Plaza is more strategic.

Just found out about those top "Filipino" exporters. I'm pleasantly surprised at the prestige some Filipinos have garnered. It's true they are Filipino, but from what I read Rafe and others are based in other countries, am I correct? So we are not technically receiving our own products, but instead we're IMPORTING Filipino-designed products from other countries? Maybe I'm not understanding something.

Err well quite true tsinoy and me can attest to that, Their family used to be a subcontractor for some American clothing company. I'm currently an subcontractor for Wal Mart clothings. Honestly much that I would love to introduce my own clothing line. We are much more concrend about the continuity of our business. Competing with this big brands abroad is a long and hard process, and the cost is enough to kill our businesses. I'm rather contented of maintaining our company and the job of our employees.

GB, wala na kong malagay eh, eto na lang :lol:
http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/6052/dsc6629ax7.jpg

my brother took this shot
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/8164/dsc6620er5.jpg

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/3378/dsc6612io4.jpg

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/10/dsc6616ox1.jpg

GB...
http://img57.imageshack.us/img57/9278/dsc6580nj7.jpg



November 1 2007
eto, para maiba naman... Theatre Mall and Promenade...
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/9453/dsc6716ei7.jpg

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/9152/dsc6715ll1.jpg

http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/3923/dsc6719me9.jpg

LOL, magingat kayu sa Promenade! nadulas yung mom ko dun sa ramp, medyo madulas yung part na yon:lol: eh matulis yung nails ng mom ko, tas buti na lang nakahawak sakin at eto nangyare sakin :nuts: natanggal yung part ng skin, sa una wala akong maramdaman, parang wala lang, pero nung tumagal, sobrang sakit nung time na yan! ang lalim pala nung sugat:lol:
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/81/dsc6768em2.jpg
buti yan lang! ok na din mom ko ngayun. Marami na rin kasi akong nababalitaan na nadadapa sa part na yan

[QUOTE=KiBeN;16255212]GB...

November 1 2007
eto, para maiba naman... Theatre Mall and Promenade...
http://img529.imageshack.us/img529/9453/dsc6716ei7.jpg

http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/9152/dsc6715ll1.jpg

http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/3923/dsc6719me9.jpg

Nice night scene shots, what camera do you use? point and shoot or D-SLR?
did you use different lenses and filters?

Marine-themed Mall and Hotel

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2062/1850022839_28e0b887e1.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2389/1850001861_4c171ec878.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2340/1850236139_64e73972af.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2035/1851059506_29a3171f51.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2034/1851059774_a29159f25a.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2076/1850236971_66206ea11c.jpg?v=0

Need I say more? I think this is the perfect thread for this pic.

http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b210/ofngol/Uniwide_Coastal-Mall.jpg


creepy.its like looking at a dying man.^^

http://www.cooyeesanhotelplaza.com/images/gallery/hotel/images/IMG_0067.jpg


This is a mall-slash-hotel in Baguio. Although the mall part did not succeed. It took off for the first few months, but because it was built far from the city center where all the other malls are.. well you know how it goes.

^^ San po ito? Reminds me of Mall Of Asia...

Manila Ocean Park po yan.:colgate:

Pasko na naman! :banana: :banana: :banana:

Bonifacio Global City to offer more attractions in last quarter

Emerging business districts face a common challenge: how to get more people to frequent it. New areas that have masterplanned development to systematically attract investors and visitors alike are in the best position to be tomorrow’s premier locations, says sound urban planning.

Today, office and residential buildings and a number of shopping and entertainment complexes have established the development momentum for Bonifacio Global City . Pedestrian traffic to Bonifacio High Street and Market!Market! alone has significantly increased in the past year. The combined retail establishments in both areas numbering to over 350 cater to a range of shoppers and are quickly becoming compelling reasons for more and more Metro Manila residents to consider the 240-hectare area a premier destination.

Jun Bisnar, head of commercial operations of Fort Bonifacio Development Corp. which is developing the area, relates that in the next few months, more events and developments have been lined up to draw visitors to this dynamic section of Taguig City .

Acknowledging the strategic location of Bonifacio Global City next to the Makati Business District and its accessibility to many Metro Manila residential areas, Bisnar observes that the area has become a major crossroad. This is particularly evident at Stopover where convenience retail is offered by a range of restaurants, two banks, two salons, a business center, a drugstore, a convenience store and a Shell service station offering a variety of services.

By December, he says, the redevelopment of this retail strip frequented by employees on the way to and from Makati as well as students and Makati and Taguig residents will be completed. Its main feature will be an al fresco area where diners can take their meals bought from the nearby food establishments. Motorists passing along the main thoroughfares of 32nd and 31st Streets will have a glimpse of all the shops in the one-hectare lot. To achieve this, some structures will be demolished, steps will be added and an oval stage on the center for mini concerts and other events will be constructed.

When the redevelopment is done, a large hamburger chain is set to open an outlet in the area, adding more dining choices for the Stopover’s habitués, according to Marc John Buencamino, leasing manager of FBDC’s commercial operations department.

Bonifacio Global City will also soon become a preferred Christmas destination with the launching of Sparks of Passion Light and Music Festival, a novel light and music show that offers a multisensory Christmas experience. Unlike most other Christmas events, Sparks of Passion allows visitors to fully savor the Christmas spirit primarily through the relaxed but carefully-planned ambience of Bonifacio Global City ‘s various venues — particularly the kilometer-long Bonifacio High Street. From November 10 to December 30, upbeat contemporary Christmas music synchronized with programmed Christmas lights will help visitors to truly feel and experience the merry mood of the season. The daily 15-minute music and light show which will run from 7 p.m. to midnight will also be presented at The Fort where a towering Christmas tree has been set up in f ront of Embassy.

Every last quarter of the year, Bonifacio Global City also becomes the venue for Metro Manila’s best-known holiday bargain haunts. At the peak of the holiday season, thousands of shoppers flock to Market!Market!’s stores offering food delicacies from all the regions of the country, fruits, flowers, and other items at very low prices. An average of 3,000 shoppers a day also flock to the NBC Tent near The Fort retail strip in search of gift items like apparel, kitchenware and home décor with US brands that are made in the Philippines or which are one-of-a-kind pieces by artistic entrepreneurs—all at bargain prices. Similar items as well as fruits, some fireworks and other homemade items are sold at Streetshops near the restaurants at The Fort.

kelan ba opening nung Oceans Adventure

Marine-themed Mall and Hotel

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2062/1850022839_28e0b887e1.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2389/1850001861_4c171ec878.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2340/1850236139_64e73972af.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2035/1851059506_29a3171f51.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2034/1851059774_a29159f25a.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2076/1850236971_66206ea11c.jpg?v=0

Mabuhay everyone!
Those are wonderful renderings. I like how Metro Manila is prospering. I left the Philippines after Pinatubo and went back in 2002. Boy I was amazed at how large Metro Manilla has become. I hope to go back again soon...I miss the Philippines a lot.

kelan ba opening nung Oceans Adventure

It's not Ocean Adventure, it's Manila Ocean Park. The Ocean Adventure is a diffferent project that opened years ago, it's located in Subic.

GB, wala na kong malagay eh, eto na lang :lol:
http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/6052/dsc6629ax7.jpg

my brother took this shot
http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/8164/dsc6620er5.jpg

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/3378/dsc6612io4.jpg

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/10/dsc6616ox1.jpg

nice pics kibs...dahil sa ganda ng pics mo...can't resist to take a peek....i was there with the wifey and bunso...last saturday...greenbelt 5 really amazes....galing ng design...

Greenbelt 5 pala will contain 280 shops when fully operational :shocked:

Ayala Land rejects gas blast theory
Business World
http://www.bworld.com.ph/BW110507/content.php?id=003

A POLICE THEORY that a gas buildup led to an October 19 mall blast that killed 11 people is "highly unlikely," property firm Ayala Land, Inc. (ALI) yesterday said, citing initial findings of its own commissioned investigation.

The Philippine National Police (PNP) last week ruled out the possibility of a terrorist attack as the primary cause for the explosion at the Glorietta 2 mall, raising the issue of negligence on ALI’s part.

In a press conference, ALI president and chief executive officer Jaime Ayala said local and foreign experts it tapped had ruled that a gas buildup was not the likely blast cause as microorganisms would need about eight to 10 days in an undisturbed condition to generate a sufficient quantity of methane.

The listed property developer said it had commissioned Dr. Stephen Etheridge, a waste-water and biogas production specialist, and Burgoynes, an international consulting firm on forensic investigations of fires, explosions and engineering failures, to conduct an investigation of the blast.

"Our analysis at this point in time, together with what our foreign experts have told us, makes it seem that it is highly unlikely that there would have been sufficient methane to cause this kind of blast. At the same time, that the diesel tank itself is not the primary source of this kind of damage," Mr. Ayala said.

The PNP had also said that a diesel tank in the mall’s basement may have been a contributing factor to the explosion.

ALI said its probers’ findings showed that the conditions for the production of methane in substantial quantities were not present since the length of time for wastewater to accumulate in the sump pits was not enough.

Mr. Ayala noted that the company has two sump pits that were discharged three to four times daily.

"It is unlikely that biogas was present in the basement since personnel working in the basement did not smell hydrogen sulfide, which smells like rotten eggs and causes nausea and eye and skin irritation," he said.

Mr. Ayala also said the diesel fuel was also unlikely to have caused the severe damage to the mall.

"The diesel fuel in the day tank has been tested by a major oil company in their laboratory and the flash point (the temperature at which sufficient vapor from a liquid is formed for combustion to occur) result was found to be normal at 76 degrees Celsius and within specification. Furthermore, no evidence was found to indicate any contamination with a volatile liquid," he said.

But despite its own investigations, the company urged authorities to look into every angle on what really happened.

Mr. Ayala said the company had yet to receive a copy of the PNP’s findings, and said the firm had yet to release a new estimate on the damage arising from incident and its impact on ALI’s bottom line.

The firm initially said the blast had caused P100 million in damage to the mall.

Mr. Ayala noted, however, that mall operations would have minimal effect on net income as it contributed only 17% to total earnings.



_______________________________



Reconsider terror angle
Ayala Land presents study, saying negligence did not cause the blast
By James Konstantin Galvez, Reporter
Manila Times
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2007/nov/05/yehey/top_stories/20071105top1.html

Ayala Land Inc. went on the offensive Sunday debunking the police theory that blame the Glorietta 2 mall explosion on negligence.

In a related development, the Philippine National Police denied it was pinning down Ayala Land. The police has yet to release a report on the October 19 blast that killed 11 people and injured 112 others.

In its press conference Sunday, Ayala Land claimed it is highly improbable that methane and biogas could have triggered the explosion.

Jaime Ayala, Ayala Land chief executive officer and president, showed a video that supports their argument. Plus, Ayala presented the results of a study conducted by Dr. Stephen Ethridge, a British specialist on wastewater and effluent treatment, and by Burgoynes, an international consulting firm specializing in the forensic investigation of fires, explosion and engineering.

The accumulation of biogas in the basement, which is where the blast is believed to have originated, was not feasible as it was 20 percent less dense than air, the study reported. It is less likely for a gas lighter than air to have vented through the open stairwell and out to the open loading dock, the study added.

Ayala said the basement is well-ventilated, contrary to police statements.

Ayala said the experts concluded that microorganism takes about eight to 10 days to grow and generate enough biogas to cause such a massive explosion. “The length of time that wastewater stayed in the basement sump pits was not sufficient for this process to take place, as the water in the pits was discharged several times a day,” Ayala quoted Ethridge.

Plus, the study said the gas must be undisturbed, but Ayala said in a typical day, five people work in the basement.

He said three maintenance people worked in the mall’s basement for about three hours just a day before the blast, and none of them reported smelling hydrogen sulfide, which emits odors similar to rotten eggs and can cause headaches, nausea, throat and eye irritations and even eye injury in high concentration.

“Hydrogen sulfide, a toxic chemical, would have been present even with small amounts of biogas,” Ayala said.

He said there were no “reports or observations by maintenance personnel of any irregularity to the diesel tank,” noting that the diesel fuel tank was last used in June.

Earlier reports said the explosion might have originated at the fuel tank used to store diesel for emergency purposes during power outages.

On the other hand, Ayala ruled out the possibility of an accident or negligence to cause such an explosion, saying that they are quite confident that they followed proper procedures in the maintenance of their equipment.

Ayala was reacting to a police statement that the explosion can be blamed on “negligence,” but it did not specify by whom—by the mall owner or by Makati City government, which conducts inspections for public safety.

Ayala said, “What we can rule out is it is highly unlikely that it was caused by methane or diesel. We don’t think negligence is relevant to those factors since for negligence to be considered it has to be connected to an incident.”

“At this point we don’t want to add additional hypotheses or speculation to the investigation. That’s for the authorities to consider as they pursue their investigation to look at all angles.”

No finger-pointing

Meanwhile, National Capital Region Police Office Chief Supt. Geary Barias dismissed assumptions that they were trying to pin down Ayala Land in their probe.

“We have no reason to pin down the Ayalas,” Barias said. “We have not said that the blame lie with them or for anyone else since the investigation is still ongoing.”

“We’re not blaming anybody here especially Ayala who since day one was very cooperative and helpful to us,” Barias said. “We are continuing our coordination with them.”

But Barias said the post-blast investigation showed a preponderance of evidence pointing to an accident as the cause of the blast.

Authorities are trying to recover the submersible pump that the police claimed would back up their theory of a gas explosion as the likely cause of the blast.

Barias said his men are set to recover additional items in the mall’s basement, adding that it might take three more days for them to complete the retrieval operation.

A fuse, a blackened electric socket and a partly burned centrifugal pump motor were among the items police recovered from the basement late Friday afternoon.

Earlier, police claimed that an electrician, whom authorities did not identify due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the fuse blew up but instead of seeking a replacement, a jumper cable was attached to it leaving no safety mechanism in the event of a systems overload.

Barias said they are investigating that lead and said the recovered items are being subjected to chemical analysis.

He said police should be able to present a consolidated report in one or two weeks.

creepy.its like looking at a dying man.^^

that sun sign above the logo seems like waving goodbye....

Philippines' SM Prime Plans to Build One Mall a Year in China (http://smprime.com/News.php?BlurbID=932)
By Ian C. Sayson, 7 Nov 2007
Source: Bloomberg News

SM Prime Holdings Inc., the largest Philippine shopping center operator, plans to build one mall a year in China to tap demand in the world's fastest growing major economy and reduce the company's reliance on its home market. (Philippines)

"We will first start with one a year and as we grow stronger then we will increase that to two, three and maybe four a year,'' Hans Sy, president of Manila-based SM Prime, said yesterday in an interview.

"It won't be a reckless expansion.'' Building malls in China will give SM Prime access to a market with 15 times the population of the Philippines and an economy 23 times larger.

The company has limited scope for expansion at home, where it already operates 30 malls, fund manager Olan Caperina said. "SM Prime is nearing the level of saturating the major centers in the Philippines,'' said Caperina, who helps oversee the equivalent of .48 billion at BPI Asset Management Inc. in Manila.

"The next step for SM Prime is to expand outside, and China is a very promising market.'' SM Prime was unchanged at 11.75 pesos at the close in Manila. The stock has risen 37 percent this year, compared with a 27 percent gain in the main Philippine Stock Exchange Index.

The company will start building its own malls in China once it completes the purchase of three shopping centers in the country owned by SM Prime founder Henry Sy, Hans Sy said. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, is the anchor tenant in all three of Henry Sy's malls in China.

Henry Sy, who also owns the largest Philippine department store and grocery chain, built his first mall in China five years ago. "China's growth story is there,'' Hans Sy said.

"We have been building malls of smaller scale in the Philippines because the spending power in the provinces isn't as strong as that in Manila. With China, at least we can show people that there's a future for SM Prime.''

SM Prime said Citigroup Inc. and Macquarie Bank Ltd., which were hired to advise the company on its mall purchases in China, will finish valuing the assets in December. SM Prime may buy additional malls in China, and won't restrict itself to building its own complexes as it did in the Philippines, Hans Sy said.

SM to put up 4th mall in China (http://smprime.com/News.php?BlurbID=933)
By Zinnia B. Dela Peña, 7 Nov 2007
Source: Phil. Star
The family of retail tycoon Henry Sy will build its fourth mall in China next year and may possibly set up shop in India and Vietnam, according to a high-ranking company official.

SM Prime Holdings president Hans Sy said the new mall will rise on a seven-hectare property it acquired with some partners in Chong Quien.

The move signifies the Sy family’s strong confidence in the Chinese mainland’s booming economy. Sy said the new mall, slated for opening in early 2009, will most probably retain Walmart as its anchor tenant due to the good relationship they had built over the years.

Walmart is the anchor tenant for the Sy group’s first three malls in China which include the 1.38-million square foot SM Xiamen which opened in 2001, the 1.89-million square foot SM Jinjiang which opened in 2005 and the 1.39-million square foot SM Chengdu which opened just last year.

Sy said the group may also allot about 30 percent of the property for development of residential condominiums which could either be undertaken by SM Prime, SM Development Corp. or the new Shoemart, which has recently been restructured as the SM group’s new property holding company.

Sy said it received several invitations to invest in other countries like India and Vietnam but nothing has been formalized yet.

“It takes a lot of know-how to operate a mall and we are getting recognized for that even overseas specially after we built the Mall of Asia,” he said.

Sy said the group is still awaiting the valuation being done by Citigroup Global Markets Ltd. and Macquarie Securities (Asia) Pte Ltd. with respect to a proposal to transfer ownership of its three malls in China to SM Prime, which operates SM Supermarket and Shoemart stores in the Philippines.

The group earlier said it plans to have 10 malls in China over the next three years to capitalize on China’s growing economy and population which is 15 times that of the Philippines.

“We’d rather not be headstrong although we can acquire more than 20 properties at once if we want,” Sy said. In another development, SM Investments Corp. chief finance officer Jose T. Sio said bulk of the proceeds from the recent divestment of its shares in San Miguel Corp. will be used to cover the acquisition of Equitable PCIBank.

The company has set aside P13.5 billion for this. The SM group expects to receive P27.1 billion from the sale of its shareholdings in San Miguel. Other proceeds from the sale will be used to fund investments in SMIC’s three other core businesses which include retailing, shopping mall operations and property development.

SMIC has earmarked P25 billion for its capital expenditures next year.

Been in Pamplona , Las Pinas this afternoon in the area where the vicinity of malls such as Ever ( soon Dragon Center ) , RFC and Manuela 1 & 2 to visit an employment firm located there . From Alabang to Pamplona while riding a passenger jeep it took me an hour to reach my destination at 2:30 pm with numerous traffic points . I stayed for 30 minutes checking on RFC and Manuela 1 and then it also took me an hour to reach Alabang going back at around 4 pm .
The RFC mall is really in a sorry state , the cinemas and escalators are not operating anymore . The CR at their food court stinks and so dirty. They should have it ( CR) cleaned and fixed because its the one in their food court which means its being utilized frequently by shoppers . It's like after having a meal in their food court and you decided to pass by their male CR , you will feel like vomiting because of the foul odor and filth . Constructive criticism lang po , maybe someone from the mall will read this feedback and fixed what they have to fixed for proper sanitation/hygiene.
Manuela 1 on the other hand houses a home depot and some dining places /bars on its level 2 , it's quite okay at that , at least they reinvented it .
Along the way , I saw Uniwide MetroMall , its still open but likewise , it's in a sorry state too. IMHO , a major contributor why malls in that part of LP are dying aside from their financial woes is also because of the horrendous traffic that Las Pinas has in their one and only 4-lane road where all modes of public transport such as buses , jeep, FX ply their routes .
Mabuti na lang nasa malapit lang ang SM Southmall and not affected , and SM is SM of course . Nakakarindi talaga trapik don , kaya bihira na siguro ang nag-aattempt pa na sadyain ang naturang malls sa Pamplona , hanggang SM Southmall lang talaga ang gustong puntahan kadalasan . Yun na lang talagang malapit nakatira dun siguro nagtityaga .

I suspect the creation of SM in Las Piñas is hastening the demise of those other malls. SM Southmall is a destination by itself with all the shops, and activities it can offer. SM has become a household name and a standard for the Filipino shopping public. Other malls nearby would only survive if they offer something really different or cater to a different niche. The malls of Robinson's Place Novaliches (which is right across SM Fairview) and Robinson's Starmills (also located across SM Pampanga) are some of the casualties. Well they still thrive but it is obvious which malls are really drawing the crowds in. Robinson's Place Novaliches even has to lease out some of its spaces to a call center to get by.

Robinson's Metro East along Marcos Highway seems to be holding on its own against Sta. Lucia's East Grandmall. But maybe that's because it's not an SM... Or looking at it from another point of view, the Grandmall itself is not as accessible as Robinson's from Marcos Highway. I wonder how these malls would be affected with the opening of SM City Marikina...

That's true with Robinsons Iloilo, they're competing with 4 SM's in Iloilo...closest to its vicinity is the older SM Delgado which was renovated in 2004 after 25 years of existence in Iloilo City...If you look inside Rob now, nothing much to offer...about 60-70% occupancy...with lots of tiangge...

whoa! SM will become a global brand eventually! parang wal*mart na lang sya hehehe.

GLORIETTA MEGA SALE
November 9 to December 2, 2007

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ALABANG TOWN CENTER

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BONIFACIO HIGH STREET

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Grand Lighting of Christmas Lights in BGC - November 9, 2007

Konting retoke na lang kamukha na ni Regine si Michael Jackson.:lol::lol::lol: Sana may activities din ang Ayala Malls mula Dec. 28 hanggang Jan 15. :)

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^ Korek, parang si Regine V. na ang Retoke Queen ng Pilipinas. She's also now known as "Retoke Velasquez" :lol:

TriNoma

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photo by jiformales - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/jiformales/)

^^ Weird looking Christmas tree. :)

BONIFACIO HIGH STREET

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Grand Lighting of Christmas Lights in BGC - November 9, 2007

I like the artwork of this advertisement.

TriNoma

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photo by jiformales - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/jiformales/)

That looks really nice in person...It has glitterthingy :)

GLORIETTA MEGA SALE
November 9 to December 2, 2007

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God... Death Becomes Her!

[QUOTE=Sinjin P.;16350023]ALABANG TOWN CENTER

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Wow I wanna go to Macau, woohoo!!!! (sarcastic :lol: )

What a lame kind of contest prize, is that all Ayala can afford for its deserving patrons especially on what happened in Glorietta...oh man what a shame
Ayala could have at least put like the best beach resorts there in the Philippines (Palawan, Cebu, Boracay etc.)
or Trip to Europe, Hawaii or California or even Toyko Disneyland. What's in Macau? It didn't even include any shopping spree spending... ang kuripot naman ninyo mga Ayala, you make Billions of pesos a trip to any of those places is just chump change for you. tsk tsk tsk tsk. shame shame shame

^ The prize is lame? Its still a trip abroad... to Macau (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macau). Buti na 'yan kaysa sa iba d'yan na cellphone at P100 load lang ang kayang ibigay. And btw, that's not yet the Christmas raffle promo wherein cars will be given away ;)

TRINOMA. taken a while ago. :D

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^^ Di ko gusto yung decoration nila. :D

Actually mas maganda siya without the confetti emulation... it doesn't work for me... mas may taste pa yung confetti emulation ng gateway kesa sa trinoma :lol:

the christmas tree sa labas ng trinoma (the one commented as the space tree) looks good at night.. fab! it looks better than the trees they did for the interiors :lol:

^^ i don't get the decor, i just don't get it. It's hideous!

Those dangling strips of red & green confetti stuff...hmm...

:ohno:

In person, it really sucks, a total eyesore, walang class, really...

I'm not so sure what they are supposed to be like...ang sarap nila pag hihigitin actually...It's kinda blocking the view kc eh..

Yuck ang pangit ng decor sa Activity Center. How long has that been there na ba? Sa Ayala Center Cebu kasi, pangit din ang decor sa Activity Center pero tinanggal nila a day after para palitan :laugh:

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Metronoma este... TriNoma
photos by ayro (http://flickr.com/photos/11740518@N08/)

That one in TriNoma looks so crappy compared to this...

Butterflies At Gateway

The world’s most magical creature has added a unique design feature to the country’s premiere upscale destination.
Dazzling white butterflies now delight shoppers at Gateway Mall at Araneta Center, the multi-awarded shopping center that has garnered citations for excellent design both in the local and international retail industry. The butterfly décor is accented with crystals for a more visually enticing appeal that lets your imagination fly

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TRINOMA. taken a while ago. :D

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Guys...alam niyo ba na in front of SM North EDSA, may Globe din?....

^^ :ohno: Don't like the decors...parang may native festival...I agree ganda sa Gateway...white butterflies

Guys...musta na traffic ng Glorietta?...dyan pa naman ako palagi sa Starbucks (in front of Almon Marina) nagkakape if I'm in Makati...

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photos by clip bong - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/13128275@N03/)

yung CONFETTI STYLE DECOR in TRINOMA parang ang panget sa picture

pero nung pumunta ako Trinoma nung isang araw, maganda naman siya
lalo na kung nasa center ka ng activity centre

akala nyo babae si luningning???
think again.......

siya ay isang lalake na naretoke
at nagpa babae..
thanks to belo....
god...
grabe akala nyo babae....
pero lalake pala....

^ Is Luningning a mall? :nuts:

^ Is Luningning a mall? :nuts:

LOL:nuts:

Prince of Brunei, Shopping at Glorietta
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Glorietta 4 Food Court: Empty
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Mango Glorietta 3: Empty
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photos by chuvaness - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/chuvaness/)

Guys...alam niyo ba na in front of SM North EDSA, may Globe din?....



Uh Excuse me? Globe??? :nuts:
I pass Sm North Edsa Multiple Times Everyday and i don't see a globe, or any circular structure there. It's not even in the redevelopment plan. ??? :ohno:

Ang mga nasa Harap ng SM North Edsa:

"The Garden", FX Station, Soon To Be "Sky Garden", Flagpoles, The "Redevelopment Plan" Poster...no globe...SM Mall Of Asia meron for sure :lol:

I can add the mall in Imus , Cavite FRC Supermall ..its practically empty at yung mga sinehan nila ay not so recent Tagalog sexy films yata ang showing . I dont know lang if the cinemas is still operating . Mabuti na lang may PureGold sila as tenant. Ginawa ring NBI satellite office yung isang area sa top level . Sayang , it looks decent ..maganda yung railings coz its with glass and steel .
Swerte ng Robinson Imus , its lording it over there coz wala silang kalaban na malakas . Lotus mall , puno naman but more of tiangge types of stall and also ang sikip ng hallways .

^^Baka advertisement ng Globe, abot mo ang mundo hehe

It's a glass globe...parang enclosed garden... To emulate the Globe icon of MOA...dulo dulo sila di ba? believe me...right sinjin? Nakita ko lang...

is the victoria mall in davao city considered a failure and a victim of competition from the nearby gaisano mall, more tha a decade ago the mall the largest in davao city was staeaming with so many shoopers , this year when i visited davao the mall was not it used to be so may shops closed down i heard that its up for sale even the nearby durian hotel was close, its so sad

TriNoma: The FIRST and ORIGINAL mall with the Sky Garden Concept.

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A Better view of the confetti at TriNoma's Activity Center
They're not so ugly after all

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photos by mmandamon - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/in-hindsight/)

Back of TriNoma facing the MRT
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Landmark TriNoma
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photos by pakshet 101 - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/reyrefran/)

Rockwell Power Plant Mall's Basement Parking

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photo by _gem_ - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/treetop_apple_juice/)

Rockwell Power Plant Mall's Christmas Tree

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photo by John and Pam Owens - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/johnpamowens/)

Sobrang tahimik ng Glorietta :(

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photo by ghandmr - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/71162014@N00/)

Market! Market!
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Ganda ng Xmas Decor nila. Ganito din sana sa TriNoma at Glorietta
photo by catroach - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/catroach/archives/date-posted/2007/11/09/)

Serendra and BHS
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photos by catroach - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/catroach/)

@SM Supermarket's Baggage Counter :shocked: :ohno: :puke:

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_gem_ (http://flickr.com/photos/treetop_apple_juice/)

Harrison Plaza
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photo by poweredbypinoys - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/poweredbypinoys/)

Harrison Plaza
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photo by poweredbypinoys - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/poweredbypinoys/)

@SM Supermarket's Baggage Counter :shocked: :ohno: :puke:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2275/1960009651_dd64e1dd50_b.jpg

_gem_ (http://flickr.com/photos/treetop_apple_juice/)

What branch?

It's a glass globe...parang enclosed garden... To emulate the Globe icon of MOA...dulo dulo sila di ba? believe me...right sinjin? Nakita ko lang...

Uh Excuse me? Globe??? :nuts:
I pass Sm North Edsa Multiple Times Everyday and i don't see a globe, or any circular structure there. It's not even in the redevelopment plan. ??? :ohno:

Ang mga nasa Harap ng SM North Edsa:

"The Garden", FX Station, Soon To Be "Sky Garden", Flagpoles, The "Redevelopment Plan" Poster...no globe...SM Mall Of Asia meron for sure :lol:


Ba't ako, hindi ko rin makita, kailangan ba may special powers ka para makita mo yun? :lol:

Ba't ako, hindi ko rin makita, kailangan ba may special powers ka para makita mo yun? :lol:

Saw the renderings...PM me, I'll tell you...:)

Mate, you can't put Harrison Plaza into a thread like this... it's legendary.

If it did not succeed you would have bums and squatters in it. Instead it is filled with low-quality stores. Not all malls need to or can cater to high quality ends. When I visit the Philippines soon, most likely I'll be buying something from Harrison Plaza; at least more likely than in the new Greenbelts :D

oo nga naman, HP's glory days may be over but during its time wasnt it among the top shopping destinations? its among the first malls in the philippines right? so kahit di na siya "premiere" ngayon, we cant say it did not succeed coz there was a time (dunno how long though) that it was among the country's best ;)

^^I guess it was just like that now because the place is pretty old. Have it demolished and placed with a new one and we'll see people flocking there. The place is pretty good to be ignored.

So sa rendering pa pala? Akala ko nandun na nakatayo.

Mate, you can't put Harrison Plaza into a thread like this... it's legendary.

If it did not succeed you would have bums and squatters in it. Instead it is filled with low-quality stores. Not all malls need to or can cater to high quality ends. When I visit the Philippines soon, most likely I'll be buying something from Harrison Plaza; at least more likely than in the new Greenbelts :D

yeah...HP was saying to SM...papunta ka pa lang...pabalik na ako... :lol:

Mate, you can't put Harrison Plaza into a thread like this... it's legendary.

If it did not succeed you would have bums and squatters in it. Instead it is filled with low-quality stores. Not all malls need to or can cater to high quality ends. When I visit the Philippines soon, most likely I'll be buying something from Harrison Plaza; at least more likely than in the new Greenbelts :D

;16420260']oo nga naman, HP's glory days may be over but during its time wasnt it among the top shopping destinations? its among the first malls in the philippines right? so kahit di na siya "premiere" ngayon, we cant say it did not succeed coz there was a time (dunno how long though) that it was among the country's best ;)

^^I guess it was just like that now because the place is pretty old. Have it demolished and placed with a new one and we'll see people flocking there. The place is pretty good to be ignored.

yeah...HP was saying to SM...papunta ka pa lang...pabalik na ako... :lol:

Yeah, I just posted a photo since someone requested it. :D

Anyway, the last time I've been to HP was summer last year and I noticed that security was too lax and there are a lot of people whose eyes are glowing red, parang nakakatakot talaga.

;16420260']oo nga naman, HP's glory days may be over but during its time wasnt it among the top shopping destinations? its among the first malls in the philippines right? so kahit di na siya "premiere" ngayon, we cant say it did not succeed coz there was a time (dunno how long though) that it was among the country's best ;)

meron din "tatak" HP look at Victoria Plaza take note Plaza din :D

Saw the renderings...PM me, I'll tell you...:)

My Goodness sinikreto pa, eh makikita rin naman pala ng buong mundo yun after...Suit yourself :) :) :)...I believe they used the word "shine" as desciption after the redevelopment, exciting! Oh well, let's just wait..

I used to frequent Harrison Plaza during my College days when I was still in CSB. (Masarap ang shawarma dito)

HP is still a good mall despite its age. Its even way better that some Robinson's malls. the mall is still packed with people on a regular day.

HP still has an SM and Rustan's department store. It has a Hypermarket (Shopwise) it has a Jollibee, Greenwich, Mc Donald's, Chowking, Red Ribbon, Goldilocks, Max's, Figaro. and other smaller restaurants.

It also has good stores such as Levi's, Penshoppe, Bench, Odyssey, National Bookstore, etc.

Its like a mini Greenhills.

^^ Sarado na Rustan's sa 2nd floor ah. Shopwise (also Rustan's owned) na yung dating Rustan's Supermarket sa ground floor.

ah ganun ba? hehehe. tagal na kasi ako hindi nakaka punta doon.
but at least it still has an SM department store and an SM appliance center. :)

Ang dami pa rin namang tao sa Harrison Plaza, hindi maikakaila pero unti-unting nawawala ang kanilang mga tenants and therefore their occupancy rate dropped; naging jologs haven tuloy ang HP. I heard marami na ang nabiktima d'yan. (Diba pati ikaw Aaron? :D)

Nung last naming punta sa Shopwise d'yan sa HP, ang dami talagang tao at ang haba ng mga pila. One counter had at least 15 people lining up :shocked: Pero may nakakashock din akong experience diyan. While looking for some ready-to-eat stuff at Shopwise, may nakita akong taong gumamit ng deodorant and then he left. Ang malas ng taong bibili ng deodorant na iyon. :lol:

Ang dami pa rin namang tao sa Harrison Plaza, hindi maikakaila pero unti-unting nawawala ang kanilang mga tenants and therefore their occupancy rate dropped; naging jologs haven tuloy ang HP. I heard marami na ang nabiktima d'yan. (Diba pati ikaw Aaron? :D)

Nung last naming punta sa Shopwise d'yan sa HP, ang dami talagang tao at ang haba ng mga pila. One counter had at least 15 people lining up :shocked: Pero may nakakashock din akong experience diyan. While looking for some ready-to-eat stuff at Shopwise, may nakita akong taong gumamit ng deodorant and then he left. Ang malas ng taong bibili ng deodorant na iyon. :lol:

YUCK!!!!!:puke:

http://www.aranetacenter.net/uploads/alinew.jpg
http://www.aranetacenter.net/uploads/alinew2.jpg

so thats going to be the new look of alimall., cant wait., :)

^^Damn! They didn't raise the ceiling. Oh well, it's maybe cost-cutting for the Aranetas. Gateway annex is so much delayed na!

I don't like the second rendering. lol

I don't like the second rendering. lol
Jolibee theme? lol!!

Hindi naman talaga unsuccessful ang HP ....kasi nga strategic talaga at malawak ang area nito. Nahalintulad ko lang sa naging turnaround ng Robinsons Place Manila ..dati kawawa naman kasi talaga yung Rob Place - Manila , but since nag upgrade siya , it has become a one of the successful malls of today .
Just imagine if mala-Trinoma ang gawin dito with accompanying hotels or condos .

For Ali Mall's entrance, perhaps they could enclose that in a glass creating a transparent box. Adding some water features would also create a certain effect, something like a cascading waterfall entrance. I hope I can see a mall having a foliage wall like Thailand's Siamparagon & Singapore Changi T3 airport.
http://www.edasuner.com/wp/dosyalar/2007/05/siamparagon2.jpg
http://www.sqtalk.com/forums/Luke/Terminal%203%20Changi/Waterfall%20at%20Baggage%20claim.jpg
I think SM MOA doesn't have a high ceiling for their cinema lobby, yet the feel of it makes it pretty big. I also like the style of Sta. Lucia East Grand Mall's cinemas, it has this "technological" touch that makes it different. Araneta can improve Ali Mall's cinema lobby by improving the facilities & focusing on its handling capacity, which most of our famous malls lack. They can also add a space for theatrical production like Greenbelt's Globe Theater & another space for galleries & exhibits. Cool!

http://www.aranetacenter.net/uploads/alinew.jpg
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Ali Mall Jumpstarts Major Renovation

The country’s first shopping center is set to undergo a facelift. Ali Mall is currently prioritizing its efforts towards revitalization as part of Araneta Center’s 20-year Redevelopment Master Plan.

The exciting project will include the refurbishing of the Ali Mall Cinemas to world-class standards showcasing state-of-the-art equipment to match that of Gateway Cineplex 10, hailed as one of the best cinema complexes in the country today. New escalators will also replace stairways for more convenience. A bridgeway will also be built to connect Ali Mall to SM Department Store for greater shopping access. Lush landscaping and wider sidewalks will be developed to create a more inviting streetscape. More importantly, Ali Mall will also be upgrading its merchandise mix to include more top retail brands and an inviting roster of dining outlets to reinforce its reputation as the country’s first complete shopping and dining destination.

The country’s first shopping mall was named after Muhammad Ali, as a tribute to his victory over Joe Frazier in the historical bout at the Araneta Coliseum, “Thrilla in Manila”, in 1975.

Inaugurated by the boxing champion himself, Ali Mall’s first phase opened in 1976 and has since grew to include over 63,000 square meters of prime retail space and five deluxe cinemas. Today Ali Mall is home to 250 of the country’s top food and retail outlets, among them National Bookstore, Rustan’s Expresslane, Mercury Drug, Pizza Hut, and other exciting outlets.

Stores like Adidas, The Body Shop, Royal Sporting House, Plains and Prints, Folded and Hung, Marithe Francois Girbaud, Wade, Guess, and Converse offer value with the best discounts for the discriminating shopper. Fun and dining continues to be the main attraction in Ali Mall, with a myriad of dining outlets offering a variety of delights for you and your family. Tokyo Tokyo, Star Carrots, Frio Mixx, KFC, Hap Chan, Max’s, Gerry’s Grill and more upcoming restaurants offer value-for-money food treats.

With its major renovation project already underway, Ali Mall aims to keep true to its namesake, Manila’s Thrilla right in the heart of the metro.

When I think of unsuccessful malls, I think of that Mumu Metropolitan Mall in Alabang. But then again it's still standing from what I know - though I haven't visited it ever.

Disgusting talaga yung story ng deodorant user sa Shopwise.... yung customer na yun, neither shopping or wise.

^ Metropolis Star in Alabang is very successful. :okay: It has continually upgraded its facilities to suit the changing needs of the people in the area. :yes:

alright new cinema for Alimall OK's yan!!

TriNoma has 60% of its shops open while 95% of the spaces are leased out and committed.

Source: ALI Analysts' Briefing 11/13/07

Ayala Center redev’t in
progress

• Soft opening of Greenbelt 5 (Ph 1) on
October 26; 94% complete as of end-
Sept 2007; Phase 1-86% leased
out/committed

• Soft opening of Anson’s on October
19 at the new carpark building with
806 slots (near Landmark); 4.6K sqm
GLA expected by end-Nov (incl.
Anson’s in the first two floors)

Source: ALI Analysts' Briefing 11/13/07

Breaking News: Lalaki nagsuicide sa TriNoma by jumping from the 3rd floor. :ohno:

^ Metropolis Star in Alabang is very successful. :okay: It has continually upgraded its facilities to suit the changing needs of the people in the area. :yes:

Correct , it has even a 24/7 call center facility on its topmost floor , so sa graveyard shift nung call center .mas maraming agents ang on duty...disin sana umalis na yung call center facility dun if may mumu nga dun .

Its not an unsuccessful mall , in fact its even the most successful branch of Manuela chain of malls and considered as its flagship mall being the biggest . Ngayon nga halos puno yung occupancy ng mall .

Man falls to death inside QC mall (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/topofthehour.aspx?StoryId=99023)

An unidentified man died after he fell from the third floor of a mall Tuesday night in Quezon City.

Police have yet to identity of the victim.

Radio dzMM reporter David Oro said the incident happened at the newly-built Trinoma mall at the corner of EDSA and North Avenue.

Authorities and mall management are now investigating whether the man accidentally fell or jumped from the building's third floor.

The body has been removed from the ground floor.

The mall is owned by Ayala Land, Inc., the developer of Makati City's Glorietta malls that was rocked by a blast on October 19. The blast killed 11 people and injured 120 others.

Man falls to death inside QC mall (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/topofthehour.aspx?StoryId=99023)

An unidentified man died after he fell from the third floor of a mall Tuesday night in Quezon City.

Police have yet to identity of the victim.

Radio dzMM reporter David Oro said the incident happened at the newly-built Trinoma mall at the corner of EDSA and North Avenue.

Authorities and mall management are now investigating whether the man accidentally fell or jumped from the building's third floor.

The body has been removed from the ground floor.

The mall is owned by Ayala Land, Inc., the developer of Makati City's Glorietta malls that was rocked by a blast on October 19. The blast killed 11 people and injured 120 others.

...kaya pala may commotion sa trinoma kanina... people were joking about jumping into the atrium of trinoma... sad but interesting...

update on the suicide incident in TriNoma...

(2nd UPDATE) Man jumps to death in QC mall (http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=99039)

A 24-year-old man died after jumping from the fourth floor (not third as reported earlier) of a mall Tuesday night in Quezon City.

Zeno Jerome Pilar was pronounced dead-on-arrival at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC).

Alfonso Reyes, spokesman for Ayala Land, Inc., said Pilar jumped from the fourth floor of the Trinoma Mall at the corner of EDSA and North Avenue. The incident took place at 6:10 p.m.

In a statement, Reyes said that witnesses saw Pilar climb over the fourt floor railing before jumping into the Activity Center below.

Pilar landed on another person identified as Rico Abundan. Abundan sustained leg fractures and wounds to the calves.

Abundan was also rushed to VMMC for treatment.

“As soon as this happened, our security guards went on alert and called emergency services,” Reyes said.

He added that the families of both victims have been informed and are now at the hospital.

“Our priority at the moment is to ensure proper medical care for Mr. Abundan,” said Reyes.

The mall is owned by Ayala Land, the developer of Makati City's Glorietta malls that was rocked by a blast on October 19. The blast killed 11 people and injured 120 others.

Magiging upscale lang yang Trinoma if exclusive high-end shops lang ang mag open dyan. Otherwise, it'll just be another hype. Actually the mall's structure is really nice. I just dont know why it seems so far of becoming an upscale mall. Di ko rin alam kong ano ang kulang or sobra. And as observed by others here, Shangrila is also connected to an MRT station yet mas upscale talaga ang dating. Kahit may so called "jologs" or mga "pasosyal" , upscale pa rin ang atmosphere ng Shangrila compared to Trinoma. Baka lalong maging kawawa yang Trinoma pag nag total facelift ang SM NoE. :lol:


Magiging upscale yung isang mall pag yung mga shops na andun mahirap basahin...:lol:

^^ O kapag hindi mo magawang mag shopping ng todo sa isang mall! :D

at pag di matao...upscale yun..kahit mga local brands lang abroad na di mo pa narinig...upscale yun...

TriNoma = Mall of Asia. Diba upscale din sana ang Mall of Asia? Kaso di talaga mawala ang tatak masa ng SM. :lol:

SM = Super Masa
TriNoma = Trip ng ordinaryong Masa

:lol:

yup...we have to remember that without the masa wala tayong mga malls...

^^I agree. Hindi naman ang mayayaman ang nag papaunlad mall industry kundi ang mga masa na mga ordinaryong tao.

That's why other malls have to create better tenant mix, for both the masa and the upscale market...

Bakit ba kayo masyadong concerned na dapat "upscale" ang malls? Do you guys only shop for "upscale" items lang ba? I've been to TriNoma and it's a good mix of both masa and so-called upscale stores. As a whole, I like the mall although I hate the flooring and I hate the parking area (even worse than Shangri-La Mall's parking area).

Allergic ka sa mga masa?


TriNoma = Mall of Asia. Diba upscale din sana ang Mall of Asia? Kaso di talaga mawala ang tatak masa ng SM. :lol:

SM = Super Masa
TriNoma = Trip ng ordinaryong Masa

:lol:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2142/1960331989_785bdb6d38_b.jpg

dude in a purple shirt standing here, is this XP?


TRINOMA. taken a while ago. :D
http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n89/photome05/Picksure2779.jpg


this mustve been a bitch to put up huh hehee

kung si XP yan, di dapat dude ang tawag..dapat ...babe :D

Allergic ka sa mga masa?

No. I'm a masa myself ;)

Hmm... so if it's turned into a call center facility, part of it, it cannot be called a mall in that we can't walk in the top level and window shop or eat out.;) Manuela's.. er.. not the most successful mall chains either, but I guess it deserves respect for some kind of longevity and ability to clone across MM.

Successful it may be, but as a call center

at pag di matao...upscale yun..kahit mga local brands lang abroad na di mo pa narinig...upscale yun...

parang ung meisec mall....upscall yun dahil konti ang pumapasok....kesa 168 :lol:

http://www.YourPS34free.com/goods/14340810.png

dude in a purple shirt standing here, is this XP?

no it's ceratainly not me. I don't wear purple shirts. But I do go there many times.

;16483682']kung si XP yan, di dapat dude ang tawag..dapat ...babe :D
thanks. :lol:

Bakit ba kayo masyadong concerned na dapat "upscale" ang malls? Do you guys only shop for "upscale" items lang ba? I've been to TriNoma and it's a good mix of both masa and so-called upscale stores. As a whole, I like the mall although I hate the flooring and I hate the parking area (even worse than Shangri-La Mall's parking area).

work...

There's a mall in FTI...ano ba yun?

Sunshine Mall ..unsuccessful yun in Taguig ..3rd class mall which did not even took off .

Correct , it has even a 24/7 call center facility on its topmost floor , so sa graveyard shift nung call center .mas maraming agents ang on duty...disin sana umalis na yung call center facility dun if may mumu nga dun .

What used to be a graveyard... became a mall with call center peeps working on graveyard shifts. :D

GREENBELT 5

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GREENBELT 3

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photos by Flickr - en-vi (http://flickr.com/photos/envi/)

SM Supercenter Muntinlupa opens today (http://smprime.com/News.php?BlurbID=968)
By , 16 Nov 2007
Source: Daily Tribune
When SM Supercenter Muntinlupa opens its doors to the public today, Nov 16, it will not only bring great shopping, leisure and entertainment to the south Metro area, but also mark a milestone as SM Prime Holdings' 30th supermall. Strategically located in a 37,000 square meter property in Barangay Putatan in Muntinlupa City, the two level 54,000-square meter supermall will serve customers in bustling Muntinlupa City, as well as nearby towns in Laguna province. With its eye-catching design and great shopping and fun options, SM City Muntinlupa is envisioned to be one of the major destinations in the area. Its blue and yellow facade makes it stand out, while the interiors are play on color and light, making malling cozy and fun. SM Supercenter Muntinlupa has the SM Hypermarket as its major anchor. Hypermarkets are European concept merging food and non-food merchandise in an exciting one-stop shop, known for its fresh section, exciting concepts like takal-takal and promotions like Shop 'n Win, the SM Hypermarket has changed the way Filipino homemakers shop. SM Supercenter Muntinlupa will also have four deluxe cinemas and the Quantum Amusement Center for fun around the mall. Shoppers will be delighted with the mall's service outlets- banks; salon like Bench Fix, David's, medical and dental services, Southern Sky Travel and Tours, an Everyday Laundry, photography services, as well as courier services like DHL and Mail & More. SM Supercenter Muntinlupa's design team includes Design Associates, the mall designer' G&W Associates, the architect of record;DA Adcede Associates; and DDT Konstruct Inc., general contractor.

omg., :) looks grand. love the lights on greenbelt 5.,

Will Robinsons Novaliches be renovated?!?

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/8724/image5iz1.jpg

^^ baka yung part ng BigR.,

http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/2320/smro1.jpg

aba.. bukas na pala GB5.. mabisita nga..

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/8136/sm2ke9.jpg

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/6844/sm3iw8.jpg

^^ Is that for real? Wow! OMG! The exteriors look good! (Although kinda outdated) The other one looks like an oversized SM North Edsa! :) Neat! "Proudness" suddenly gushed my veins.. :lol:

The actual graveyard proper is now the open space on the front which is now a busy bus terminal / and canopy entrance . Yung mismong mall/building naman was formerly occupied by shanties . Just imagine if until now ganun pa rin yung area na yun.
The San Pedro Town center ..ganundin naman dating public cemetery din yun , but at least mas prefer ko na Metropolis .

Will Robinsons Novaliches be renovated?!?

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/8724/image5iz1.jpg

Nice! They can't just sit there while SM Fariview's putting up their second annex.


The China malls even sport the "City" logo of SM. Sana maglagay sila ng mga Filipino brands.

any pics of sm supercenter muntinlupa??
bakit may cinema sa sm supercenter muntinlupa???

^^ Originally posted by LhexiMont

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Sorry for the quality , but in actual the interiors are nice , bright and clean .
Punong puno ng tao yung mall kanina ..parang palengke na nga kasi nangingibabaw yung voices ng mga shoppers na simutaneously talking.

^^thanx bai
@sinj.

Blast report insists: It’s gas
By Jaime Pilapil
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/?page=news1_nov17_2007

THE Oct. 19 Glorietta blast that killed 11 people and injured at least 100 others was triggered by accumulated methane gas mixed with heated diesel, a multi-agency task force has concluded.

Metro Manila police chief Geary Barias said Ayala Land, the mall’s owner, had failed to repair the water treatment facility in the basement, which allowed methane gas to collect.

“The day the blast took place, the water treatment facility had not been working for quite some time already. It was abandoned by workers for unknown reasons. Maybe they could not endure the gas that was building up quickly,” Barias told Standard Today.

He said there was negligence on the part of the Glorietta managers since they failed to fix the problem in the basement.

“If they were decisive enough, the disaster might not have happened at all,” he said.

Barias talked to Standard Today days ahead of the Nov. 19 deadline for the task force to announce its findings. He did not present diagrams to show how the methane gas buildup heated the diesel or what triggered the blast, but Barias said he was confident the task force’s findings were convincing.

“Finally, we will give justice to the victims,” he said but declined to say who would be included as respondents in the charge sheet.

Standard Today tried to contact Ayala Land for comment but could not reach a spokesman.

^^ Then we wait till november 19th right????

http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/2320/smro1.jpg

hmmm.. parang lumaki yung expansion plans ng SM Fairview kaya na-delay...

Will Robinsons Novaliches be renovated?!?

http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/8724/image5iz1.jpg

that's the old renovation plan... it's not actually a renovation, it's a repainting plan with added pizazz (like billboards and additional retrofittings to make the mall look larger... they didn't actually follow that plan... at least not all the paint jobs.

they already gave up on this mall, they re-invented it to the nth time and it is now called Robinson's Nova Market... and they went all out in copying the tiangge... este... bazaar type shopping of greenhills...

it's Christmas time at the malls and part of the attraction to these places are the dazzling light displays that trigger the imagination of both young and old. but with the energy crisis looming, it seems that the glory days of fabulous decorations are over. However, Philippine Malls are saying: "The show must go on!" Thanks to technology and the discovery of LEDs and rice lights, they can even add more lights than before! :D

Pansinin niyo, at Eastwood yung capiz lanterns nila are using colored flourescent lights sans the usual incandescent... at Trinoma, they are using rice lights sa mga christmas trees nila around the mall and instead of using multiple strings of chrismas lights, they used mini lanterns placed evenly at the gardens. it gives the illusion of intensity pero in fact konting ilaw lang siya. At gateway they are not using lights at all... just paper butterflies and fake crystals.. simple and classy. at some SMs naman they are using LEDs to light up their garlands. it's the same lights used for the backlights of your mobile phone... o diba?! uber bright parin pasko sa malls!

Nice! They can't just sit there while SM Fariview's putting up their second annex.


The China malls even sport the "City" logo of SM. Sana maglagay sila ng mga Filipino brands.


Meron Filipino brands dyan...just try to check the facade banners...nakita mo ba ang Bench?...

GREENBELT 5

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GREENBELT 3

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photos by Flickr - en-vi (http://flickr.com/photos/envi/)

Really fabulous. This GB5 mall, we Filipinos can be truly proud of. Kudos to the Ayalas and the Filipino ingenuity. :cheers:

Great pics sinj.

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SM Rosales? as in Rosales pangasinan? hindi ba dapat inuna nila ang urdaneta?

Hi, does anyone know which SM is that was just recently added an annex that makes almost a kilometer long (about 895m+) and does anyone have pictures of it or has anyone been in it.

SM City Pampanga (Check out the LuzViMinda Malls thread)

Meron Filipino brands dyan...just try to check the facade banners...nakita mo ba ang Bench?...

Yes, Bench has billboards around the SM China malls. They got Peter Ho to model for their chinese ads and billboards on the mall façade.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2179/2045892349_8b9126d6e1_o.jpg
Christmas Tree at Powerplant Mall, Rockwell Center
Photo by my_soul_insurance_2004 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/my_soul_insurance2004/)

^^ Nice find Flickr find, Dex... Can't help but smile when I look at it.


When in Marikina, here is a place to hang out for mall rats...


The Blue Wave Mall

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The Marquinton project behind the Blue Wave...

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Tanong lang.. San sa Glorietta or Greenbelt yung tapunan ng mga defective/busted cellphones and cellphone parts pati mga accessories? Thanks

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/8136/sm2ke9.jpg

Filipino Managers manage them...

^^ the facade of SM City Jinjiang looks like SM north edsa's main bldg. :)

Hi guys,
Is there anyone here who knows about the robinsons place mall in paco. Im not really sure about this, I just see it in the magazines here in Malaysia about architecture asia. Can anyone post for it, it seems very nice mall. The architect who design sort of a Filipino Chinese name. It was a rush, i forgot to get the details of this project since I just fast read it in the bookstore., thanks...

The mall is rather small. Its more like a community mall. Deisgn wise reminds me of Robinsons pampanga with curves here and there and rather loud colors. Behind the mall and beside it are rows of townhouses called Otis 88 if i remember correctly. There is a thread for this project.

tanong po

ano po tingin nyo target market ng Landmark Department Store at Trinoma

pls reply. thanks

yah, the architect is ASYA. That robinsons mall is slated to open in December, they are currently offering some mall spaces to call centers.

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tanong po

ano po tingin nyo target market ng Landmark Department Store at Trinoma

pls reply. thanks

Those who have money go there and shop, those who don't have much go there and shop or window shop or tambay :) basically everyone

does it answer your query?

^^ i guess some gb4 and gb3 shops will be relocating to gb5. i dont think phase 2 will disappoint. i heard a rumor that chanel, hermes and dior are coming to manila real soon. baka phase two will be their home. more luxury brands!! so, is the marc jacobs store at gb4 open already? it's kinda sad that YSL had to go but oh well.

Yes! Marc Jacobs is open! :banana:

Hi, does anyone know which SM is that was just recently added an annex that makes almost a kilometer long (about 895m+) and does anyone have pictures of it or has anyone been in it.

pampanga

im interested to see the pic din..kasi nga i google earthed SM megamall's length and nasa 500m+ lang siya, so this is almost 2x as long as megamall :D

PNP final report: Glorietta 2 blast not bomb attack
Alcuin Papa Elizabeth Sanchez-Lacson
Inquirer
http://www.inquirer.net/specialfeatures/gloriettablast/view.php?db=1&article=20071123-102629


MANILA, Philippines -- It’s official: the Multi-Agency Investigation Task Force looking into the deadly blast at the Glorietta 2 mall in Makati City on Oct. 19 has concluded that it was a gas explosion, and not a bomb attack.

Speaking at a press conference Thursday in Camp Crame, Chief Supt. Luizo Ticman said that “after the examination of all the pieces of evidence collected from the blast site and the thorough conduct of a post-blast investigation,” the task force had found “that the incident was not a bomb explosion but a gas explosion.”

Ticman, who heads the task force, said the investigation was “scientific” and had “made use of forensics, and even mathematics.”

The task force is composed of the Philippine National Police, Philippine Bomb Data Center, Bureau of Fire Protection, Department of Justice, National Bureau of Investigation and the Makati police’s Explosives and Ordnance Division (EOD).

The explosion killed 11 people and injured more than 100 others.

Asked to comment, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), owner of the Glorietta shopping complex, said it was standing by its position that the explosion could not have been triggered by methane gas or diesel fumes.

“We are saddened by these developments and we do not understand how they are able to establish these findings conclusively since our own experts have ruled out methane or diesel as the cause of the explosion. And we see no other possible source of gas that could create this kind of explosion and this much damage,” ALI spokesperson Alfonso Reyes said.

Reyes also said ALI had not seen a copy of the task force’s final report but was made aware that this would be issued in two weeks.

“We hope that the site will be turned over to us at the soonest possible time so that we can carry on with our own evaluation in the search for the truth,” he said.

ALI has yet to determine the cause of the explosion based on its own evaluation of the damaged site.

No bomb parts

Ticman said that:

• No bomb parts had been found. (“No IED [improvised explosive device] component or part was recovered in the basement [of the mall] or anywhere in the affected area”).

• Neither was there a bomb crater. Initially, investigators found suspected craters, but found no trace of a “thermal effect” and explosives residue that would indicate the use of a bomb.

• Nor were there explosive materials in the liquid samples and in the diesel fuel from the tank (both in the mall basement), as well as on the skin and clothing of the victims who survived the blast.

“All victims died from traumatic injuries and not from a bomb explosion. Those who died, as well as those who were injured, tested negative for explosive residue,” Ticman said.

According to Ticman, the initial finding of RDX -- a component of the C4 military explosive -- recovered on the ground floor “did not cause or initiate the explosive.”

“It was not corroborated by other evidence and it was not significant in the explosion,” Ticman said.

Investigators also found no evidence of a tearing effect usually found in a bomb site, he said.

There was also no soot or blackening on the ceiling of the basement or on the supposed bomb craters. Such an absence “indicates that the explosion was not caused by a bomb,” he said.

Final activities

Ticman said pumps, switches, circuit breakers and other electrical equipment in the basement were being examined by the NBI to find out the ignition.

He said investigators were processing the area outside the blast site -- meaning the ground floor up to the third floor of the mall -- to document the damage caused by the explosion.

Ticman said experts called in by the PNP were finalizing their simulations, experiments and computations.

“Investigators are consolidating the statements, reports, pieces of evidence and documents needed in the filing of appropriate charges against the parties concerned and the preparation of the final report,” he said.

Ticman also said the task force had taken note of the findings submitted by an expert hired by ALI.

“We are seriously considering that, and our own experts will be able to provide answers to their questions,” he said.

2-3 weeks

National Capital Region Police Office Director Geary Barias said the task force would complete its final report in two to three weeks and file the charges against those responsible soon after.

He did not name names, but said those liable could be the contractors hired to do work in the basement and the mall administrators.

“We are not yet at that part where we can identify who can be charged. For sure, negligence cannot be discounted here,” he said.

Barias said the task force did not hold the press conference to condition the people’s minds to the gas explosion theory.

“We are just giving an update of the investigation because many people want to know what’s the latest,” he said.

Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay has yet to be apprised of the task force’s conclusion, according to Supt. Gilbert Cruz, chief of the Makati police.

Binay had earlier expressed doubt on the gas explosion theory and had called for an independent inquiry.

Not negligence

Asked about the planned filing of charges against those liable for the explosion, ALI’s Reyes said: “It is speculative to talk about negligence when no charges have been filed and the authorities have not revealed the basis for their conclusion. Nevertheless, we believe that these facilities have been maintained with proper care and diligence, and that negligence was not a contributory factor to the cause of the explosion.”

The Glorietta 2 basement was under the direct control of the Makati Supermarket, which has a land-lease contract with ALI although both tenant and landlord were responsible for the maintenance of the building.

Citing the findings of its own foreign consultants, ALI had earlier disputed the theory that a buildup of methane gas and diesel fumes triggered the explosion at Glorietta 2.

ALI had suggested that the police abandon their “primary hypothesis” that the combination of methane from the sump pits and fumes from the diesel tank in the basement caused the blast, and called on investigators to look into other possibilities.



______________________________________



Ayala insists Glorietta blast not caused by gas buildup
Elizabeth Sanchez-Lacson
Inquirer
http://www.inquirer.net/specialfeatures/gloriettablast/view.php?db=1&article=20071122-102560


MANILA, Philippines -- Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) maintained Thursday its earlier stance that the explosion at the Glorietta 2 section of its main mall in Makati last October 19 could not have been triggered by methane or diesel gas.

The statement was issued after the company was made aware of the Philippine National Police’s conclusion of a month-long investigation on Thursday that characterized the Glorietta blast which killed 11 people and injured more than a hundred others as a gas explosion.

"We are saddened by these developments and we do not understand how they are able to establish these findings conclusively since our own experts have ruled out methane or diesel as the cause of the explosion and we see no other possible source of gas which could create this kind of explosion and this much damage," ALI spokesperson Alfonso Reyes said.

Reyes also said that ALI has not seen a copy of the PNP final report but was informed this will come out in two weeks time.

"We hope that the site will be turned over to us in the soonest possible time so that we can carry on with our own evaluation in the search for the truth," Reyes said.

ALI has yet to determine on its own the cause of the blast by evaluating the blast site.

Asked about plans by the PNP to file lawsuits alleging negligence on those it deems liable for the blast within two to three weeks, Reyes replied:

"It is speculative to talk about negligence when no charges have been filed and the authorities have not revealed the basis for their conclusion. Nevertheless we believe that these facilities have been maintained with proper care and diligence and that negligence is not a contributory factor to the cause of the explosion."

The Glorietta 2 basement was under the direct control of Makati Supermarket, which has a land-lease contract with ALI though both tenant and landlord were responsible for the maintenance of the building.

ALI had said it does not expect the considerable damage caused by the explosion to have a significant impact on its future earnings.

ALI chief finance officer Jaime Ysmael had said that even if Glorietta 2 were to be "out of commission" or closed for the whole of 2008, the impact on consolidated revenues this year would just be 0.5 percent and on net income, a mere 1.5 percent.

Glorietta 2 accounts for 12,000 square meters or 4.3 percent of the Glorietta’s total commercial space of 280,000 square meters.

Officials of ALI earlier rebutted the theory that a buildup of methane gas and diesel fumes triggered the explosion, citing the findings of ALI’s own foreign consultants.

;16641836']pampanga

im interested to see the pic din..kasi nga i google earthed SM megamall's length and nasa 500m+ lang siya, so this is almost 2x as long as megamall :D

SM Pampanga is not 895+ meters long but just some 600+ meters

PNP final report: Glorietta 2 blast not bomb attack
Alcuin Papa Elizabeth Sanchez-Lacson
Inquirer
http://www.inquirer.net/specialfeatures/gloriettablast/view.php?db=1&article=20071123-102629


MANILA, Philippines -- It’s official: the Multi-Agency Investigation Task Force looking into the deadly blast at the Glorietta 2 mall in Makati City on Oct. 19 has concluded that it was a gas explosion, and not a bomb attack.

Speaking at a press conference Thursday in Camp Crame, Chief Supt. Luizo Ticman said that “after the examination of all the pieces of evidence collected from the blast site and the thorough conduct of a post-blast investigation,” the task force had found “that the incident was not a bomb explosion but a gas explosion.”

Ticman, who heads the task force, said the investigation was “scientific” and had “made use of forensics, and even mathematics.”

The task force is composed of the Philippine National Police, Philippine Bomb Data Center, Bureau of Fire Protection, Department of Justice, National Bureau of Investigation and the Makati police’s Explosives and Ordnance Division (EOD).

The explosion killed 11 people and injured more than 100 others.

Asked to comment, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), owner of the Glorietta shopping complex, said it was standing by its position that the explosion could not have been triggered by methane gas or diesel fumes.

“We are saddened by these developments and we do not understand how they are able to establish these findings conclusively since our own experts have ruled out methane or diesel as the cause of the explosion. And we see no other possible source of gas that could create this kind of explosion and this much damage,” ALI spokesperson Alfonso Reyes said.

Reyes also said ALI had not seen a copy of the task force’s final report but was made aware that this would be issued in two weeks.

“We hope that the site will be turned over to us at the soonest possible time so that we can carry on with our own evaluation in the search for the truth,” he said.

ALI has yet to determine the cause of the explosion based on its own evaluation of the damaged site.

No bomb parts

Ticman said that:

• No bomb parts had been found. (“No IED [improvised explosive device] component or part was recovered in the basement [of the mall] or anywhere in the affected area”).

• Neither was there a bomb crater. Initially, investigators found suspected craters, but found no trace of a “thermal effect” and explosives residue that would indicate the use of a bomb.

• Nor were there explosive materials in the liquid samples and in the diesel fuel from the tank (both in the mall basement), as well as on the skin and clothing of the victims who survived the blast.

“All victims died from traumatic injuries and not from a bomb explosion. Those who died, as well as those who were injured, tested negative for explosive residue,” Ticman said.

According to Ticman, the initial finding of RDX -- a component of the C4 military explosive -- recovered on the ground floor “did not cause or initiate the explosive.”

“It was not corroborated by other evidence and it was not significant in the explosion,” Ticman said.

Investigators also found no evidence of a tearing effect usually found in a bomb site, he said.

There was also no soot or blackening on the ceiling of the basement or on the supposed bomb craters. Such an absence “indicates that the explosion was not caused by a bomb,” he said.

Final activities

Ticman said pumps, switches, circuit breakers and other electrical equipment in the basement were being examined by the NBI to find out the ignition.

He said investigators were processing the area outside the blast site -- meaning the ground floor up to the third floor of the mall -- to document the damage caused by the explosion.

Ticman said experts called in by the PNP were finalizing their simulations, experiments and computations.

“Investigators are consolidating the statements, reports, pieces of evidence and documents needed in the filing of appropriate charges against the parties concerned and the preparation of the final report,” he said.

Ticman also said the task force had taken note of the findings submitted by an expert hired by ALI.

“We are seriously considering that, and our own experts will be able to provide answers to their questions,” he said.

2-3 weeks

National Capital Region Police Office Director Geary Barias said the task force would complete its final report in two to three weeks and file the charges against those responsible soon after.

He did not name names, but said those liable could be the contractors hired to do work in the basement and the mall administrators.

“We are not yet at that part where we can identify who can be charged. For sure, negligence cannot be discounted here,” he said.

Barias said the task force did not hold the press conference to condition the people’s minds to the gas explosion theory.

“We are just giving an update of the investigation because many people want to know what’s the latest,” he said.

Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay has yet to be apprised of the task force’s conclusion, according to Supt. Gilbert Cruz, chief of the Makati police.

Binay had earlier expressed doubt on the gas explosion theory and had called for an independent inquiry.

Not negligence

Asked about the planned filing of charges against those liable for the explosion, ALI’s Reyes said: “It is speculative to talk about negligence when no charges have been filed and the authorities have not revealed the basis for their conclusion. Nevertheless, we believe that these facilities have been maintained with proper care and diligence, and that negligence was not a contributory factor to the cause of the explosion.”

The Glorietta 2 basement was under the direct control of the Makati Supermarket, which has a land-lease contract with ALI although both tenant and landlord were responsible for the maintenance of the building.

Citing the findings of its own foreign consultants, ALI had earlier disputed the theory that a buildup of methane gas and diesel fumes triggered the explosion at Glorietta 2.

ALI had suggested that the police abandon their “primary hypothesis” that the combination of methane from the sump pits and fumes from the diesel tank in the basement caused the blast, and called on investigators to look into other possibilities.



______________________________________



Ayala insists Glorietta blast not caused by gas buildup
Elizabeth Sanchez-Lacson
Inquirer
http://www.inquirer.net/specialfeatures/gloriettablast/view.php?db=1&article=20071122-102560


MANILA, Philippines -- Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) maintained Thursday its earlier stance that the explosion at the Glorietta 2 section of its main mall in Makati last October 19 could not have been triggered by methane or diesel gas.

The statement was issued after the company was made aware of the Philippine National Police’s conclusion of a month-long investigation on Thursday that characterized the Glorietta blast which killed 11 people and injured more than a hundred others as a gas explosion.

"We are saddened by these developments and we do not understand how they are able to establish these findings conclusively since our own experts have ruled out methane or diesel as the cause of the explosion and we see no other possible source of gas which could create this kind of explosion and this much damage," ALI spokesperson Alfonso Reyes said.

Reyes also said that ALI has not seen a copy of the PNP final report but was informed this will come out in two weeks time.

"We hope that the site will be turned over to us in the soonest possible time so that we can carry on with our own evaluation in the search for the truth," Reyes said.

ALI has yet to determine on its own the cause of the blast by evaluating the blast site.

Asked about plans by the PNP to file lawsuits alleging negligence on those it deems liable for the blast within two to three weeks, Reyes replied:

"It is speculative to talk about negligence when no charges have been filed and the authorities have not revealed the basis for their conclusion. Nevertheless we believe that these facilities have been maintained with proper care and diligence and that negligence is not a contributory factor to the cause of the explosion."

The Glorietta 2 basement was under the direct control of Makati Supermarket, which has a land-lease contract with ALI though both tenant and landlord were responsible for the maintenance of the building.

ALI had said it does not expect the considerable damage caused by the explosion to have a significant impact on its future earnings.

ALI chief finance officer Jaime Ysmael had said that even if Glorietta 2 were to be "out of commission" or closed for the whole of 2008, the impact on consolidated revenues this year would just be 0.5 percent and on net income, a mere 1.5 percent.

Glorietta 2 accounts for 12,000 square meters or 4.3 percent of the Glorietta’s total commercial space of 280,000 square meters.

Officials of ALI earlier rebutted the theory that a buildup of methane gas and diesel fumes triggered the explosion, citing the findings of ALI’s own foreign consultants.

i'm inclined to believe the findings of our police....i have noticed that our police have quiet proven their investigative prowess lately....their finding is logical and based on gathered evidence.....vs the ayala mall owners'....expression of opinion...it is self serving and serves their own purpose to evade accountablility.....the victims should file a class suit...where is their social responsibility to their customers/community

SM Pampanga is not 895+ meters long but just some 600+ meters

then who said, where's the article that said it's almost a km long???

then who said, where's the article that said it's almost a km long???

http://www.smprime.com/News.php?BlurbID=975

Pampanga now has country's longest mall
By Ding Cervantes, 20 Nov 2007
Source: Philippine Star
SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga - If Metro Manila has the largest mall in Asia, this province has the longest mall in the country.

Another mall record has been broken after the extension of SM Supermall here was completed recently. The mall now spans a length of 668 meters.
Visible from the North Luzon Expressway straddling the boundaries of San Fernando and Mexico towns, SM City Pampanga became the Philippines' longest after a series of building annexes were built in 2002, 2003 and this year to expand the original structure established in 2000, SM Prime Holdings announced yesterday.
"The first ever SM Supermall in the province and in Central Luzon when it opened to the public in 2000, SM City Pampanga now has a total building length of 668 meters and is composed of four connected buildings," the firm, which owns the SM mall nationwide said in a statement.
'"With a total gross floor area of 128,089 square-meters, the mall now has more than 433 shops and boutiques to satisfy every shopper's needs."
The shopping center's new annex, located in Barangay Lagundi in Mexico town, has a 17,439-square meter area, with 46 new shops offering more shopping and dining options.
SM Prime Holdings said the new expansion also provides for a call center to occupy 9,700 square-meters.
"Our continued expansion in Pampanga is testimony to its strong local economy," said SM Prime Holdings president Henry Sy.
"Its proximity to Metro Manila and Subic, combined with its international airport in Clark Special Economic Zone, makes the province an ideal regional gateway and hub. Its diverse and refined cuisine is also a source of great pride for its people, giving it an additional attraction to its visitors. All these contribute to heightened maIling activities in the area and pushed us to further expand SM City Pampanga," Sy said.
SM City Pampanga's 433 shops and boutiques include SM's retail outlets such as the SM Department Store and SM Supermarket, ACE Hardware, Our Home, SM Appliance Center, Toy Kingdom, Watsons, Sports Central and Surplus Shop, the statement added.
Its newest annex now houses apparel shops such as Kipling, Von Dutch, Tribal, Bysi Boutique, Celine, Celio, Chales & Keith, Crocs, Flojo's, Florsheim Kids, People are People, Periwinkle, Triumph, Mossimo Underwear, 'Red Hot Chili Jeans Wear, and Swiss Gear. Shoppers can try a new dining experience at these restaurants - Tempura, Flavours of China, and The Aristocrat.
It also features specialty shops including Davids For Rever, George Optical, Hearts and Arrow, Kitchen One, and SF-QI Wellness Holistic Spa, and' 7 Eleven. Banco de Oro will also open another branch at the mall while China Bank will open its first branch at SM City Pampanga, SM said.

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The mall that is only 15 minutes from my place hehehe. New developments:

1 - GRASS Residences is still being built.
2 - The Add-on of the mall, with the IMAX is now getting revved up and I see really active cranes doing their work.
3 - The Supermarket is getting a nice facelift. The tenants of the fast food chains such as PaoTsin are opening up again.
4 - Bo's Coffee is now open as well as my favorite Jammin' Jamaica and their Jamaican Patties.

Market Market
http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l140/lightning099/IMG_2471.jpg?t=1195909137

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l140/lightning099/IMG_2470.jpg?t=1195909201

http://i95.photobucket.com/albums/l140/lightning099/IMG_2468.jpg?t=1195909259

^^ nice pics lightning099. i like the christmas decor of market market!

^^compared to other malls...

grabe ang pinakapangit talaga yung nasa atrium ng trinoma

SM Megamall and Shangrila Mall from the Wynsum Plaza taken 11/23/07...

http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n37/icarus05x/The%20Metro/IMGP0533.jpg

kelan kaya planned redevelopment ng Glorietta Building into garden like setting? sana madaliin na ara sumigla shopping sa glorietta.

Bakit so gloomy pa rin ba ang shopping scene sa Glorietta , specifically G2 now?

^^ nice pics lightning099. i like the christmas decor of market market!

Yeah, I'm digging it. Question to the MM people: Are Market! Market!'s Christmas decors the best among all Metro Manila malls? Based on the pictures I've seen across the net, I think it is

They made cheap materials look very nice! :okay: These would look better if placed in Trinoma. The lighter color of Trinoma would highlight these decors even better! :)

Yes...Trinoma's Atrium is humongous that's why it also acts as a gigantic appliance showroom.

Yeah, I'm digging it. Question to the MM people: Are Market! Market!'s Christmas decors the best among all Metro Manila malls? Based on the pictures I've seen across the net, I think it is

Pinakamaganda pa rin para sakin ang Christmas decor ng Powerplant Mall, Rockwell. :D

Trinoma from EDSA... Taken 11/21/2007

http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n37/icarus05x/QC/IMGP0457.jpg


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http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n37/icarus05x/QC/IMGP0455.jpg

[QUOTE=icarus-rising;16720306]Trinoma from EDSA... Taken 11/21/2007

[CENTER]http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n37/icarus05x/QC/IMGP0457.jpg


This Trinoma is a great mall, but this picture above is not a great view or angle or sight...it just doesn't look like a supermall it looks more like a massive industrial factory hehehe...just my opinion and observation.

^^ Hell, yeah! The picture could have been titled "A Day at the Factory". It doesn't help that there are delivery trucks and the crowd looks like they are going through security check at the factory entrance. At some angles, the Trinoma isn't flattering at all. And to think think that this is the angle where it would be viewed most by commuters and motorists, they should have made it more attractive! And look at the pile of garbage there... :ohno:

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f394/jayayar/Kodak3031.jpg

http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f394/jayayar/Kodak3034.jpg

Mallwide Christmas Balls decor of Festival Supermall .

^^ At some angles, the Trinoma isn't flattering at all. And to think think that this is the angle where it would be viewed most by commuters and motorists, they should have made it more attractive! :ohno:

This is also called:

The Back Of The Mall



:lol:

^^ In any case, there can be no excuse for the pile of garbage there.

This is also called:

The Back Of The Mall



:lol:


The Back Of The Mall faces two major thoroughfares, the North Ave. and EDSA.

Not to mention it also faces SM-NoE. In short, si TriNoma ay tinalikuran si SM-NoE. :hilarious "Bahala ka dyan! Ayoko sa'yo, tatalikod ako! Hmp!" :D

Some facts I gathered:

+++ SM City North EDSA has an average traffic of 325,000 pedestrians a day.

+++ While the new TriNoma has an average traffic of 250,000 - 300,000 pedestrians a day.

+++ After the Glorietta explosion, biglang bumulusok ang pedestrian traffic ng Market! Market!. From 150,000, dumoble ito sa 300,000 pedestrians a day. :shocked:

The Back Of The Mall faces two major thoroughfares, the North Ave. and EDSA.

Not to mention it also faces SM-NoE. In short, si TriNoma ay tinalikuran si SM-NoE. :hilarious "Bahala ka dyan! Ayoko sa'yo, tatalikod ako! Hmp!" :D

Ang suplado naman ng mall na yan... :lol:

^^ Hell, yeah! The picture could have been titled "A Day at the Factory". It doesn't help that there are delivery trucks and the crowd looks like they are going through security check at the factory entrance. At some angles, the Trinoma isn't flattering at all. And to think think that this is the angle where it would be viewed most by commuters and motorists, they should have made it more attractive! And look at the pile of garbage there... :ohno:

This is also called:

The Back Of The Mall



:lol:

The Back Of The Mall faces two major thoroughfares, the North Ave. and EDSA.

Not to mention it also faces SM-NoE. In short, si TriNoma ay tinalikuran si SM-NoE. :hilarious "Bahala ka dyan! Ayoko sa'yo, tatalikod ako! Hmp!" :D


Regardless, Ayalas should have done better with all the angles of the mall especially at the back if that's the worst...also those proposed budget cuts I heard from Sinjin slashing from P7B to P3.5B well that would have helped beautify it more if they hadn't done that... SM MOA to me has the best view
from any angles front or back or even the side.

Trinoma...

-Looks beautiful upfront and on the insides..But stinks at the back..true! Slashed 3.5B Php = 50% savings..awesome! Aaand! It reached 250k-300k foot traffic in just 6 Months!

Isn't that what a fantastic business is all about?...
Less Capital >> More Profit?

I believe:

There's no such thing as perfect malls and
You can't please everybody...

:)

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/8136/sm2ke9.jpg

tatlo na pala ang SM sa China na yan!

wala lang, naiinis lang ako sa china ngayon!

Philippines' SM Prime Plans to Build One Mall a Year in China (http://smprime.com/News.php?BlurbID=932)
By Ian C. Sayson, 7 Nov 2007
Source: Bloomberg News

SM Prime Holdings Inc., the largest Philippine shopping center operator, plans to build one mall a year in China to tap demand in the world's fastest growing major economy and reduce the company's reliance on its home market. (Philippines)

"We will first start with one a year and as we grow stronger then we will increase that to two, three and maybe four a year,'' Hans Sy, president of Manila-based SM Prime, said yesterday in an interview.

"It won't be a reckless expansion.'' Building malls in China will give SM Prime access to a market with 15 times the population of the Philippines and an economy 23 times larger.

The company has limited scope for expansion at home, where it already operates 30 malls, fund manager Olan Caperina said. "SM Prime is nearing the level of saturating the major centers in the Philippines,'' said Caperina, who helps oversee the equivalent of .48 billion at BPI Asset Management Inc. in Manila.

"The next step for SM Prime is to expand outside, and China is a very promising market.'' SM Prime was unchanged at 11.75 pesos at the close in Manila. The stock has risen 37 percent this year, compared with a 27 percent gain in the main Philippine Stock Exchange Index.

The company will start building its own malls in China once it completes the purchase of three shopping centers in the country owned by SM Prime founder Henry Sy, Hans Sy said. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, is the anchor tenant in all three of Henry Sy's malls in China.

Henry Sy, who also owns the largest Philippine department store and grocery chain, built his first mall in China five years ago. "China's growth story is there,'' Hans Sy said.

"We have been building malls of smaller scale in the Philippines because the spending power in the provinces isn't as strong as that in Manila. With China, at least we can show people that there's a future for SM Prime.''

SM Prime said Citigroup Inc. and Macquarie Bank Ltd., which were hired to advise the company on its mall purchases in China, will finish valuing the assets in December. SM Prime may buy additional malls in China, and won't restrict itself to building its own complexes as it did in the Philippines, Hans Sy said.

CHINA na naman, sana maglagay ng branch sa lahat ng SEA countries!

may plans ang sm to build a mall in vietnam
http://www.sminvestments.com/News.php?BlurbID=935

Trinoma...

-Looks beautiful upfront and on the insides..But stinks at the back..true! Slashed 3.5B Php = 50% savings..awesome! Aaand! It reached 250k-300k foot traffic in just 6 Months!

Isn't that what a fantastic business is all about?...
Less Capital >> More Profit?

I believe:

There's no such thing as perfect malls and
You can't please everybody...

:)

There's no arguing that Trinoma has become successful business-wise and traffic-wise.

And because it is raking in profits, it should give back to the patronizing public what it deserves.

There is no perfection in this world but we should keep trying to raise the bar.

^^ Maybe they are waiting for SM North Edsa's Redevelopment Plan...
After that, maybe they will use the remaining 3.5B php in beautification...
(in which i highly doubt no matter how possible...)

3.5 Billion on looks palang? Now that would be really nice!

i agree.. but scoop lang.. next year ayala land will launch condo projects in qc-cbd... they will spur developments in the area and fast-track qc-cbd... siyempre papatalo ba sila sa sm investments na may grass residences na...

^^Ayala North ang tawag ata dun

^^ SM Pupu maganda talaga hehehe :D

Matagal na akong di nagpopost dito. Ang thread starter wala nang post hehehe. That's why I'm renewing my vows. I'm now taking pictures of this beloved thread again. After breaking up with my girl, I bouhght A Sony W810i. Sana you'd enjoy it all...

http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb215/ady00100/DSC01707.jpg

http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb215/ady00100/DSC01710.jpg

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http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb215/ady00100/DSC01719.jpg

http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb215/ady00100/DSC01720.jpg

^^Thanks for the photos :D

Grabe how it gets very crowded in TriNoma during the weekends. Ang hirap maka-park! For two consecutive Saturday afternoons, the guards had to ward off incoming vehicles because parking was already full!

Even Shangri-la gets unusually crowded. I mean, yeah, it does get crowded, but not that crowded!

^^grabe nga... sobra... But me other parking grounds naman TriNoma. It just needs a little usog talaga hehehe.
On the other hand, parang mini-park na ang SM North Edsa.

^ Hmm, baka yung unusual crowds ay yung mga pumupunta sa Glorietta na hesitant pa rin bumalik doon. :)

^^Nope, Glorietta is more crowded than ever! Lalo pang sumikip kasi yung tenants ng G2, nagtayo ng tiangge sa mga aisle! Most stores were also on sale last weekend. Even parking space was hard to find. We had to park at Greenbelt 3 tuloy. Eh ang mahal mahal pa naman ng parking dun, pero sobrang sikip naman!

^^grabe nga... sobra... But me other parking grounds naman TriNoma. It just needs a little usog talaga hehehe.
On the other hand, parang mini-park na ang SM North Edsa.

Oo nga, sinasara nga nila minsan yung Mindanao Parking entrance eh.

At least SM North is catching up! :okay:

^ Oh. So Glorietta is back to its liveliness?

Well, yung unusual crowds ay dala ng Christmas rush! Ngayon lang ako namulat na December na pala :(

^^Oo nga ano. Haha.

^ Oh. So Glorietta is back to its liveliness?

Yep, back to normal, and with a new Gap store, too!

^ Bakit hindi ko pa ramdam ang Pasko? :(

SM City Marikina under construction...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2009/2082429812_d1133b1113_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2028/2081640701_e345e13ece_b.jpg


View across the river...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2417/2082400572_0ef7267ec1_b.jpg

^^ the access roads aren't finished yet., para silang gumagawa ng airport terminal eh., ehehehhe., pero its a good sign na they're starting to paint it na., :) sana nga magbukas to this summer.,

okey yung last nakuha, icarus

okey yung last nakuha, icarus

Dami ko nga naistorbo diyan sa madamong lugar na iyan eh... bakit daw kailangan kong maging malaking hadlang sa kanilang kaligayahan! :lol:

But here are more pictures of SM City Marikina construction... Taken 12/04/07.

http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n37/icarus05x/IMGP0798.jpg

http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n37/icarus05x/IMGP0824.jpg

http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb215/ady00100/DSC01707.jpg

http://i204.photobucket.com/albums/bb215/ady00100/DSC01710.jpg



May sigh-nage na pala ang TriNoMa!

Waiting for the new "The SM City"... :bash:

Parang airport nga ang SM Marikina habang u/c. :D

Fifth of a series —but not the least
By Chelo Banal-Formoso
Inquirer
http://supplements.inquirer.net/propertyguide/main.php?content=around142

MANILA, Philippines - Built around a park and a chapel, two emotionally appealing sites to Filipinos, AyalaLand’s 12-hectare Greenbelt complex is now a genuine loop with the near-completion of Greenbelt 5.

The AyalaLand folks call Greenbelt 5 the “culminating piece” to what they had planned long ago to be the premier lifestyle center not just in Makati, which has always been an Ayala turf, but in the country.

They are not kidding, and none of it is hype. In Greenbelt, ALC has presented Filipinos an alternative shopping-and-dining experience, one that defied the big box concept of malls.

After Greenbelt 1, ALC hired Callison Architecture Inc. of Seattle, Washington to plan a sprawling, extroverted urban complex. The resulting retail developments have been named, without much ado, Greenbelts 2 to 5.

While Greenbelts 2 and 4 are totally covered, Greenbelts 3 and 5 are not. As for retail use, Ayala did away with anchor stores in Greenbelt. Where Greenbelt 2 is focused exclusively on food, with housing on top, Greenbelt 3 has included shopping and entertainment—cinemas, arcade games, etc.—in the mix. And where Greenbelt 4 is totally all luxury shops for yuppie fashionistas and their glamorous seniors, Greenbelt 5 is a happy mix of upscale fashion, food and fun. “Not just for the 30 and above but for all ages,” notes Ayala Malls operations manager AC Legarda-Ocampo.

“Every phase of Greenbelt has been a learning experience,” says Ayala Malls marketing division manager Cathy Bengzon. “What we’ve learned through the years is that the Filipino market looks forward to innovation. Filipinos like to be surprised.”

Grand entrance

The last of the series, Greenbelt 5, is a gleaming, distinctive surprise. The structure and its landscaping fill you with a sense of pride and awe. The walkway that links its two wings is stunning, having been designed purposely to provide “a grand sense of arrival” to shoppers and diners.

While it was a foreign architectural firm that designed this shopping and leisure destination, a local firm was called in to, as Andy Locsin of Leandro Locsin Architects puts it, “give character to the project.”

And that is exactly what the Locsin firm did to Greenbelt 5, through Annalea O. Castillo, partner in charge of the project, and E, Matthew Varona, the associate who designed the interiors.

The gloss and sheen within the mall has been inspired by the Filipino Zone, the courageous grouping of shops on the second floor carrying clothes and fashion accessories created by Filipino designers and those on the third floor that are dedicated to furniture and home accessories from Filipino designers and craftsmen. For the first time, local designers are not just lumped together in a dark corner of a department store.

“How do you approach the Filipino theme without doing it on an incredibly literal level? That was our concern,” says Locsin. “We didn’t want it to become campy.”

Luckily, the firm’s leanings have always been toward the abstract. Varona came up with modern interpretations of Filipino elements. Even the furniture that they brought in for the lounge areas are by Kenneth Cobonpue and Anne Pamintuan, two stalwarts of the trend-setting Movement 8 group of Filipino artists.

“Ayala wanted a Filipino Zone, so we put Philippine touches in the panels, the furnishings and the exterior screen that is inspired by the Tinalak,” says Castillo. Mixed with the Filipino flavors are modern elements like hanging accent lights and walls covered with the amazing photography of Don Jaime Zobel. The flooring is a graphic pattern of imperial brown granite and natural stone.

“The nice things about this mall are really the details, the nooks and crannies,” notes Locsin.

Plus the landscaping, one must add. Ponce Veridiano, the landscaper, scattered 20 pieces of carabao jars and planted the exterior grounds and the terraced gardens to pitogo, oliva, emperialis, pakpak lawin, zamio, sellum, philodendron, torch ginger, levistonia palm, royal palm, Eugenia, giant red crinum, aglonema, kamuning, red and pink ginger, miagos, tree fern, giant fern, spathyphylum and varied kinds of bamboo, the plant du jour for outdoor decorating.

Mixed use

Indoors, the configuration of Greenbelt 5 is 80 percent retail and 20 percent dining, according to Ocampo, to balance the offering of Greenbelts 2 and 3 which is mostly food. (Greenbelt 4 is all-shops because if you’re buying a $2000 Gucci bag, the last thing you want is to smell curry or, worse, smell of it on your way in or out.)

The centerpiece of Greenbelt 5 is the Filipino Zone, two floors showcasing Filipino creativity in fashion and home. “At par with the world’s best,” says Bengzon, referring to their juxtaposition of Filipino designs with international luxe shops.

On the second floor of the zone are the fashion shops. Ayala went one step further than just leasing the space to the most exciting Filipino designers today; it also had a hand in linking up these artists with seasoned retailers as business partners. For instance, Patrice Ramos-Diaz is in tandem with Ben Chan of the highly successful Bench group of companies. Randy Ortiz is teamed up with Ruby Gan who has proved her mettle in her shoe retail business called Schu. That kind of partnering.

In the Filipino Zone, only Barba and Lila Almario are open, but busy putting the finishing touches to their shops are Aranaz, Arnel Papa, Rocks by Ana Rocha, Avatar, Gaupo, Jun Escario, Kate Torralba, Patrice Diaz, Religioso, Victoria Marin, Myth, Budji Layug, JT, L Manila and AC+632, which is owned by the Firma duo of Chito Vijandre and Ricky Toledo, the latter promising “We’ll have a gardening section.”

Now open on the ground floor of Greenbelt 5 are the flagship of Danish audio brand Bang & Olufsen, Kiehl’s, Michael Kors, Celestina, Mix and dotdotdot. Also on the second level are David & Goliath and All Flip Flops. Shoppers are already being welcomed at Borders Home Accessories, Hives by Restoration and Prizxmic & Brill on the third floor.

Most of the stores are raring to open and most probably will make it in time for holiday shopping—Banana Republic, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Bally, Ben Sherman, DKNY, Escada, Escada Sport, Furla, Kenneth Cole, Paul Smith, Rafe, St. John and Zara.

On the third are the furniture and home accessories stores, headlined by Budji Layug and his Movement 8 friends, Aguas, Designs Ligna, Domicillo, Galeire Hans Brumann, Voyages Home and Osmundo.

A 2,000-sq m fashion walk connects Phase 1 of Greenbelt 5 to Phase 2, which is going to house a boutique department store called Adora, probably the closest thing to an anchor shop that Greenbelt will ever have. Also in Phase 2 are shops for the age groups that the earlier Greenbelts have all this time ignored. Now kids, teens and tweeners can shop at Greenbelt 5. Plans for the third floor of Phase 2 include a family zone, a children’s zone, and specialty shops for fathers and the home. The fourth floor will have a gym and a spa.

It is always a big challenge for developers to create a mix of restaurants that offer what other places don’t. Among Greenbelt 5’s original dining places are Pia Y Damaso (Spanish and Filipino) and John & Yoko (Japanese), both now open on Level 2; Grace Park by Margarita Fores; and Fish Out of Water.

Fronting the street on the ground floor are restaurants Chateau 1771, which moved here from its Ortigas location, Felix, Myron’s Place and Zuni. Fast heating up their kitchens are Cibo, Classic Confections, Fely “J” Restaurant and Travel Café, La Maison and Solihiya.

Greenbelt 5 connects to Greenbelt 1 and Greenbelt 4, not to mention the Ayala Museum. Walkways link it to Greenbelts 2 and 3.

For now, Greenbelt 5 is open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday to Sunday, but expect the hours to be competitive with other malls as soon as all shops, restaurants and services have opened.

ayus tong ladies cr sa GB5.. may lounge pa..

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c277/patok/GB5n.jpg

http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c277/patok/GB5m.jpg

Silver City Automall in Frontera Verde, Pasig

http://img254.imageshack.us/img254/6416/imgp0840de9.jpg

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http://img265.imageshack.us/img265/6296/imgp0846lw8.jpg

http://img265.imageshack.us/img265/7251/imgp0847es8.jpg

alchemy!! gumigimik kami minsan dyan eh. :D

Engineer doubts gas build-up theory in Glorietta blast
By Jose Rodel Clapano
Friday, December 7, 2007
PhilStar
http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=20071206188

An engineer doubted yesterday the police theory that the blast that rocked the Glorietta 2 shopping mall in Makati last October was caused by a methane gas build-up in the sump pit.

In a statement, Dennis Manuel, administrator of Cityland condominium, said if methane gas was the cause of the explosion, the mall should have been enveloped with the smell of rotten eggs.

“Rotten eggs and methane gas both have hydrogen which is a pungent and very flammable element,” he said.

Manuel said the conclusion of the Philippine National Police that the Glorietta 2 blast was caused by a gas build-up in the sump pit belies the competence of the investigators.

“If we go by the police’s conclusion, then all hotels and commercial establishments specifically in the Makati area must be wary and afraid that an explosion from the sump pit will occur anytime,” he said.

Manuel said that his contemporaries at the Mapua College of Engineering laughed off the PNP theory that the explosion emanated from the sump pit and the diesel storage tank.

The design of sump pits erases the possibility of a methane gas build-up because of the continuous pumping and filtering before waste is released to the sewerage system, he added.

Manuel said other waste particles are delivered to treatment plants to be processed as fertilizers, and that oil does not mix with water.

“Anaerobic bacteria, usually cultured for biogas which survives in an airless environment, will not thrive with continuous flushing,” he said.

“It is easily killed by even a tiny drop of detergent and disinfectant which are abundantly used in shopping malls, making it close to impossible for a methane gas build-up.”

Manuel said thick slabs used in buildings as regulated by the building code can withstand 3,000 to 3,500 pounds per square inch.

“It will take a direct and concentrated impact to damage those thick slabs,” he said.

“The police must be able to explain their conclusions or their reputations will forever be tarnished.”

Well what's going on there...who's right and who's not?
What's the point of those FBI guys and Australian police going there to investigate
and saying there's no bomb involved?
and now engineers doubt it...

It's a fiasco going on there with the Ayalas... a gong show!!!

Well what's going on there...who's right and who's not?
What's the point of those FBI guys and Australian police going there to investigate
and saying there's no bomb involved?
and now engineers doubt it...

It's a fiasco going on there with the Ayalas... a gong show!!!

Well i find the findings of the police with the fbi and australian police credible than the opinion of that engineer....obviously....the ayala owners want to cast doubt on the integrity of the investigation because it points the accountability to them.....the ones who investigated on ground zero where forensic experts....and foreigners at that .... you cannot say that they lied to follow the line of the local police...you cannot just manufacture that....

^^^^,,,,...

im excited sa sky garden at SM NORTH EDSA.....grandopening on mid april.....THE ANNEX mid sept.

ANC....

Engineer doubts gas build-up theory in Glorietta blast
By Jose Rodel Clapano
Friday, December 7, 2007
PhilStar
http://www.philstar.com/index.php?Headlines&p=49&type=2&sec=24&aid=20071206188

An engineer doubted yesterday the police theory that the blast that rocked the Glorietta 2 shopping mall in Makati last October was caused by a methane gas build-up in the sump pit.

In a statement, Dennis Manuel, administrator of Cityland condominium, said if methane gas was the cause of the explosion, the mall should have been enveloped with the smell of rotten eggs.

“Rotten eggs and methane gas both have hydrogen which is a pungent and very flammable element,” he said.

Manuel said the conclusion of the Philippine National Police that the Glorietta 2 blast was caused by a gas build-up in the sump pit belies the competence of the investigators.

“If we go by the police’s conclusion, then all hotels and commercial establishments specifically in the Makati area must be wary and afraid that an explosion from the sump pit will occur anytime,” he said.

Manuel said that his contemporaries at the Mapua College of Engineering laughed off the PNP theory that the explosion emanated from the sump pit and the diesel storage tank.

The design of sump pits erases the possibility of a methane gas build-up because of the continuous pumping and filtering before waste is released to the sewerage system, he added.

Manuel said other waste particles are delivered to treatment plants to be processed as fertilizers, and that oil does not mix with water.

“Anaerobic bacteria, usually cultured for biogas which survives in an airless environment, will not thrive with continuous flushing,” he said.

“It is easily killed by even a tiny drop of detergent and disinfectant which are abundantly used in shopping malls, making it close to impossible for a methane gas build-up.”

Manuel said thick slabs used in buildings as regulated by the building code can withstand 3,000 to 3,500 pounds per square inch.

“It will take a direct and concentrated impact to damage those thick slabs,” he said.

“The police must be able to explain their conclusions or their reputations will forever be tarnished.”

FOREVER NA NGANG TARNISHED EH...

Robinsons Place Otis in Paco, Manila is now open!

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2190/2094070028_c258f711c0_o.jpg

photo by pouroutboy - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/21263397@N07/)

Robinsons Place Otis in Paco, Manila is NOW OPEN!

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2190/2094070028_c258f711c0_o.jpg

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http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2267/2093976488_0674c787c7_o.jpg

photos by pouroutboy - Flickr (http://flickr.com/photos/21263397@N07/)

^^ Simply uber cool imho, especially the last one.

Where's exactly it in Paco ? Anong nearest landmark dito sa Robinson mall na ito ?
It kinda looks like the new wing ng Robinson Place , Manila and ilang levels itong mall ?

Ang ganda ng crowd ha! :D

Alam ko 2-level mall lang ito. Yung upper-levels eh BPO offices na.

Along Otis/Paz Guanzon St. lang ito, malapit dun sa bridge na malapit sa U.N. Ave. Kung papunta ka ng Malacañang Park galing U.N., dun lang sya pagbaba nung bridge, part of the Otis 888 development ito.

BTW, what's up with Robinsons Pioneer? Inalis nila yung sign sa harap. Papalitan ba ito ng pangalang "FORUM Robinsons"? Or is that Forum just a section of the mall?

^ What's Forum Robinsons?

^^Apparently, it's a new stint by Robinsons to get a crowd for its ailing Pioneer mall. They're changing the mall's name from Robinsons Pioneer to Forum Robinsons. It seems like the "new" mall will specialize on electronic products. Yep, that's one whole mall for gadgets!

Robinsons need not panic, the mall will recover once all the planned developments in the area gets substantially built, and mind you, there's a lot of them from four prominent developers, one of which has partnered with RLC. I think that's more than enough saving grace for this mall. But then again, it will take a few more years before all the residentials get completed... kaya medyo mag-panic nga muna sila. :D

It will be in the likes of Eastwood's Cybermall and Greenhills' V-Mall.

Grabe! Sobra na ang dami ng mall sa Pilipinas!!! Mukhang lahat ang mga ito ay palaging puno kahit anong oras....

Malls malls and more malls...hmm OK.
So we love malls. It's the 21st century parks...
But they are getting smaller. Like cellphones..

I wish the Philippines will have the Largest Mall in the world (in the future.)

^^ We're just getting more of the community malls. The horrible traffic in the metro makes these kinds of malls convenient for everyone's immediate needs.

As for the super-regional malls, several of them are even expanding (like SM-NoE and Megamall) or has plans for future expansion of their already gargantuan retail spaces.

^^ Magtayo na lang sila ng concourse sa lahat ng mall na madadaanan nila...

Robinson's Pioneer is very strategic so I see a good future for the mall. Maybe they'll expand this too like Rob Manila.