MANILA | PAGCOR City Development News

[popsiclestar]

Originally Posted by edmunds

If it's within the parameter of the Manila Airport, will the ICAO allow to build a huge tower such that? I don't think so this will approved by the local air transport authority!

no worries, i'm sure that the developers have thought of this before even thinking of building huge structures in the area. not to mention that although it is near the airport, planes don't usually "fly" that way

[JulZ]

inside the pagcor tower, it's a nice view seeing airplanes passing by..a little scary though

[Blackraven]

Is construction on-going? (and are there any pics of it)

And how near/far is this to the SM Bay City area?

[manila_eye]

they are readying the land for construction. actual construction will start on first quarter next year. this will be very close to sm bay city. few minutes walk from one point to another.

[flymordecai]

Originally Posted by newgabskii

Source taken from: Aruze Corp

RENDERS
Okada Resort Manila Bay

fronting the garden


back of garden

still unconvinced? ... post away folks

Originally Posted by newgabskii

Finally, some official images of a PAGCOR City project!

[stanleymalls]

Update comes from Fortune 500

[SC_00]

Originally Posted by psyche_ot

The observation wheel is not too original, a copy of the London Eye..

Before we have our own, Singapore built alson there own wheel, it is called "SINGAPORE FLYER" (165m)...currently the tallest ferris wheel in the world.!

kaya hindi palaging pinoy ang "COPYCATS!


I think matatawag lang na "INSPIRED"....hehe


at F.Y.I., may halos 30+ pa na observation wheel sa mundo sa iba't-ibang bansa..tulad nalang ng "The Southern Star"(Tallest Ferris wheel in Southern Hemisphere) sa Australia.

[skyscraper100]

maybe he wants a square one LOL

[Gaeus]

Originally Posted by SC_00

Before we have our own, Singapore built alson there own wheel, it is called "SINGAPORE FLYER" (165m)...currently the tallest ferris wheel in the world.!

kaya hindi palaging pinoy ang "COPYCATS!


I think matatawag lang na "INSPIRED"....hehe


at F.Y.I., may halos 30+ pa na observation wheel sa mundo sa iba't-ibang bansa..tulad nalang ng "The Southern Star"(Tallest Ferris wheel in Southern Hemisphere) sa Australia.

What the heck are you talking about? Do you speak a different english?

BACK TO TOPIC:

I wonder if the project continues due to the economic crisis? I wonder if the construction already started or this is just a proposal?

[burjdubai91]

thats taglish, a combination of the tagalog language and english. U could have said that in a nicer way than say 'heck' and make our english sound so inferior. Nothing against you but I get sick of people from other nations who belittle our race. Like what this project is doing, we want to put ourselves on the world map and be recognized as a country that can and will rise from the trials we are experiencing.

well anyway, that issue aside, this project has already been approved and the construction might start soon, at the very least, 2010.

[newgabskii]

Pagcor City...

Originally Posted by adgaps

i went to the site yesterday, and here are what i saw:

from the bridge at Macapagal Boulevard, this is the first poster i saw


somewhere in that area.. that's between Bradco Ave. and Aseana Ave.


Aseana Avenue.. actually, may mga nakaharang na concrete barriers dito.. signifying na sarado itong road..


ilalim ng isang poste ng ilaw along Macapagal Boulevard, sa area ding yan..


btw, here's a map of the area:

Originally Posted by Narnian_King

Maganda din naman pala yung Bagong Nayong Pilipino pero masyadong matagal ang gap sa pagbukas nito muli.

Originally Posted by in_a_rush

please support newport city, pra tuloy tuloy na ang projects ng Genting sa pagcor city.


Andrew Tan group to invest P36 billion in Pasay's Newport City
By Mary Ann Ll. Reyes (The Philippine Star) Updated August 20, 2009 12:00 AM

MANILA, Philippines - A group of local and foreign investors, led by Alliance Global Inc. of tycoon Andrew Tan, is investing around $740 million (P36 billion) until 2012 to transform the old Philippine Air Force barracks near Villamor Air Base in Pasay City into a world-class integrated tourism development, the first of its kind in Southeast Asia.

The 25-hectare Newport City will feature not only residential condominiums which are mostly sold out, but will also play host to the $600-million Resorts World Manila that will occupy around 7.8 hectares.

“With Resorts World Manila, we are aiming to transform the Philippines into Asia’s next tourism powerhouse,” Travellers International Hotel Group president Kingson Sian told The STAR.

Behind Resorts World Manila is Travellers, which is 50 percent owned by Alliance Global, 40 percent by Star Cruises, and 10 percent by Megaworld. The latter chose to own 10 percent of Travellers in exchange for the land which Resorts World Manila will occupy.

Alliance Global is the parent company of Megaworld, Golden Arches (McDonalds) and Travellers International.

Star Cruises, meanwhile, is the third largest cruise line operator in the world and is part of Genting Berhad Group, one of Malaysia’s largest conglomerates and a global gaming company. Genting owns the Genting Highlands Resort-Casino in Kuala Lumpur and is building Resorts World at Sentosa which will have the world’s largest oceanarium and a Universal Studio theme park.

Following the Philippine government’s decision to deregulate the gaming industry last year, Travellers International was awarded the first private gaming license to develop, own and manage casinos, with the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) as regulator. Its first casino will be located at the Resorts World Manila while the second one will be at the Pagcor City at the Reclamation Area. The first floor of the three-floor casino will be opened to the public on Aug. 28.

Sian, who is also a director of Megaworld, said all the aspects of Resorts World Manila will be available by yearend or early next year at the latest, except for the budget hotel.

Resorts World Manila will have three hotels. The first one will be the six-star 172 all-suites Maxims Hotel and Gaming Center while the second will be the 342-rooms five-star Marriott Hotel. The third will be the 1,000-room budget hotel Remington.

Aside from the three hotels, Resorts World will feature the Newport Mall which will have four high-end cinemas, four-levels of luxury brand stores, and will have a glass roofing similar to the MGM Hotels and Casinos. The Newport Theater, meanwhile, will offer world-class entertainment for the performing arts.

Sian said aside from the “live and play” aspects of Newport City, there is also the work component, highlighted by the operations of Star Cruises which have been moved from Malaysia to here. “They retrenched 500 Malaysians and moved their world operations headquarters here. From here, they can have surveillance satellites that can see all their ships anywhere in the world,” he pointed out.

He also stressed that Genting and Star Cruises are the perfect partners for this integrated tourism development, which will bring in not only a total of $740 million in investments on a once-idle government property, but also 10,000 in new employment and the potential to bring in 11 million tourists.

“This is a game changer and will put the Philippines on the global tourism map. Being in front of NAIA Terminal 3 and very near the other airport terminals, Newport City will serve as the jump-off point for other tourism destinations in the country like Boracay and Bohol. The global sales networks of both Genting and Star Cruises can help us attract more tourists into the country, And they are very familiar with junket operations,” he said. The casinos will be run by Genting Management Services.

He said the Philippines has the perfect location to be the region’s next tourism powerhouse, with a two billion market potential within a four-hour flight radius to Manila. “The country just needed the right product,” Sian emphasized.

He said the Philippines reported an all-time high of 3.14 million tourist arrivals last year and the figure is expected to grow five percent annualy from 2009-2010. “We see this as an opportunity because we are coming from a low base. The problem was that we didn’t have the right product that will attract international tourists to come,” Sian explained.

Alliance Global chairman Andrew Tan earlier said their group is investing around $1.55 billion over the next five years for its tourism programs, including building 5,000 rooms.

Sian explained that aside from the 1,500 rooms of the three hotels at Resorts World at Manila, Travellers International will build another 3,000 to 4,000 rooms at Pagcor City once they develop another tourism type of development, including a casino and hotels, there. “While here at Resorts World, we only have around eight hectares, at the Pagcor City, we will have 40 hectares,” he stressed.

As for the casino that will occupy the first three floors of Maxims Hotel, Sian said the casino will occupy a total of 30,000 square meters and will have 300 table and 1,000 slot machines.

“We expect around 10,000 people to play here every day and that around 65 percent of our guests will be local and the rest, foreign. We are investing money to expand the market and attract tourists. We do not want to just take away customers from the Pagcor casinos. While there may be high rollers who will move to our casinos, we expect the bulk of our market to be local tourists who have never entered casinos and who want to play on weekends while their family is engaged in some other activity here at Newport City.”

[newgabskii]

Originally Posted by newgabskii

Manila Bay Tourism City Project

Originally Posted by DCRJ

we passed by at the Pagcor city site yesterday Sunday July 5, 2009 on our way to the SM Mall of Asia and I took this premature shot of the area





at least meron ng mga naka tambak na lupa ewan ko kung para saan yun

Originally Posted by newgabskii

Okada Resort Manila Bay


Rendering Night Scene

Rendering Model

Overview

Main Facilities:
- Hotel (2000 Guest Rooms)
- Casino (20000sqm flr space - world's largest class)
- Ballrooms (3000sqm flr space - manila's largest)
- Aquarium (Asia's Largest)
- Art Museum
- Ferries Wheel (Dipping in water not mentioned)
- Shopping Area
- Etc

Planned Budget:
- 250Byen (55-60% by Aruze & 40-45% by local[Filipino] partner)

Land:
- Acquired a Land adjacent at the Manila Bay Entertainment City
- 40 hec

Schedule:
- April 2008 (Commencement of Designs)
- July 2008 (Acquisition of Land)
- August 2008 (Acquisition of PRovisional License & Commencement of Detailed Design)
- Summer 2010 (Finalization of Cost Estimates & Commencement of Construction)
- Summer 2013 (Opening of the Resort)

*Schedule has been postponed due to economic depression caused by recent financial crisis and delay of improvements on local infrastructure.

Not Convinced. CLIKE HERE

[b_two]

this project will not only boost tourism but will definitely create jobs. other philippine companies (both private and public) should follow suit. mabuhay kayo!!!

[xxxriainxxx]

From:

The Global Downturn and the Case of the Entertainment City:
Managing the Challenges and Opportunities

One of the buzzwords that has come into general usage in PAGCOR or in the world of legal gambling is that of “Entertainment City” (or Integrated Resorts as they are known in other places like Macau or Singapore). Whether it is Integrated Resort or Entertainment City, jurisdictions made it clear that they did not want “just” casinos and dominated by a casino operator. So the mandate was to limit a very small propor tion of the actual physical facilities for casinos. The rest would be for hotels, theaters, convention centers, theme parks, museums, sports arenas, retail and food. Tourism remains the biggest export sector in the world. In a research prepared by global ana lyst, McKinsey & Company, more than US$600 billion in export re ceipts came from the tourism sector in one year alone. And this is one sector that represents a huge opportunity for the Philippines: Worldwide, direct receipts can reach a total of US$9.8 billion from both domestic and international travelers by 2010 from US$2.9 billion in 2000. Plus three million new jobs will be available and GDP for the tourism sector will grow up to 10%. And therefore tourism deserves to be a national priority. It is a growth engine.

By COO Rafael Butch Francisco

New trajectory for tourism

Philippine tourism got off to a bullish year in 2008 with 3.5 million arrivals and over US$5 billion in tour ism revenue. Although let me share with you that the study made by McKinsey & Company tells us that Philippine tourism has taken the wrong path since 1986. The trajectory where Philippine tourism was headed reflects historical break downs throughout the tourism business system. They include: lack of world-class clusters and existing sites with brand-named accommodations that are competitive enough at least in the region; and a weak culture of tour ism and security in the local government level. Boracay is still trying to be a world-class destination but still misses out on many things. Since the study was presented to Malacañang in December of 2001, corrective measures were introduced and executed that includes a strategy to build clusters and attract big brands in select areas and create world-class destina tions in those clusters. The other key principles that will change the wrong trajectory include: marketing, remove barriers to invest ment and be aggressive in promoting and attracting in vestors and actively coordinate and manage the stake holders and other sectors from construction, media, utilities and others.

Integrated Resort concept

The concept of tourism clusters or Integrated Re sorts is in reality nothing new in the world of gaming. The year 1996 ushered a new era for Las Vegas in Ne vada, USA when Caesars Palace resort casino opened. Two years later, a heavily themed family resort casi no called Circus Circus continued the transformation of Las Vegas. These properties became models for future developments like The Mirage and Wynn. One can say that an integrated resort is really a eu phemism for a very large scale entertainment devel opment based around a casino. With any development involving capital in the billions, there are going to be a number of wide ranging economic benefits and multiplier effects accruing. The first round comes from the construction contracts and the re lated employment opportunities. The development of a multi-bil lion resort takes a minimum of two years and is likely to extend to three or more years when planning is included. If an appropriate income mul tiplier was around 1.4, the total economic effect of an inte grated resort project meeting the above parameters would be 40% of the construction budget. Local incomes in aggregate could be expected to in crease by about 40%. Of course, it is the actual open ing of the integrated resort that generates the greatest flow of economic benefits. Resorts tend to be labor in tensive, requiring large numbers of staff to service the various facilities and activities to offer to customers and guests. And the job opportunities are diverse. Another significant impact of integrated resort devel opments is the amount of consumable items required on a daily, monthly and annual basis to satisfy staff and guests. Operating expenses, maintenance, market ing and cost of goods sold will be substantial cost el ements of which a significant proportion will be pur*chased locally. Perhaps the most significant economic impact from the development is visitor impact. Integrated resorts will attract thousands of visitors daily.

Tourism Act of 2009

Our 14th Congress is in its final stage to pass into law a tourism bill known as “The Tourism Act of 2009” which will set the stage to address all these concerns to make the Philippines a premier tourist destination. PAGCOR is being tapped in the proposed bill to remit at least 25% of its revenue, to be taken from the reve nue share of the National Government for tourism pro motion and development. The creation of tourism enterprise zones is included in the bill. A tourism enterprise zone is like a one-stop shopping mall or an integrated resort with products and services from culture, shopping, museums, restau rants, retirement homes, sports, amusement centers or theme parks including gambling.

Anchor destination

PAGCOR‘s Entertainment City project in the bay area has the characteristics to be an anchor destination within the Manila Bay/ Boulevard 2000 tourism cluster. According to McKinsey & Co., the project is consis tent with their recommendation that the country active ly develop clusters to be known as tourism enterprise zones similar to the economic processing zones under the Philippine Economic Zone Authority. In an age when entertainment capitals like Las Ve gas or Macau come more and more to resemble one other, I can assure you that the Entertainment City re mains a delightful eccentric, determined to preserve its unique character. No other entertainment capital or integrated resort maintains such a fine balance between a deep love of its own Filipino traditions and the need to move, some what reluctantly, with the times.

PAGCOR purchased a 40-hectare site from the Phil ippine Reclamation Authority to develop it as a tourism zone called the Bagong Nayong Pilipino Manila Bay En tertainment City. To date, PAGCOR has given the green light to three major investors to commence building the Entertain ment City and invest at least US$1 billion in their ap proved glamorous, high-concept development plans. They are: Aruze Corporation, a Japanese maker of pachinko and slot machines and 22% owner of US gaming giant Wynn Resorts, which is investing US$2.5 billion; Travelers International, a joint venture company of Alliance Global of Filipino billionaire Andrew Tan and Genting of Malaysia. They are investing US$1.5 billion. And SM Investments of the Sy family which his put ting in US$1 billion to the project. All three have been issued provisional licenses to build and operate casi nos on their sites. Once completed, expect 7,000 new hotel rooms that will be added to the present 14,000 rooms in Metro Manila. Boracay has currently 4,700 rooms. With the opening of more resorts like Shangri-La Boracay, Bora cay Lagoon Resort, Boracay Beach Condominium and Agrias Suites, this will increase to 5,600 rooms by the end of this year.

Global downturn

Some of you may ask how the present global downturn is affecting PAGCOR’s Entertainment City. In the nick of time, we were fortunate to have con*cluded our agreements and deposits made by the three major investors one year ago today before the crisis began. In a gaming convention held last November in Las Vegas, delegates were in agreement that the Philip pines will be the last jurisdiction in Asia Pacific that will host the last of the expensive integrated resorts. An integrated resort in Macau or in Singapore cost investors to raise between US$2 to 4 billion. And since most if not all of their money are coming from or being raised by US-based companies who have been greatly affected by the recession, their projects today are expe riencing delays to be completed specially in Singapore. The economy of the small city state even contracted by minus 2% in 2008 and even projecting to contract be tween 6 to 8% this year. In the case of the PAGCOR Entertainment City, any delay is caused by technical or engineering issues. In any case, we hope to soft open Phase One of the Enter tainment City by late 2010.

Meantime, the Newport City hotel resort casino of Travelers International in Pasay City (Across the new NAIA Terminal 3) will soft open late this year. The New port City resort is part of the investment commitment of Travellers International. Some of you perhaps have visited Eastwood City in Libis, Quezon City. Megaworld’s successful concept of live, work and play in an integrated area such as in Eastwood City has been fused in Newport City and will even be better since Newport City will host a new de luxe Marriott Hotel, a high-end boutique hotel called Maxims and a world-class casino called Resort World by Genting.

Positive outlook

Our economic outlook is still good enough compared to most countries. This is the same with PAGCOR’s out look in gaming revenues. PricewaterhouseCoopers cited PAGCOR as the most promising jurisdiction in Asia Pacific with a compound ed annual growth rate of 17.9%. While the study was made before the global downturn, we reviewed the fig ures and have concluded that they are still achievable. I am not saying that casino gaming is recession-proof. That is a myth to say the least. I am saying what others have been saying that ”the Philippines is in a relatively strong position to weather the global downturn with the economy driven by private consumption and services, which are less vulnerable to external shocks.” The Philippines being inherently strong is what is helping PAGCOR. A bumpy if not bleak economy will always hound us especially because of CNN or BBC or even ANC. The pessimism there is affecting many countries. We have seen it happen when the US went into an economic downturn late last year. Most of us, if not all, were glued to our TV sets during the US campaign and election period up to the time of Obama’s inauguration as well as the financial crisis. I remember the late Vice President Emmanuel Pelaez saying in a casual statement about our world becoming one global village, he said: “If Jesus Christ chooses to return and appear to the world today, it would be much easier for people from all over the world to watch Him – how? Through CNN.”

[b_two]

when was this article written?

[srvfan]

Tuloy tuloy na ba ang project, o may TRO pa?

Nakita ko kasi itong article:

http://pampil.wordpress.com/2009/01/...rs-group-says/
January 12, 2009...9:23 am
SC ruling on Manila Bay effectively stops Palace’s $ 15-billion casino project, fishers group says
Jump to Comments

SC ruling on Manila Bay effectively stops Palace’s $ 15-billion casino project, fishers group says

The left-leaning fisherfolk alliance Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) on Friday said the Supreme Court ruling on Manila Bay effectively stopped Malacañang and the state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) from pursuing the ambitious 15-billion dollar casino project.

“President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and her dream to transform Manila Bay into the newest gambling Mecca in Asia is legally stopped by the high tribunal decision to restore the bay back to its pristine and historic glory,” Pamalakaya national chair Fernando Hicap said in a press statement.

Days before Christmas last month, the high court issued a ruling the upheld the previous rulings of the lower courts on the 1999 petition of a group of concerned citizens compelling the national government and several government agencies and local governments to clean up Manila Bay and bring back its healthy state.

“The SC ruling on Manila Bay clean up will prevent the government from proceeding with anti-environment projects along the coastal shores of the National Capital Region and provinces of Bulacan, Bataan and Pampanga in Central Luzon and Cavite province in Southern Tagalog region. It automatically bars the government and its private clients from reclaiming 90-hectares of shallow waters in Roxas Boulevard for the 15-billion dollar casino and theme park project,” the Pamalakaya leader added.

Hicap said the reclamation activities in Manila Bay since the Marcos era paved way for the destruction of the bay. He said the left-and right reclamations that were used to host huge government and private buildings and commercial spaces radically altered the use and ecological state of the bay, which was once one of the biggest fish producing fishing areas in the Philippines.

Last year Malacañang and Pagcor officials led the groundbreaking ceremony for the $ 15-billion Las Vegas style casino and tourism complex in Manila Bay. Pagcor said the actual development of the 90-hectare casino and resort complex will begin in the third quarter of the 2008. The state-owned gaming corporation said companies with approved proposals must invest at least one billion U.S. dollars for their projects, with initial $ 400 million investments in the first two-years.

One of the investors, the Azure Corporation proposed to develop the Okada Resort Manila Bay, an integrated casino resort with 2,000 standard rooms and 300 VIP suites. Its main features include the biggest oceanarium, theaters and giant Ferris wheel similar to the “London Eye” and would be called the “Manila Eye.”

For its part, Genting Berhard, with its partners Star Cruises and Alliance Global Incorporated, plans to build several hotels with a minimum room capacity of 2,000 rooms and a world-class theme park.
The SM Holdings of Henry Sy, owner of SM Mall of Asia near Manila Bay, is also planning to put up a gaming facility and will tie up with Asia-Pacific Gaming of Australia, and a major luxury hotel to be managed by Radisson Hotels and Resorts at the Mall of Asia Complex side of the Manila Bay Integrated City.

On the other hand, Bloombery Investments Ltd. is planning to construct three luxury hotels with a total capacity of 1,500 rooms, with high-end retail shops, celebrity-themed dining, and a major entertainment and sports center that could rival the best in Las Vegas.

Pagcor chair Efraim Genuino said the $15-billion Manila Bay Casino project will raise the gaming company’s income by at least 30 percent once it becomes fully operational, and it is expected to generate 250,000 fresh jobs to accommodate 3 million foreign and domestic guests per year.

Pamalakaya’s Hicap said a conservative 3 million coastal people in Metro Manila, Bulacan, Pampanga and Cavite are still dependent to fishing and fish-related activities in Manila Bay. “The irrevocable desire of Malacañang to convert Manila Bay into an international gateway for big time gamblers both international and domestic is not only blasphemous, but also detestable and highly revolting. This government is sacrificing the future of Manila Bay fishers at the altar of corporate interest and gambling addiction of the international and domestic elites,” he said.

Pamalakaya’s Hicap said their group’s members had bitter memories of the reclamation projects facilitated by the Public Estate Authority under the PEA-Amari deal, which they opposed since it was first proposed in the 90s.

“The attack dogs of then President Fidel Ramos were always on the loose. They were running after our members like running lapdogs of the former President chasing our members as if they were the most wanted criminals in the city,” he recalled.

“From 1992 to 1995, the demolitions of coastal shanties became an everyday ordeal in Pasay Reclamation area. Houses were uprooted on almost day-to-day basis. Small and big time bribery to divide the communities were conducted to facilitate the demolition of homes as if the words and orders of Malacañang were the words of God in this country,” Hicap said.

The setting up of casino and resorts, including SM’s Mall of Asia was all in the master plan of the government known as Manila Bay Master Development Plan that officially started during the time of President Ramos and projected to end between 2020 and 2025.

The Pamalakaya leader recalled that 3,500 small fisherfolk in Pasay Reclamation Area, and another 3,000 coastal and urban poor families along the coastal shores of Parañaque were evicted by the government of former President Ramos to allow the construction of the proposed casino that would make the Philippines the Las Vegas of Asia.

The militant group said 60 percent of pollution entering Manila Bay comes through the Pasig River, and 80 percent of the pollution comes from industries and commercial establishments situated along the country’s major river system in the National Capital Region. Another 15 percent of the pollution that gets into Manila Bay comes from Pampanga River, which the group said, is colonized by big and small polluting factories.

“The government is blaming over fishing as a major factor in the degradation of Manila Bay. That is a flimsy and ridiculous excuse. The massive privatization and conversion of public lands and coastal communities along the bay since the Marcos dictatorship up to present administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is the principal reason why Manila Bay is under the Intensive Care Unit, and suffering from environmental comatose,” Pamalakaya said.

The militant group said not less than 20,000 hectares of Manila Bay have been subjected to reclamation to pave way for the construction of special economic zones in Bataan and Cavite, the commercial spaces presently occupied by Manila Film Center, the GSIS Building in Pasay City, the Cultural Center of the Philippines and Folk Arts Theater in Manila, and the SM Mall of Asia and other commercial companies in Pasay City. #

[srvfan]

And yes, I'm aware the article was published last year.

[playfish]

as of february 2010

Originally Posted by aranetacoliseum

updates from pagcor facebook account....

[b_two]

MOVE OVER VEGAS... STEP ASIDE MACAU...

ETO NA SI JUAN DELA CRUZ... GO, GO, GO... PUMAPAIMBULOG!!!

[psicom]

tagal pa ito... baka mga lolo na tau,,, hindi pa naitatayo ang OB TOWER