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By Chino S. Leyco Reporter
THE country’s largest mall
developer and operator has secured a property
deal that would allow it to put up a shopping mall just outside the
sprawling University of the Philippines (UP) campus in Diliman,
Quezon City.
In a statement, state-run
Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) said it entered into a
lease agreement with SM Prime Holdings Inc. The deal covers a
three-hectare GSIS property along the Elliptical Road that is seen
to earn P1.3 billion for the pension fund.
The GSIS property is a stone’s
throw away from an ongoing commercial development at the UP campus
undertaken by the Ayala group, which bagged a long-term contract to
develop and manage a huge tract of land owned by the university
along Commonwealth Avenue. The Ayala project involves the
construction of office space for business process outsourcing (BPO)
firms.
The SM group’s lease would run
to 25 years and is renewable upon mutual consent by both parties. SM
Prime will develop the property into a commercial complex, GSIS
said. At present, the property is home to the GSIS Quezon City
Satellite Office.
“For the duration of the
construction period, the GSIS QC Satellite Office will still be open
for business in the area. The satellite office will then be housed
in the new SM commercial complex after completion of the
development,” the pension fund said.
The GSIS published its offer to
interested parties for the development of the GSIS QC property in
2006.
Three interested parties made an
offer for the development of the property with the SM Group coming
up with the best offer after a thorough evaluation process, the
pension fund said.
The GSIS Board of Trustees
authorized the pension fund’s management February 6 to negotiate
with the SM Group for a long-term lease of the property.
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