MEGAWORLD Corp. is optimistic about the government regulation on the optional wearing of face masks outdoors, which a company official said could help bring the township developer’s figures to pre-pandemic levels.
“We’re nearing pre-pandemic levels already. And now we are in the new normal,” Megaworld Vice-President and Head for Public Relations and Media Affairs Harold Brian C. Geronimo said on the sidelines of the company’s media tour on Friday.
“All our malls are open, and with the recent IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force) rule on optional masks outdoors that will definitely boost revenues and bring us to the pre-pandemic levels. We’re not yet there but we’re nearing the pre-pandemic level,” Mr. Geronimo added.
Megaworld recently capped off its first residential condominium inside its 140-hectare Maple Grove township in General Trias, Cavite.
The Verdin has 140 units, some of which have a lanai surrounded by greenery. Units can be a studio that is 32 square meters (sq.m.), a one-bedroom unit that can be up to 50.5 sq.m. wide, or a two-bedroom unit with up to a 79-sq.m. space.
The condominium boasts sustainability features, one of which is its recycled and indigenous materials-sourced decor, furniture, and flooring.
The Verdin also has energy-generating equipment and machines in its outdoor fitness area which allow its occupants to store power while exercising to charge their electronic devices.
In its third-floor amenity deck, The Verdin has lush pocket gardens, study nooks with solar-powered outlets, and reflexology paths.
The Verdin also has a swimming pool with lounge, fitness gyms, function rooms with a spill-over area, daycare, and a roof deck garden.
Megaworld officials said that almost all of the units in the 10-storey residential tower were sold with only 11 units left unoccupied.
“We have already started turning over a couple of units. If I’m not mistaken more than 10 or 15. In a couple of weeks may mga nakatira na diyan (there will be occupants already),” Mr. Geronimo said.
Meanwhile, Megaworld is set to finish the office building in the said township by 2023.
The office building, One Corporate Place, will have 17 floors and will offer office units ranging from 60 sq.m. to 280.50 sq.m.
It will also have sustainability features which include roof deck gardens, energy-saving LED lights in common areas, use of dual-flush type water closets for common toilets, and a material recovery facility for waste segregation and recycling.
“It will be a mix of BPO (business process outsourcing) offices, and also a mix of some, based on the plans, law firms and accounting firms,” Megaworld First Vice-President for Sales and Marketing Eugene Em Lozano said.
Mr. Geronimo also shared that the said condominium is not up for infusion in its MREIT, Inc. as the company focuses more on infusing its office spaces.
“We’re purely office in our REIT as of now because we still have a long runway of growth for our office [segment],” Mr. Geronimo said. “We have 1.4 million sq.m. and what has been infused is only around 200,000 to 300,00 sq.m. [to date].”
Among the pipeline of planned infusions are Megaworld properties from Iloilo Business Park, Mckinley Hill, and Uptown Bonifacio.
Mr. Geronimo said: “So right now, there’s no Uptown office property that is part of the REIT yet, but it has been announced that soon we will have an office property in Uptown to be part of MREIT.”
On Friday, shares in Megaworld slipped by 1.72% or four centavos to P2.28 apiece. — Justine Irish D. Tabile
