Filinvest’s one-stop getaway destination in Tagaytay

In the 1970s, a visit to Tagaytay meant a celebration picnic with your buddies after your midterms or finals.

“All you have to do is bring a case of beer and packed food and you are set to go and get drunk under the stars and a good feel of the cold Tagaytay weather,” recalls Francis V. Ceballos, senior vice president of Filinvest Land Inc., as he describes with nostalgia the Tagaytay of his youth.

Restful escape

It is simply the Tagaytay 1.0 for the baby-boomer generation. With just an hour’s drive from Manila at the time when Baguio seems at the other side of the archipelago, Tagaytay was the restful escape until circa 1980s and mid-1990s.

By the 1980s, the landscape of Tagaytay changes, property developers began to develop it as the playground for the affluent few.

“It is at a time when private club memberships and other modern resthouses were introduced. But it was quite limiting. Only a few can afford the private Tagaytay lifestyle emerging then. Unless you are invited access could not be for everyone,” Ceballos points out.

At the turn of the 21st century, a new Tagaytay seems to beckon, powered by the vibrant entrepreneurial spirit that transformed the place into a hodgepodge of cultures and the environmentally-conscious set ready to embrace the unique but traditional mélange from the Southern Tagalog region and a fusion from the Visayas and Mindanao provinces.

Go-to place

“Tagaytay is the go-to-place when it comes to the delightful fruit tarts of Rowena’s, the fried Tawilis and the distinctly Filipino cuisine of Antonio’s, the fresh salads at Sonya’s Garden etc.,” Ceballos says.

“The hassle in Tagaytay now is that you have to move from one place to another to get whatever you want at the area, which explains the traffic and the restful weekend disappears,” he adds.

Tagaytay needs a concept that simply combines what the place is known for. Filinvest Land Inc. is ready to put together all the elements that will change the landscape of Tagaytay into a brighter, higher scale.

Fora Tagaytay

For the first time, Filinvest ventures with a flagship mixed-use development that will help transform anew the popular weekend getaway.

The P4-billion Fora Tagaytay project will feature a forest-themed garden amenity, a modern commercial block, condominium buildings and condotels that will foster the celebration and gathering of all types of both tourists and residents.

“We want to be the vanguard of Tagaytay’s reinvention. We want to be at the forefront of Tagaytay refreshing itself,” Ceballos said in an interview. “Located at the heart of Tagaytay City, Fora is envisioned to be the largest integrated themed destination in Tagaytay City.”

“Fora, the plural for forum, is a marketplace, a meeting place. We want people to actually meet, congregate and celebrate in our place,” explains Martin H. Caudal, assistant vice president and leisure projects head of FLI.

Ceballos says every visitor will find their own place in Fora, including families who will surely be occupied for at least the weekend.

Mixed-use project

Located on Emilio Aguinaldo Highway at the Rotunda Junction of Tagaytay, Fora is a 5.2-hectare, mixed-use project composed of three main components.

The commercial block, with a gross floor area of 47,000 square meters, will feature a Metro Gaisano supermarket and department store, four digital cinemas and close to 300 dining and retail shops.

“We also want to be able to showcase the handicrafts and produce of Tagaytay,” Ceballos adds.

Main garden amenity

Another major feature is the Forest, the main garden amenity that completes the destination concept of Fora. It will offer dining options in front of the amphitheater, which will serve as an events center for weddings and parties.

For the residential side, FLI will put up four buildings, two of which are 10-story condotels with 159 units each, a shared infinity pool, a trade hall and meeting rooms. The 23-54-sq-m condotels will be operated by Filinvest Hotels Inc. through the Quest Hotel brand.

The eight-story condominium buildings will consist of 135 units each.

“If you want to own a piece of Tagaytay, you can buy your own condominium unit,” Ceballos says.

Getaway hub

FLI will spend P4 billion to transform the vacant lot into a hub for celebration and gathering between friends and families.

“We’re hoping to break ground this quarter. We should be able to open the mall and the condotel by Christmas of 2016,” Ceballos says.

FLI, the property arm of the Gotianun family’s Filinvest Development Corp., is one of the country’s leading real estate firms and is into mall operations, subdivision and condominium development.