Megaworld bags historic wins in property tilt

Megaworld executives led by (6th from right) Lourdes Gutierrez-Alfonso, chief operating officer and (7th from right) Kevin L. Tan, senior vice president and head of Megaworld Lifestyle Malls received this year’s “Best Developer” award.

It was a fitting tribute to the innovations, excellence, and the significant contributions made by some of the country’s most esteemed property developers.

On Thursday night, some of the industry’s frontrunners and trailblazers were thrust into the limelight at the PropertyGuru Philippines Property Awards 2017, as they were recognized for their exceptional projects spread across the country.

But one notable feat in this year’s edition was the numerous citations received by property giant Megaworld Corp.

Back to back wins

Megaworld bagged the “Best Developer in the Philippines” award for the second consecutive year, along with eight other major awards and 17 highly commended citations—reportedly the most for any real estate company this year.

This was also the first time in the five-year history of the Philippines Property Awards that a developer has won the most coveted award of being the “Best Developer” for two consecutive years.

“The blueprint for Megaworld’s success is not only apparent in its pioneering integrated urban township concept that’s been perfected for many years, but also in its dedication to nation building by introducing the world-class developments in provincial areas,” Lindsay J. Orr, chairman of JLL Philippines and head of the 10-member judging panel, was quoted in a statement as saying.

Citing that Megaworld projects were aesthetically pleasing, sustainable and environment friendly, the panel further said that “the company in the past year has excelled in producing sone of the industry’s best designs and commercial development, earning once again the distinction of being the year’s Best Developer.”

Awards, citations

Another recognition for the Dr. Andrew L. Tan-led conglomerate was “Best Universal Design Development”.

This was a new category and the award was conferred to Megaworld’s low-rise project St. Moritz Private Estates, which has been noted for promoting a cosmopolitan features underlined by Filipino ethnic accents, as well as topnotch amenities and recreational facilities that cater to all age groups and families.

Megaworld’s awards include Special Recognition in CSR; Highly Commended for The Florence and St. Moritz Private Estates under Best Luxury Condo Development (Metro Manila) category; Highly Commended for 8 Forbes Town Road and One Eastwood Avenue under the Best High End Condo Development (Metro Manila) category; and Highly Commended for One Pacific Residence under the Best Condo Development (Cebu) category.

The property giant was also conferred the Best Office Development Award for Alliance Global Tower; Highly Commended for Tower One Plaza Magellan under the Best BPO Office Development category; Highly Commended for Uptown Mall and Venice Grand Canal under the Best Retail Development category; and the Best Mixed Use Development Award for 8 Forbes Town Road.

Alliance Global Tower was awarded as this year’s “Best Office Development”. Receiving the award was Megaworld COO Lourdes Gutierrez-Alfonso (middle) and Megaworld SVP Jericho P. Go (left).

Other citations include Best Residential Architectural Design Award for One Uptown Residence and Highly Commended for One Eastwood Avenue and One Pacific Residence under the same category; Highly Commended for St. Moritz Private Estates and Three Central (Best Residential Interior Design); Best Retail Architectural Design Award for Uptown Mall and Highly Commended for Venice Grand Canal Mall for the same category; Highly Commended for Alliance Global Tower under Best Office Architectural Design; Best Residential Landscape Architectural Design Award for The Florence; and Best Retail Landscape Architectural Design Award for Uptown Mall, among the many other awards that Megaworld had bagged.

The main category winners in the Philippines are now advancing to the seventh annual PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards grand finals that will be held in Singapore this November at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre.

Local property developers will then vie, along with their counterparts in 15 other markets in the region, for the title of being the “Best in Asia.”

Fueling progress

Harry V. Krishnan, CEO of PropertyGuru Group, commented: “I would like to congratulate the winners and the Highly Commended companies and projects at this year’s PropertyGuru Philippines Property Awards. Continued commitment to the property sector’s growth definitely fuels progress and the Philippine real estate market has shown a lot of promise on this front.”

“At the same time, there are lots of opportunities for growth and improvement, specifically on transparency and sustainability. As developers across the archipelago become more focused on their goals, I can see a fantastic future for the industry and it will be great to witness its ongoing transformation into a regional real estate player with outstanding and innovative commercial and residential offerings,” Krishnan further said.

Terry Blackburn, founder and managing director of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards, meanwhile noted that while Manila remains the heart of the real estate industry, quality developments can now be found everywhere in the country.

“As residential developments (give) more and more Filipinos the chance to own their own home for the first time, economic growth continues to be supported by world class retail and office developments,” Blackburn added.

Presented by title sponsor Kohler, the PropertyGuru Philippines Property Awards 2017 gala dinner was attended by key industry figures and government officials including Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo, who acknowledged the contribution of the real estate sector to the growing tourism industry.

Also present were Tourism Undersecretary Alma Jimenez and Social Security System chair Amando Valdez.

Megaworld’s SVP and head of Lifestyle Malls Kevin L. Tan received two major awards for Uptown Mall: Best Retail Architectural Design and Best Retail Landscape Architectural Design.

St. Moritz Private Estate was awarded as the first “Best Universal Design Development”, a new award category in this year’s PPA. Receiving the award was (left) Rachelle Penaflorida, VP for sales and marketing of Megaworld.

Saki Mirabueno, VP for sales and marketing of Megaworld Prime RFO, received the “Best Mixed-Use Development” award for 8 Forbes Town Road.

Megaworld’s Noli D. Hernandez and Hermie Cullano receive the “Best Residential Architectural Design Award” for One Uptown Residence.