CLI bags Xavier University’s 14.3-ha Manresa property in CDO

After a two-year review process by the Jesuits and getting imprimatur from the Vatican, property developer Cebu Landmasters Inc. (CLI) has finalized a deal to acquire the 14.3-hectare Manresa property of Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan in uptown Cagayan de Oro.

CLI will develop the property into a mixed-use Manresa Town adjacent to Xavier’s new 21-hectare Masterson Campus.

CLI’s Manresa Town is envisioned to be a university town offering generous open spaces, residential options for students, easy access to commercial establishments and “future-ready” offices.

This university town concept would create “strong synergies which will benefit both Xavier and the surrounding uptown CDO community,” CLI said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday.

Game changer

CLI chair and chief executive Jose Soberano III said his group was honored to be part of a “game-changing” project for both Xavier and CDO.

“This development will serve as a key catalyst for both the education and economy in the entire region,” he said.

Provisions in the agreement prepared by Xavier and endorsed by Jesuit leaderships in the Philippines and in Rome, Italy, had been approved by the Vatican after a thorough two-year review process. This also followed a series of consultations held in 2019 with Xavier’s employees, students, alumni, parents, CDO officials, clergy and other members of the CDO community.

Proceeds from the sale would be used to develop the Masterson Campus, named after the late Fr. William Masterson S.J. The campus is targeted to open by 2024.

Campus of the future

It is envisioned to catalyze development in Northern Mindanao with a sustainable and “new normal-ready” campus master plan, characterized by an abundance of space, green areas, wide roads, dedicated bike lanes, campus-wide wireless connectivity and healthy and adaptable learning facilities for virtual and physical classes.

This so-called campus of the future aims for a “more socially relevant and inclusive” learning institution.

“We envision an academically stronger university in this new campus, one that will facilitate learning in the new normal and at the same time produce men and women for others that can make relevant contributions to Mindanao,” said Xavier president Fr. Mars Tan S.J., who is also an environmentalist.

Development of the new Xavier campus is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2022. The campus will be supplemented by over 25 hectares of surrounding forest area.

CLI, for its part, is targeting to complete the first phase of the Manresa town in the same period.