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FIRST,
the good news. Intramuros Administration (IA) head Ana
Maria Harper is currently negotiating with at least five
foreign investors to put up a five-star hotel, where the
old Ateneo used to be (read: where national hero Jose
Rizal actually went to school). The hotel, expected to
cost $30 million, will, of course, be subject to zoning
laws. This means the proposed hotel will be no more than
three storys high, excluding basement parking and the
attic.
Beside
the proposed hotel will be the Ecclesiastical Museum of
San Ignacio, which will house IA’s collection of
santos and church-related pieces valued at P500
million. Construction of the museum within the next two
years will cost P400 million, half to come from the
Department of Tourism and half committed by Executive
Secretary Eduardo Ermita.
Now, the
bad news. There’s a move by Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim to
place IA under its jurisdiction. Basically, it wants all
projects approved by the IA board, where the mayor
already sits, to be also approved by the city council.
Right
now, the IA board and the city council are at odds. For
one, the IA board has turned down a proposal to put up a
mall on the golf course just outside the walls of
Intramuros. For another, Harper has been very vocal
about the gambling and drinking establishments (hey,
there’s even a strip joint or two and drugs from Baseco
are said to be readily available) near schools like
Letran.
****
IT’S not
exactly clear what the Philippine Reclamation Authority
will do with the old 15-hectare Nayong Filipino property
near the airport, which it exchanged for a same-sized
property in the reclaimed Manila Bay, where the new
Nayong Filipino will be constructed.
As
everybody knows, the new Nayong Filipino will showcase
all 17 regions of the country, instead of just six in
the old property. And, yes, it already has the money for
the project.
****
DID you
know 1:
Lucio Tan was at the wake of Panfilo Domingo every
night. And yes, he attended the funeral last Wednesday,
a rainy day deemed auspicious, indeed.
Then
again, P.O. Domingo has served Kapitan, not just loyally
but also competently, both in Allied Bank and in the
University of the East.
Domingo,
who suffered from diabetes and other related illnesses,
was 83.
DID you
know 2:
Passport holders of 146 countries don’t need a visa to
enter the Philippines, so long as they stay for no more
than 21 days. These include those long-legged Russian
blondes in Makati hotels and Koreans of all sorts all
over the country. Unfortunately, Filipinos who want to
enter most of these countries need to get visas.
According to Immigration and Deportation commissioner
Marcelino Libanan, there are currently about 27,000
Koreans granted special study permits (read: those who
are taking short-term English courses); 2,000 Koreans
holding student visas (read: those enrolled in
Philippine universities for the standard four-year
course); and 17,000 Koreans issued work permits (read:
these include the managers of the Hanjin Shipyard in
Subic, which locals must have mistakenly estimated at
40,000).
DID you
know 3:
Restaurants leasing space at the Quezon Memorial Circle
currently pay a maximum of P95,000 a month. Mind you,
it’s for the standard 300-sq m lot, not per square
meter.
Most of
the lessees started out in 1989 at P40,000 a month, with
an escalating clause over a 10-year period. The current
renewed lease will, of course, be honored by Mayor
Feliciano Belmonte, who has taken over management of the
park this month from the private sector, until the end
of their lease contracts.
Oh yes,
Sonny Belmonte has already hired urban planner Felino
Palafox. The talk is the park, with an estimated
construction budget of P400 million, will look like a
smaller Champs Elysee. |
