Ayala Land checks safety features of projects

Aya Lowe

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Ayala Land to renew safety checks across all properties and brands

SAFETY CHECKS. Ayala Land will conduct safety checks across the board. Photo by Aya Lowe/Rappler

MANILA, Philippines – Property giant Ayala Land Inc. will conduct safety checks across all its development projects and brands following a deadly blast in one of its high-end properties in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig.

Ayala Land president Antonino Aquino told Rappler in an interview Thursday, June 13, that the safety checks will be conducted not only on the residential projects but their retail units as well.  

“We are putting in place the added safety measures,” Aquino said.

A gas leak was found as the cause of the May 31 explosion in a condminium unit in Two Serendra apartment complex on Friday, May 31. Three were killed and 4 were injured. 

Ayala Land is the country’s biggest real estate firm, with a diversified portfolio that includes residential and commercial developments.

Public, private spaces

Some of Ayala Land’s development projects are large-scale, masterplanned, mixed-use communities where residential and commercial blocks are adjacent to and complement each other. .

In the case of Serendra apartment complex with a retail strip in the middle and is next to a mall and other commercial areas, Aquino notes the difference in their access to the private and public spaces. 

“The goverment wil be effecting a check on the distributon system but the one that presents the greatest challenge is going inside each and every [residential] unit,” he noted.

Aquino admitted that it’s much easier to monitor and implement safety checks in the public spaces they own, such as retail space and restaurants.

“We don’t have a problem at all relative to all restaurants becase we are in control… They are on the same centralized distribution system in that mall area,” said Aquino. Ayala Land kept all its nearby retail units open in the days immediately following the blast. Spokesperson Jorge Marco said on May 31 that the malls and retails establishments would remain open to cater to the public as they were ‘outside the cordoned off area.” 

“Restaurant outlets are the biggest users of LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) all over the country,” he noted. “For us we’ve taken the lead in order to make sure that all of the instructions and suggestions are implemented. We are putting in place added safety measures.”

Biggest builder

Ayala Land said in its 2012 annual report that it has 140 ongoing projects all over the country worth P240 billion in sales value.

As of end-2012, it has launched 23,487 residential units in various projects nationwide under the brands Ayala Land Premier, Alveo Land, Avida Land, Amaia Land and Bella Vita.

It claims to have 43% share of the residential market.

It operates 35 shopping centers with 1.2 million square meter retail gross leasable area.

The affected building, Two Serendra is part of a 12-hectare complex in Bonifacio Global City. Both Bonifacio Global and Makati are the Ayala group’s property crown jewels. – Rappler.com


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