GREENHILLS Shopping Center in San Juan City is undergoing a multi-billion redevelopment as it keeps up with the latest global retail trends.
Ortigas & Co. is pouring in P6.3 billion for the new integrated mall, which is expected to open in 2021.
Ortigas Malls General Manager Renee C. Bacani said in a media briefing last week that the new mall is envisioned to be an ultimate shopping destination.
“[It] plays an integral part for the entire Greenhills center. It will serve and position itself as the heart and soul of the community,” Ms. Bacani said.
The new mall will have seven floors with a gross floor area of 100,000 square meters (sq.m.), featuring a retail format that will bring together over 150 global and local lifestyle brands and about 2,000 tiangge stalls.
The popular Greenhills tiangge will occupy five levels of the mall, which will also have different themes for each floor.
Ortigas President Jaime E. Ysmael said in the same briefing that Greenhills will continue its position as an incubator for micro, small and medium enterprises as it retains the tiangge that it is known for.
He said a portion of the mall will be allocated for new entrepreneurs, including students, to showcase their products. This will be done through partnerships with universities.
“We will concentrate them in one section of the mall and make it much more lively, much more modern in terms of ambience, while retaining the old charm of the bargain shopping,” Mr. Ysmael said.
To provide customers with a complete shopping experience, the new mall will open with a budget-friendly food court and an upscale food hall. The mall will also have four prestige and two regular cinemas, and three basement parking levels for up to 1,300 slots.
“We are building on the format that we have now, and making it more attuned to the current trends of global and local retail,” Ms. Bacani said. “The public can expect a new and enhanced overall lifestyle experience in Greenhills with this retail anchor that will feature the biggest names in global and local food and shopping.”
Based on the master plan, the mall includes clinics, gyms, and an activity center for public and big events. It will also feature open spaces and parks that can serve as venues for recreational activities or for the Greenhills night market.
The soon-to-be ultimate shopping destination is designed by global architecture firm CallisonRTKL. The new shopping mall will have a modern design, mostly using glass and steel.
“We provide what the community needs. It’s really into creating and redeveloping a mall into something that they want,” Ms. Bacani said. “It is not the commercial route we’re taking, it’s more of the interaction and social, and for them to stay longer in the mall.”
Mr. Ysmael believes Greenhills has the ingredients for a successful mixed-use development.
“It’s a natural extension of the economic activity which we have within the Ortigas business district,” he added. — Mark Louis F. Ferrolino

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