DAVAO CITY — Vista Land & Lifescapes, Inc. (VLL) broke ground on Saturday for The Terraces, the first of four Camella Condominium Homes (COHO) projects in Davao City.

COHO is the new medium-rise condominium brand of the Villar-owned VLL. A COHO project would include amenities such as a co-working space in a coffee shop, a one-stop home improvement store, and an entertainment room with a cinema.

“We are already done with the clearing and by January next year we will be in full blast when it comes to construction. The construction with mid-rise is quick… and our timeline for the completion of one building is usually three years, unlike when it comes to high-rise, it will take five years of construction for one building,” Carlo V. Refamonte, COHO Mindanao operations head, said in an interview during the ceremony.

The first building of The Terraces, located in a 1.6 hectare property in Barangay Ma-a, will have 15 floors.

Mr. Refamonte said they have allotted a frontage of about 400-500 square meters (sq.m.) for future commercial development.

“We allotted commercial space as well in the frontage facing the Ma-a road,” he said.

The COHO units, at 30 sq.m. for one bedroom, 40 sq.m. two bedrooms, will have a price range starting at P3 million.

The three other COHO projects planned in the city are: The Acropolis in Lanang; The Frontera in Tigatto, Buhangin; and The Evora in Communal, Buhangin, which is five minutes away from the Davao International Airport.

Mr. Refamonte said the recent earthquakes in parts of Mindanao, including Davao City, prompted a review of geographical and structural design considerations to ensure the safety of their buildings.

VLL’s existing projects in Davao City include the Camella Northpoint condominium complex and the Camella Cerritos, a horizontal development in Mintal. — Maya M. Padillo