By Kristine Jane R. Liu

MANILA - Campost-led Greenfield Development Corp. has tied up with the Ayala group’s Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) for a residential project in booming Laguna province, a growth area for major property developers.

"We have a joint venture with BPI in Sta. Rosa, Laguna [which] will start sometime next year," Greenfield Development Chairman Jeffrey Campos said in a recent press briefing.

Mr. Campos said the bank owns the 17-hectare property where the joint venture plans to develop "horizontal projects" targeting the upper middle class.

"We have not finished the planning yet [since] we just signed two to three months ago. There is still no name for the project but it will be all horizontal," he said. Lot areas will likely be as big as 150 square meters each, which can accommodate two cars.

Mr. Campos said the residential project is the first joint venture of BPI with a developer other than sister company Ayala Land, Inc., which, like Greenfield Development, is known for high-end projects.

"I would like to thank the BPI board and stockholders for trusting Greenfield to be able to come up with a very good project for them," he said.

Greenfield Development is among many developers that have started looking at projects in Laguna. Lucio C. Tan-led Eton Properties Philippines, Inc. and Ayala Land have already spearheaded the development in the growing industrial area.

Eton Properties for instance is building the Eton City, a 1,000-hectare masterplanned property along the South Luzon Expressway in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. Eton City is aiming to replicate Makati, housing both commercial and residential developments.

Meanwhile, Ayala Land is engaged in the development of the 1,600-hectare project called Nuvali in Canlubang, Laguna. The land was bought from the Yulo family in 1993.

Cathay Land, Inc. is developing the 600-hectare South Forbes in Sta. Rosa.

Aside from property developers, schools have also started opening in the province, including the Jesuit-run Xavier School, Don Bosco School, and De La Salle.

The Dominican-run University of Santo Tomas also has a property in Sta. Rosa.

Greenfield Development’s first foray into the high-end residential condominium market was the Twin Oaks Place. The two-tower, 38-storey project is among the many high-rise projects planned for the 15-hectare Greenfield District in Mandaluyong.

Construction of the P3-billion Twin Oaks will start in December or January next year. The condominium will have a total of 760 units.

Mr. Campos said the company has already started preselling the project and the take-up has been "good."

"The main selling points of the project is its easy access to [commercial and retail districts] and it is an integral part of a masterplanned community," he said.