Quezon City CBD flexes its muscles to become Northern Metro Manila 's business hub!
01/09/2008

Quezon City has embarked on a multi-billion peso endeavor that will see the rise of the city's Central Business District (CBD) and transform the city into a dynamic business hub that will rival emerging areas in Metro Manila such as Fort Bonifacio Global City and the Bay City area.

The Quezon City CBD is made up of the East and North Triangle areas along North EDSA and the Veterans Memorial Medical Center, which is still being developed as a well-planned, integrated and environmentally-balanced mixed-use development model.

The city government has finalized plans for the development of Park Lane, which will open up the inner CBD areas; and the Mindanao Avenue extension, which will cut across the CBD to EDSA to lessen traffic gridlocks in the North Avenue- Mindanao Avenue extension.

Meanwhile, a large-scale battle has emerged between two retail behemoths within this envisioned Quezon City CBD. SM City-North EDSA has encountered stiff competition from Ayala Land's TriNoma. Both are undertaking improvements and upgrades in their retail offerings to further attract patrons and customers. This healthy competition is expected to boost the status of the Quezon City CBD as a retail haven, in addition to its vision of also becoming a business, science and I.T. hub.

Among the new developments in the Quezon City CBD are the University of the Philippines Diliman Science and Technology Park, improvements in the Quezon Memorial Circle and a new Quezon City Museum.

Over a span of 6 years from 2001 to 2007, the city government of Quezon City invested more than Php10 billion in infrastructure. Of this amount, about 52% went to road building and repair, paving and widening more than 1,146 kilometers of concreted and asphalted roads. The city government also installed and energized 7,000 lampposts to adequately light up major and inner roads. The city government has also rehabilitated, upgraded and constructed 51 parks all over the city from 2001 to 2007.

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte said that while the city government is building up the city's competitiveness and attractiveness as a favored site for business and commerce through developing its physical landscape and information highways, "(we) would not want our people to suffer the pains of traffic gridlocks, water supply shortage, over crowded neighborhoods and clogged drainage systems."

Quezon City has maintained its status as the richest and the most business friendly city in the country.

The mayor said with the city government's Php8.6 billion budget for 2008, which includes its 2007 budget surplus of P1.4 billion, expect more wonderful things to unfold for the city and its people.