Upscale retirement village seen to boost revenue in Balamban

A high-end retirement village project  in Balamban town, midwest Cebu, is expected to increase the municipality’s income and draw more investors to the town.

“I’m thankful that of all the places in Cebu we were picked for the development,” Balamban Mayor Ace Stefan Binghay said.

Singaporean developer, Syntech Philippines Inc., is building a premier class retirement village in  32 hectares of  the Mandayao Hills of Balamban.

Dubbed  Amonsagana, the project was launched last week with  provincial and municipal officials in attendance.

A one-hour drive  from Cebu city through the Transcentral Highway and ten  minutes from the poblacion of Balamban, the village is billed as a  combination of “nature’s beauty and the comforts of home.”

The project broke ground seven months ago.  The main architect and master planner,  Ma. Lourdes “Joy” Martinez Onozawa, designed it  with the goal of raising the quality of life  by  blending traditions of the past with needs of  the future and guided by the principle of environmental sustainability.

Investors
Mayor Binghay said he expects the town’s real property tax collection to increase with this project.

“Usually, when a developer breaks ground here, others will follow suit. We have many  investors coming in already,” he said.

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With an estimated P3.8 billion in revenue over the next eight to 10 years,  the project will create new jobs, he said. Binghay said the demand for jobs will come from maintenance and operations of each project phase, aside from the volume of additional businesses generated by local contractors, suppliers, and service providers.

Retirees
More than 60 percent of Balamban’s  income comes from industries, including shipbuilding. Another investment by Tsuneishi Heavy Industries Cebu Inc. is in the works. Binghay  said the town will also be home to an assembly factory for electronic tricycles or e-tricycles.

Valentino Cabansag, general manager  of the Philippine Retirement Authority, said the country is a premier destination for retirees.

Retirees from South Korea, China, Taiwan, Japan, the US, India and Europe have chosen to settle in Cebu.

Based on the 2014 Live and Investment Retire Overseas Index, the Philippines ranked 7th among 21 countries which have the best places to retire.

The country also placed 8th in the Global Retirement Index by Natixis Global Assets Management Core Data among the top 20 best places to retire in the world, according to Forbes Magazine.

The site in  barangay Pondol has an elevated view of the Tañon Strait.

“This is perfect for retirees who want to live the rest of their lives peacefully,” said Binghay. He said the developer expects to finish the project in five to seven years.

According to Amonsagana’s website, the project will have four phases.  At present, the project is  on its first phase with 66 lots and three designs for house-and-lot packages.