Projects

Bonifacio global City | Manila

This project involved the creation of a master plan for a new central business district, as well as the detailed planning, urban design and landscape guidelines necessary to make it reality. The objective, as defined by a collaborative, multi-disciplinary team (urban planners, architects, landscape architects, civil and transportation engineers), was to create the following:

A design sensitive to the local culture, context, and climate.
An integrated land use strategy which is flexible and compatible with all phases of development.
A series of urban neighborhoods which focus on distinct open spaces.
A design that promotes walkability and transit and de-emphasizes cars.
A set of guidelines and controls to ensure correct implementation of the master plan.

The rapid development of Manila in the latter half of the 20th century far outstripped the capacity of its infrastructure, resulting in a crowded, traffic congested environment that was (and continues to be) hostile to pedestrians. There is little open space, few trees, and pollution is a serious problem.

Manila is one of the largest cities in the world; the population of the metro area is close to 30 million. Given this size and the constraints of the infrastructure, the city has multiple business districts. Makati, widely considered the main one up until 2010, was fully built out. A significant piece of land in the city (over 1000 acres) was occupied by a military base (Fort Bonifacio) that was no longer required. The government decommissioned the base and set about converting it into a new, world class development.

A goal of the project was thus to create a new urban center that avoided the problems elsewhere in the city through careful planning and design. A competition was held in the mid 1990s, and HOK was awarded the project. Once the broad outlines of the road patterns and land uses had been decided, there was considerable effort required to work through detailed design and implementation, which involved a number of consultants.

Role: Brian Jennett served as an Urban Planner and Designer while employed at HOK during the implementation phases of the project, creating drawings, diagrams, 3D models, presentations and reports, travelling to Manila frequently for meetings with the client: BCDA - The Philippines Bases Conversion and Development Authority.

Key Facts:

Land Area is 440 hectares (1100 acres, or 1.7 square miles), of which the central area of approximately 160 hectares (400 acres) was largely developed according to the plan
8 million square meters of mixed use development has been completed as of 2019, out of a total of 12 million planned
Implementation is thus at about 80% after nearly 30 years
Bonifacio is now considered the largest and most significant central business district of Manila, displacing Makati
Scope of the project included the Master Plan, Urban Design and Landscape Guidelines, Parcel Plans, and Codes, Covenants, & Deed Restrictions for Property Sales
The planning for this project was completed by HOK San Francisco and HOK Hong Kong in the mid 1990s; Brian worked in both offices for several years on the project as Senior Urban Designer

The plan follows a modified grid, with an overlay of concentric circles that created pocket parks at key intersections and where land use and density transitioned from one neighborhood to another. A large, existing golf course lies to the west between the project area and a high end single family residential neighborhood (Forbes Park). Another large-scale open space lies to the south (the American War Memorial, dedicated to those who died during WWII). The presence of cemetery (even a beautiful, well-maintained one) was a challenge from a real estate perspective, and various consultants were brought in to help address the issue (including feng-shui experts).

The main land use patterns in the larger northern section consist of office and retail at the center, with high density residential at the periphery. There were also some other large land uses such as an international school, a hospital, and transit terminal. To the south was an extension meant for low rise residential at a later date.

Transit was proposed from the beginning, although the city had limited transit infrastructure when the project was first conceived, instead largely relying on informal systems such as jeepneys and buses. Nevertheless, after several decades Manila has started to make significant investments in mass transit infrastructure and Bonifacio is included in those plans.

Progress on the plan started rapidly with road and infrastructure work in the late 90s, and some early residential overlooking the golf course, then stalled after various political and economic crises, leaving the original developers in a difficult financial situation. The project was then taken up by other parties, who injected new capital and made design changes. Most notable among these was a reconfiguration of the center of the plan, which had not been well received by the market, given awkward shaped blocks and parcels created by the circular forms (something the original design team had noted at the time). A new consultant - Roma Design - was brought in to reconfigure this portion of the plan with low rise retail along a major linear E-W park. This area is now known as Bonifacio High Street, and is something akin to an open air lifestyle center. The open space is landscaped with fountains and artwork and lined with shops and restaurants/cafes; it is one of the most desirable leisure spaces in the Philippines. The lower density retail buildings may be redeveloped at a later date.

Once High Street had been developed and shown to be succcesful, other development continued at a rapid pace, with new residential, offices, and hotels following. All of this development is very high density, with towers ranging from 20-50 stories.

The roads, sidewalks, colonnades, and landscaped parks are unlike anything seen elsewhere in the city; the development is undeniably world class and it has attracted businesses and residents from around the city, indeed many from abroad. This isn't just an urban development project, it has been a centerpiece of economic development efforts and attracting foreign direct investment capital.

Now that the project has largely been completed, it is worth noting its scale: it is similar in scale to Midtown Manhattan and the Chicago Loop, as shown below.