BY MAY DEDICATORIA
First published in The Philippine STAR on 02-November 2018

As the Metro’s Bay Area becomes a premier megacity, the surrounding areas of Pasay are rediscovering its old charm while serving the new set of young cosmopolitans looking for a fresh urban refuge.

A genius to master-plan the rst-ever high-rise tower along the Buendia-Pasay-Libertad corridor, Moldex Realty releases yet another landmark residential brand with the Grand View Tower. The newest project under the company’s Grand Series — which proudly includes the 1322 Golden Empire Tower — sits on a busy thoroughfare that links EDSA, Roxas Boulevard and the South Superhighway.

It is strategically located a few minutes away from the lifestyle choices in Makati, Manila, and the Bay Area, but at a fraction of a typical condominium’s price tag. Offering unobstructed views of the Metro Manila skyline, Grand View Tower’s future residents can choose from a balcony view of the Old Manila toward the north, the Makati CBD in the east, Parañaque and the Laguna de Bay in the south, or the beautiful Manila Bay sunset in the west.

Instead of spending unhealthy hours in Metro Manila’s stressful gridlock, Grand View Tower invites future residents to reinvigorate their senses perhaps with a commanding view of the entire metropolis on its rooftop lounge, where they can see the city’s bright lights on one side, and the remarkably humbling stars of the sky on the other.

“Our inspiration here is very simple,” starts Architect Lorenzo Raule, Assistant Vice President and Head of Planning and Engineering Group of Moldex Land, Inc.

“We are attracted to the concept of creating an urban sanctuary. We are in the middle of the city, so how do you make it refreshing and cool for the residents? We are fortunate that we have a big property that spans 70 meters of street frontage with an area of 3,600 square meters. So on the seventh level, we’re creating an open space with swimming pools as the centerpiece. The U-shaped building embraces that open space so that all the inside units capture a view of the relaxing sanctuary.”

He adds, “We want to have a lot of nooks and corners where people can gather to congregate, whether in the water or in the lounge. So we have a lap pool. We also have a dipping pool and an area for the kids. We have a corner where you can sunbathe or stay in a covered lounge, inside a gazebo. There’s a lot of space for different people. We devoted an entire oor for these relaxing amenities.”

Surrounding the pool area are more function rooms — one of which is furnished with a state-of-art kitchen — a gym, children’s playground, a music room, and a perimeter jogging trail, inspiring holistic wellness and a full retreat after a busy day in the city. The residential area goes 36 oors up, creating a peaceful shelter for every occupant.

The amenities floor separates the exclusive and fully secured residential oors from the four- level parking space and two floors of commercial strips below. The ground and second oor will cater to a supermarket, pharmacy, perhaps a famous tness brand, and curated dining and shopping options for the residents’ distinct wants and needs.

 

More wealth of offerings

A central selling point of every condominium is the security feature, complete with roving guards and CCTV cameras keeping an eye on the common areas. Grand View Tower also makes sure that through individual key cards, only of cial residents can go beyond the tower’s amenities area.

“We want to balance privacy and rental income opportunity for owners, so leasing out the units will be allowed, but carefully controlled,” explains Raule. “We have a group that will take care of the leasing needs, but we’re really looking for end-users. The minimum stay is one year and the investor who wants to lease out has to enroll his unit.”

Grand View Tower provides generous living spaces, ranging from 21 square meters to 27 square meters for studio-type units, 24 square meters to 45 square meters for one-bedroom, and 60 square meters to 66 square meters for the two- bedroom. The property also has combinable studio and one- bedroom to form a two-bedroom pad, which is showing good market acceptance even in its present pre-selling stage.

Grand View Tower showroom opens to the public

Recently, Grand View Tower launched its showroom at Colbella Arcade Building along A. Arnaiz Ave. in Makati City. Moldex Realty’s executives led the ribbon-cutting ceremony and blessing of the mesmerizing renditions of the project’s studio and one-bedroom units.

Design consultant Michael Salvador, known for his distinct glamour designs and themes, created an industrial-inspired studio for a young professional while pictured the single- bedroom for a sophisticated young couple who love to travel and indulge in rich beauty.

His studio masterpiece is urban industrial-inspired, which is prevalent nowadays. “You can see a lot of materials — engineered granite, bronze glass, clear glass, colored glass, acrylic plastic, wood laminates, paper fabric, etc. I chose wallpaper instead of real bricks. For metal, there’s black iron, which is raw, combined with stainless steel,” he shares.

Maximizing the space are multifunctional pieces. For the dining setting, Salvador used traditional benches so more people could sit for a dinner or lunch. There were sturdy metal stools to store extra pillows or blankets. And the studio unit’s sofa – the bright red centerpiece in a sea of white, black and grays – could be converted into a bed or divan.

For the one-bedroom unit, he wanted to create “a dramatic setting geared to be occupied by a young couple living a cosmopolitan lifestyle.” The Victorian era-inspired abode was lled with shades of red and royal hints of gold and purple, and soft textures ranging from velvet to faux fur.

“I wanted the units to be relaxing, comfortable, visually stimulating,” he stresses, adding that art should not be limited to the living area and bedroom, but also in the bathroom.

He also suggests that condo residents choose large tiles for the oor to make their home feel more luxurious.

The highlight of the one- bedroom unit, he shares, is having huge picture windows, which is very rare for the size of the condo. The ceiling is also about three meters high, which lets residents redesign or recon gure the rooms more effectively. It’s easy to imagine how natural lighting and ventilation could add exquisite beauty to the one-bedroom unit’s glamour style look.

Raule caps, “What’s important for us is to achieve a spacious layout, nice lighting and ventilation, and a good room orientation to grand views outside.”

Truth is, sustainability is not only a matter of technology and materials, but of rediscovering a country’s design heritage. For a tropical country, huge beautiful windows are a timeless deal.

Moldex Realty is one of the pioneering real estate developers in the country and has been in the industry for three decades. It has established a strong presence in the real estate arena through the development of more than 30 residential subdivisions and condominiums strategically located in the north, heart and south of Manila. Since the beginning, Moldex Realty’s vision was very clear — every Filipino family deserves a life of value, comfort, convenience and quality.

To learn more of the perks of living at Grand View Tower and other quality developments of Moldex Realty, visit www. moldexrealty.ph or call (0917) 717-8880.