By Teresa Ellera
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
BUSINESSMEN of the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MBCCI) are upbeat on the development of the 7.7-hectare Capitol property by Ayala Land Inc. (ALI) after the court dismissed the case filed by rival SM Prime Holdings Inc. against Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. and other provincial officials for declaring ALI as the winning bidder.
MBCCI president Frank Carbon said Tuesday that they expect that ALI will soon start developing the Bacolod property.
The Regional Trial Court Branch 50 denied for lack of merit the petition for certiorari filed by SM Prime, a development that paves the way for ALI to start the P6-billion development of the Capitol property.
The petition sought the annulment of any negotiated sale and lease by the provincial government of its property to ALI, and for SMPHI to be declared the winning bidder of the July 7, 2011 bidding.
Judge Estefanio Libutan said he finds no evidence to prove that the respondents gravely abused their discretion.
Carbon said an economic boom is expected in Negros Occidental and Bacolod City with the future developments not only of Ayala Land but also of SM Prime.
He said the business sector expects that about 2,000 Negrenses will be given jobs directly during the construction phase with a multiplier effect that will benefit other sectors.
He added that future developments of SMPHI could also generate additional 3,000 jobs especially with the construction of the convention center with a size of 6,000 square meters.
“It would be a good timing since next year it is expected that the sugar industry especially the sugar workers would be affected by the imposition of low tariffs on imported sugar. The workers will have their options,” the businessman said.
The convention center is part of the new three-storey building at SM City
Bacolod, and it will have a capacity of 3,000 to 4,000 delegates, he said.
