Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said the signing of an agreement between Bacolod City and SM Prime Holdings for an over P4 billion Manokan Country development project, which will include the construction of two BPO Towers, will take place next month.
SM’s development of the three-hectare property owned by the city government will start from the Vendors Plaza up to the Commission on Elections office at San Juan Street, Benitez said on Thursday, September 28.
The Manokan Country tenants will temporarily be relocated to the SM parking lot fronting their current location so they can continue to operate, he said.
They will then be allowed to return to the new building at their current site that will have better facilities and will be designed to draw more tourists and customers, he said.
“The whole idea is to improve the image and operation of the Manokan Country as a better tourist destination,” he said.
Part of the agreement with SM is that the rentals of the tenants will almost be the same as it is now, and that the city government will have the authority to approve who can occupy the new Manokan Country area, Benitez said.
The two BPO Towers will also bring in more customers to the Manokan Country tenants, he added.*