Montecito « Buyer’s Guide to Ayala Land

Montecito News Article

Having ample breathing space

A new community focuses on environmental sustainability

By MAAN D’ASIS PAMARAN

June 30, 2009, 1:58pm

Because of the bizarre weather the world has been experiencing, protecting the environment has transcended from being a trend into being a way of life. And an eco-friendly lifestyle is exactly what the new Ayala Land Premiere residential community, Montecito, has to offer.

Aside from the vastly spacious lots which range from 600 to 1,300 square meters each, ample spaces have also been allotted for various ecologically sound and sustainable elements in its community. In fact, approximately 50 percent of the 60-hectare community is dedicated to parks, roads, and greenways.

Greenways are common grounds that course through the blocks that make up 280 residential lots. They form recreational and social spaces for the neighborhood. These five to 30 meter wide open spaces have another purpose as well – they are designed to help ventilation and light flow through the houses, and act as a quiet buffer between the lots. This translates to less energy required for lighting and cooling the houses.

Greenways, along with the community parks, likewise allow water to seep underground and replenish the water table.

Another significant highlight of the development is the Lake Area, which is actually composed of two lakes, with a shoreline of about one kilometer. The smaller lake sources its fresh water from Matang Tubig (an artesian spring coming from the Tagaytay Ridges), and is used as a utility lake to irrigate the greenways and other common areas.

The larger lake is about two hectares big, and three meters deep. This likewise gets its water from Matang Tubig, and serves as a recreational area where residents can go fishing, race RC boats, or enjoy a picnic. Twin gazebos have been set up to allow homeowners and guests to enjoy the tranquil surroundings and beholdthe panoramic view of the Makati skyline.

To further ensure the environment-friendly aspect of the waterworks, Montecito has a sewerage plant that can treat household sewage into usable gray water. Two deep wells and two reservoirs cater to the community’s water supply needs.

Other amenities include a clubhouse, which was once the Yulo ancestral residence. This huge villa was once the setting for the clan’s family reunions. It has since been transformed into a recreational venue that features a swimming pool, a library, game rooms, function areas and wellness facilities. A chapel has also been built.

Because it is nestled in the sprawling hills of Canlubang, Laguna, Montecito offers fresh air and a feeling of tranquility. It was developed to be a place that can relieve residents of the pressures they have to put up with in the city. The surrounding areas of Laguna de Bay and the Tagaytay Ridge further enhance the feeling of being close to nature.

But quiet Montecito has a busy beat as well. Right outside this quiet enclave is the rising commercial district that includes the Sta. Rosa lifestyle center and The Nuvali Central Business District.

SOURCE LINK:

http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/208447/having-ample-breathing-space

IF you are interested to be part of Montecito, feel free to call me at 0917-580-2013. Thank you!

- Coco Midel, Ayala Land

July 1, 2009 Posted by cocomidel | Blogroll, Montecito, Uncategorized | | No Comments Yet

Montecito Facts

WHAT IS MONTECITO?

Montecito is an exclusive residential enclave of almost 300 lots. It is spread over a 60-hectare prime property inside Nuvali. About 50% of the total land area is dedicated to shared open spaces.

Back in 1983, Canlubang Sugar Estate president Jose Yulo, Jr. and his wife Regina decided to build their hacienda in the family’s Laguna plantation. They built a home that had provisions of self-sustainability, such as its own mini-hydroelectric plant and water system.

Mr. Yulo, upon the encouragement of close friends, organized a team to develop about 300 very special lots designed in the same spirit as his own home.

Because of the views of the small mountains surrounding the hacienda, the place was baptized “Montecito” (little mountain). The rest is history.

HOW DID MONTECITO BECOME PART OF AYALA LAND?

Believing in Jose Yulo, Jr.’s vision of bringing back life as it once was, Ayala Land Premier recently added Montecito in its roster of distinctive communities. This is also perfect since Montecito is in the heart of Nuvali, Ayala Land’s biggest green city project (Ecopolis, as we call it).

WHERE IS MONTECITO?

Montecito is in Canlubang, Laguna. It is situated inside Nuvali, the country’s first green city or Ecopolis. Key words: Eco-community that is economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable.

It is accessible via South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) through: Mamplasan, Sta. Rosa, Greenfield/Eton and Silangan Exits.

ARE THERE SCHOOLS NEAR MONTECITO?

There’s De La Salle Canlubang, there’s De La Salle Zobel in Alabang (Alabang is just 20 minutes away), there’s Don Bosco in Dasma, Cavite, there’s St. Scholastica (near Ayala Westgrove Heights), UP Los Banos, and there’s also Woodrose, and of course Ateneo Graduate school in Paseo de Sta. Rosa.

Soon, there will be Xavier, UST and San Sebastian in Nuvali.

WHAT ARE THE OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS NEAR MONTECITO?

For shopping malls, there’s one in Paseo De Sta. Rosa, there’s Alabang Town Center, Festival Mall, and SM Southmall.

For churches, there’s St. James in Alabang and St. Joseph in Canlubang. Soon, St. Benedict Church will be built next to Scholastica (just outside Ayala Westgrove Heights).

For those who play golf, you can go to Ayala Greenfield Estates, Santa Elena, Southwoods, Canlubang Golf & Country Club, and Tagaytay Highlands.

For medical needs, there’s Asian Hospital.

WHAT’S THE LOT-HECTARE RATIO IN MONTECITO?

To give you an idea of how special Montecito is, listen to this.

Avida, 50 houses per hectare.

Alveo, 25 houses per hectare.

Ayala Land Premier (on the average), 10 houses per hectare.

Montecito, 5 houses per hectare! Now, that’s a lot of space between houses!

WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT MAKES MONTECITO SPECIAL?

For starters, Montecito has 2 lakes with a shoreline of almost 1km. It is fed by an artesian spring called Matang Tubig or “Eye of the Water” coming from the ridges of Tagaytay. The lake serves a dual purpose: one, to irrigate the landscape; and two, enhance the area’s atmosphere of tranquillity. Very soon, the lake will be a perfect venue for outdoor activities, that’s why, jogging paths, a basketball court, and big lawn areas will be constructed.

Then, there’s Pasa Tiempo – the original Yulo house that was built in 1980’s. This was designed by the late national artist Leandro Locsin, a Yulo relative. This celebrated home now serves as the village clubhouse. Currently, we are doing renovation to convert the house into a social and activity center, with a pool, gym, wellness facilities, etc.

What makes Montecito really one of a kind are the “Greenways”. In a radical departure from conventional thinking, nearly all lots in Montecito are designed to have generous open spaces between homes. I’m talking about greenways that range from 10 to 30 meters. These provide abundant ventilation, light and privacy. It acts as a quiet buffer between choice lots.

Also, another thing that makes Montecito special is the fact that it has its own tree and plant nursery. And Montecito is proud of that. The village staff nurtures a wide variety of plants to keep the neighbourhood atmosphere healthy and natural. And this is exactly the kind of eco-sustainability that we would like to have in a village, or in city. Don’t forget, Montecito also has a mini-hydro electric plant that produces clean energy to light its streets. This is the kind of mind-set we want our residents to have. Some sense of responsibility or accountability somehow to our environment.

WHAT’S THE PRICE AND SIZE OF LOTS IN MONTECITO?

List price per square meter in Montecito ranges from P8,800 (Super prime lots) to P12,500 (Lake District lots). Corner lots have a premium of P500. Sizes ranges from 600sqm to 1300sqm.

WHAT ELSE CAN YOU SAY ABOUT MONTECITO?

Montecito is really a special project, and we are glad we are given the chance to share it to the public. It has that unique ability to draw both the young and old. Retirees find it a very nice place. It is very ideal for people who have an appreciation for estate-living in an all-natural environment. The young find Montecito as a good way to position themselves in the heart of Nuvali. Canlubang is on the rise. Already, it is known today as one of the country’s fastest growing economic hubs. As Nuvali continues to grow, the premium location of Montecito ensures it will remain a neighbourhood with the best life has to offer.

Coco Midel

AYALA LAND PREMIER

+63 917 580 2013

coco.ayala@gmail.com

key tags ayala land inc ayala land investment ayala land property ayala land philippines nuvali canlubang laguna property investments in the south future city ecopolis green city montecito coco midel ayala land guide

January 26, 2009 Posted by cocomidel | Blogroll, Montecito, Nuvali, Uncategorized | | No Comments Yet

Why I Love Ayala Land

In this environment, they relish life

By Marge C. Enriquez
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:48:00 09/28/2008

MANILA, Philippines – A photograph of a woman, placidly sitting under a mango tree, in a garden of orchids and ornamentals, won a prize in the photo contest “Why I love Ayala Westgrove Heights.” The winner, businessman Joselito “Joel” Santos, remembers how his subject, his wife Geraldine, was relishing a tranquil moment in their garden when he snapped his D70 Nikon. His photo was trying to say that in Westgrove, one finds peace. The Filipino word for serenity, he says, is “tahan.” Add a suffix, it becomes “tahanan” (home).

To him, there’s no place in the world like a Westgrove home. Santos has lived most of his life in Ayala Land subdivisions—Ayala Alabang, Dasmariñas Village and now, Ayala Westgrove Heights. His father, Joselito Sr., then with Makati Development Corporation, the construction subsidiary of Ayala Corp., was the project manager of Ayala Alabang Village (AAV). The Ayala real estate development business was with the Ayala Corp. holding company back then.

On May 12, 1978, the family moved to 5 Molave Drive, the first home to be completed in AAV. Inspired by the bahay-na-bato, it was made of bricks, tropical hardwood and with capiz windows. Santos was 14 then and lived there until 1986. The development then was so new that the concrete road ended at their place.

A decade later, the Ayala real estate business was spun off into a separate company, Ayala Land. Today, Ayala Land Premier is the brand that carries the Ayala tradition and heritage of building the most distinctive and highly valued living communities, whether subdivisions or condominiums.

Pioneering communities
Thirty years ago, AAV was very suburban. There was hardly any traffic to get there from Makati. The wide tree-lined avenues and clean air were a refreshing break from the pollution in the central business districts. He recalls that at night, one could hear the musical chorus of the tropics—the crickets, cicadas and frogs. “Ayala Alabang back then was like what Westgrove is today,” he says.

Since he was enrolled in high school at Marist, Marikina, he’d spend weekdays in the family compound in Cubao and go home to AAV on weekends. In college at De La Salle University, Santos found it convenient to commute from AAV to Taft. There was a village jeep that did its rounds on the hour for commuters. Santos would drive up to Alabang Town Center and take the air-conditioned Love Bus. Ayala Corporation also had a daily shuttle bus from AAV to Makati Stock Exchange. It was travel in style, he recalls—a bus with a bar and lounge chairs. Sometimes he’d be the only passenger taking that 20-km ride that took only 30 minutes.

In 1986, the family moved to Makati where they already owned a house on Paraiso Street, Dasmariñas Village. Although he wanted the quiet environs of AAV, the family wanted accessibility to the heart of the city. As in most Ayala Land developments, the village has kept the trees that fringe the landscape. To this day, residents still relish the chirping sound of the birds and the sight of squirrels—yes, squirrels—scurrying around. The proximity cut down his travel time to La Salle.

Their home was a walk away from Ayala Center. It was so accessible that the boys could watch movies twice a week, have snacks at Pancake House near Rizal Theater, enjoy nature in the aviary near the old Ayala Museum.

In 1993, Santos got married. He and wife Geraldine stayed in Dasmariñas where his daughters were also raised.

One day, his brother, performer Jon Santos, guested at an Ayala Land corporate launch. Given a Westgrove brochure, Jon was impressed with the amenities and thorough masterplan of the community—underground cables for utilities, parking bays that eliminate the litter of cars on the streets, and wide pedestrian lanes.

He broached to his older brother the idea of moving to Westgrove. His eldest, Gabrielle Marie or Gabbie, was studying at St. Scholastica’s Manila. On learning that Ayala Land donated land and generously funded the construction of a school building at St. Scholastica in Westgrove, the Santoses decided to move south to Westgrove. Geraldine found work in the school to keep her busy.

Distinctive living
Today, aside from St. Scholastica’s, other schools near Westgrove are Caritas Don Bosco and La Salle Canlubang. Santos appreciates the fact that the development is slow yet steady. At Westgrove, some 150 households have sprung up in eight years, compared with subdivisions with rapid population growth of some 500 households at the same time.

When the family moved to Westgrove, Santos’ children (all girls), Gabbie, Josephine Marie, Therese Marie and Andrea Marie, missed the hustle and bustle of city life. The twinkling fireflies and the noisy crickets were new to them.

“You can live longer here. It’s far from pollution,” says Santos. “You’re not in the mall as often and you find yourself closer to nature.”

During Holy Week or summer vacation, relatives stay over. They would organize a barbecue cookout in the backyard and watch an outdoor movie.
Saturday nights, residents hear Mass at the clubhouse; the community church is being built. Since Westgrove was originally a mango orchard, during harvests, residents hold a festival and enjoy the bounty. The most romantic place is the lagoon where joggers meet and small-talk, or people can sit on a bench and read, or gather in a picnic at the gazebo.
There are three big clubhouses being planned in the subdivision for the convenience of the residents. The main clubhouse and Kidsgrove are now in full use. A comprehensive Sports Center will be completed soon.

Since they moved to their new environment, the family has taken up triathlon. When they were in Dasmariñas, Santos was a partner in a rock-climbing gym. “When we moved here, we had to find a new sport.” The girls got into biking and pedal around the village for a good 15 km every week. They also walk to and from the clubhouse—a total two kilometers. They do 60-80 laps in the 25-meter clubhouse pool.

Santos has coached the Westgrove team for several summers now. He trained some kids how to swim, then formed a triathlon team that joined competitions. “I didn’t charge. I wanted to keep the neighbors’ kids away from trouble. As a support, Ayala Land Premier would help sponsor the annual youth triathlon in Westgrove which I organize,” says Santos. One girl who lived in Bel-Air, joined the summer competition. When the parents came over to watch the event, they decided to buy the property. Since then, she’s been training in triathlon.

The Santoses’ athletic lifestyle is augmented by a vegetarian diet. The family buys organic vegetables in the country market in the shopping area outside the subdivision and vegemeat at the Adventist University in Silang, Cavite. Rustan’s grocery is near the Laguna Technopark, an industrial park for manufacturing plants.

Close to the subdivisions, a community center has a salon, Bank of the Philippine Islands, a drugstore and a convenience store. When the Santoses want a variety of leisure activities, they still prefer Alabang Town Center, Ayala Center in Makati or Tagaytay City. The place is also near Southern Luzon Memorial Hospital, a tertiary hospital and a police station near Technopark.

Worry-free living
The family feels secure in the environment—guards patrol the place, even the hilly terrain. When the family moved in in 2000, the security guards would even escort the residents to the Technopark. Given the vast space and adequate security, the children feel free to move around.

One of the charms of living in Westgrove is, it is conducive to building a close-knit community. Visitors could knock on the door to look at the architecture of a home. Once a couple, a British national, Peter Sutcliffe, and his Filipina wife, did an ocular of the Santos residence. On learning that Santos had a construction business, they tapped him to be their contractor. Sutcliffe had a studio built in his home and gave painting lessons to Gabbie. When the painter held an exhibit, Gabbie joined and sold a few works.

When a severe typhoon would disable power lines, Westgrove would be the first subdivision to have electricity restored. Santos quotes a priest saying that Westgrove villagers were more privileged in that aspect.

Water was never a problem. “Ayala Alabang has been around for 30 years, even as the population increased and became more developed, there was never any water shortage. Same with Dasma,” Santos says, noting how the Ayala Land subdivisions are properly conserved and their value remains strong over the years.

A balikbayan from Australia who wanted to retire in the Philippines bought a property beside the Santoses. “Some subdivisions are abandoned in 20 years. A nearby subdivision has only one household after all these years. With an Ayala Land development, he knew he was making a sound investment.”

SOURCE: http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/lifestyle/lifestyle/view/20080928-163341/In-this-environment-they-relish-life

For Ayala Land inquiries, feel free to call me.

Coco Midel

AYALA LAND PREMIER

0917 580 2013

October 13, 2008 Posted by cocomidel | Abrio, Anvaya Cove, Ayala Greenfield Estates, Ayala Westgrove Heights, Blogroll, For Balikbayans / Foreigners, Montecito, Nuvali, Real Estate News, Serendra, The Residences At Greenbelt, Uncategorized | | 2 Comments

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Intro

Buying a home is a touchy-touchy matter. Even those who buy properties purely for investment can’t help but be emotional at some point. It’s a basic human trait that goes long way back when primitive men grunted in happiness about their nice caves. Of course, in time, we got smart, got tired of caves, and moved into modern living spaces where there’s that perfect spot to hang the high-definition two-inch-thick TV. Deciding which house or condo to purchase remains a matter of taste. We are still inclined to be mushy about home-sweet-homes. The downside is the heart doesn’t always make good investment sense. So the emotions, I leave to you. Now, the investment-sense, if you read on, I will try to add some more. Happy reading.

Coco Midel, Ayala Land Premier, In-house Property Specialist, Mobile (+63) 917 580 2013, Landline (02) 215 0361, coco.ayala@gmail.com or midel.jerico@ayalalandinc.com

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by Coco Midel

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