Ortigas Center
Ortigas Center is a central business district located within the joint boundaries of Pasig, Mandaluyong and Quezon City, within the Metro Manila region in the Philippines. With an area of more than 100 hectares (250 acres), it is Metro Manila's second most important business district after the (Makati CBD).[1] It is governed by Ortigas Center Association, Inc.
Ortigas Center
Philippines
Pasig, Mandaluyong and Quezon City
July 10, 1931
1.01 km2 (0.39 sq mi)
43.87 m (143.93 ft)
2
Ortigas Center is home to many shopping malls, office and condominium skyscrapers, nightlife bars, restaurants and other building complexes. These include the St. Francis Square, the Asian Development Bank compound, the Oakwood Premier serviced apartments and a Shangri-La hotel. It is also the headquarters of San Miguel Corporation, Jollibee Foods Corporation, Viva Communications, Century Pacific Food, the Philippine branch of HSBC, Republic Biscuit Corporation (Rebisco), and Robinsons Galleria. Also present in the area are Philippine offices of prominent engineering firms such as Parsons Brinckerhoff, Sinclair Knight Merz, and WSP Group.
It is also home to the Banco de Oro main office owned by mall tycoon Henry Sy, Sr., as is the SM Megamall he owns—one of the largest malls in the nation—along EDSA. Also located near the Ortigas Center is The Medical City, one of the three hospitals in the nation accredited by the Joint Commission on International Accreditation.[2] Ortigas Center is surrounded by Ortigas Avenue to the north, EDSA to the west, Meralco Avenue to the east, and Shaw Boulevard to the south.[3]
History[edit]
Ortigas Center began as the 4,033-hectare (9,970-acre) "Hacienda de Mandaloyon",[4] an estate from the Augustinian Order that spanned the present-day cities of San Juan, Mandaluyong, Quezon City, and Pasig. On January 20, 1920, the Augustinian friars sold this property to Dr. Frank W. Dudley and Don Francisco Ortigas. Dudley later surrendered his interest to Phil C. Whitaker, and the company became known as Whitaker and Ortigas. In the following years, there were several changes of partners. Then, on July 10, 1931, the company was incorporated as "Ortigas, Madrigal y cia., S. en C." as a limited partnership by shares (Spanish: sociedad comanditaria por acciones). The parties to the partnership were Francisco Ortigas (Don Paco), Vicente Madrigal, B.C.M. Johnston, Fulgencio Borromeo, Clyde A. Dewitt and future President Manuel L. Quezon.[5]
When Ortigas & Company acquired the estate, it was a virtual wasteland. The vision of the management, headed by Atty. Francisco Ortigas Jr., who was president and chairman at that time, turned it into a progressive industrial, commercial and residential urban complex.
It would only take until the 1960s for development to begin in the district with the building of the first structures.
Economy[edit]
Local and foreign companies serve the CBD, such as the Amberland Corporation, Aventis Pharma, Banco de Oro, Bank of Commerce, China State Construction Engineering Corp, Citibank, Digital Telecommunications Philippines, JG Summit Holdings and its affiliates (Robinsons Land Corporation, Robinsons Bank, and Robinsons Malls), Meralco, Neville Clarke Phils., PCCW, San Miguel Corporation, 7-Eleven, Sykes Enterprises, TÜV SÜD Phils, Inc., Union Bank of the Philippines, Callhounds Global BPO Corporation, Vertiv, VeriFone, Asia United Bank (AUB) and other companies.
Education[edit]
Among the universities and colleges situated within Ortigas are St. Paul College Pasig, University of Asia and the Pacific, and the Saint Pedro Poveda College. The Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health of the Ateneo de Manila University is also located within the financial center. Lourdes School of Mandaluyong is among the secondary schools within Ortigas. MFI Polytechnic Institute which caters to technical and vocational courses can also be found in the financial center.