Tuesday, November 11, 2008 Editorials: Upbeat SRP investors
FILINVEST Land Inc. is upbeat about the possibility of closing a deal with Cebu City Hall---direct purchase and joint venture---over lots at the South Road Properties (SRP).
Michael Gleissner of Bigfoot Global Solutions, which is developing a two-hectare SRP lot it is leasing from the City, talked about buying lots in the area in the future.
Gleissner and Filinvest’s Andrew Gotianun Jr. were very visible at the sendoff of Mayor Tomas Osmeña, who will continue undergoing treatment in the US for his cancer.
That the mayor held a press con with the two investors during the sendoff at the Mactan Cebu International Airport showed how obsessed he is with his pet project.
Even his state of the city address, one of the highlights of his brief visit to Cebu last week, was all about the SRP, which is not surprising considering the situation.
Excitement
After years of servicing the debt for the construction of the SRP and enduring derisive comments about it, Osmeña now has something to show no matter how meager.
Gleissner and Gotianun represent the excitement the mayor is feeling, something that may have helped strengthen his resolve to survive in his current battle with cancer.
This in turn is what made Gotianun upbeat about transacting with City Hall: the mayor obviously needs the Filinvest investment as much as Filinvest needs the SRP lots.
That, however, should not take away the fact that Bigfoot’s lease of SRP lots and Filinvest’s bid are but the most initial stage in the area’s development.
Ebb and flow
That the entry of Filinvest and Bigfoot has not been followed by other investors should make one scrutinize claims about spurt of growth in the SRP area.
SRP is no different from other investment havens, meaning it is subject to the ebb and flow of global capitalism and to the economic condition of the country.
Gleissner himself has, for example, admitted that the economic crunch in the US has forced Bigfoot to lay off 40 of its 500 employees in Cebu---and the crisis is not over.
Thus, while Filinvest is upbeat about finally snagging the SRP deal with the city, that feeling could not be carried over to the development of the entire SRP for now.
