growth areas Makati Business District

Makati Central Business District (Makati CBD)
Makati City

The City of Makati is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the greater metropolitan area of the national capital of the Philippines. It is the major financial, commercial and economic hub in the Philippines, often referred to as the financial capital of the Philippines since many global companies have their offices and headquarters in the city. Makati is also home to the influential Makati Business Club and the Philippine Stock Exchange. Ayala Avenue, running through the heart of downtown Makati Central Business District is often called the Wall Street of the Philippines.

Makati is noted for its highly cosmopolitan culture, also being a major cultural and entertainment hub in Metro Manila. Makati is also home to many first-class shopping malls, which are located at Ayala Center and Rockwell Center. Makati Central Business District also hosts the tallest buildings in the country.

The Makati CBD also has many of the country’s five-star hotels like The Peninsula Manila, Shangri-La Hotel Makati and the Intercontinental Hotel Manila. There are also several budget hotels for independent business travelers and other service apartments alike.

Geography and Landmarks

Makati City is bounded on the north by Pasig River, facing Mandaluyong City, on the northeast by Pasig City, on the southeast by municipality of Pateros and Taguig City, on the northwest by City of Manila, and on the southwest by Pasay City. Makati constitutes 4.3% of Metro Manila’s land area.

At the center of the city is the Central Busienss District where many companies in the Philippines have their offices or headquarters. This is where many of the country’s tallest skyscrapers are located. The Makati skyline is one of the most impressive sights in Metro Manila.

Two of Metro Manila’s main arteries pass through Makati. The Epifanio De los Santos Avenue, widely known as EDSA, pass along the southeast part of Makati and connects the city with Mandaluyong City, Pasay City, and the South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) which connects the city with Manila to the north and with southern Metro Manila. The skyway, an elevated highway built on top of SLEX, provides residents coming from Southern Metro Manila a fast way to reach Makati. SLEX and EDSA intersect at the Magallanes Interchange, which is the most complex system of elevated roadways in Metro Manila.

Other major roads in Makati include Buendia Avenue, also called Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue, which connects EDSA and SLEX in the north; Ayala Avenue, an important street that runs through the Central Business District; and Makati Avenue, which connects Ayala Avenue with Buendia Avenue, also extending north to cross the Pasig River to Mandaluyong City. At the center of Makati is the Ayala Triangle, a park built on the former Nielsen Air Base.

Economy

The Makati CBD, home to most of the major international and local companies in the country, is also considered as one of the most vibrant commercial districts in South-East Asia. Makati CBD is considered to be a major metropolis affecting world economics. Many skyscrapers rise in the area, as you could see most of the tallest buildings in the country are located in Makati CBD.

Ayala Land Inc., a world-class real estate developer in the country, owned and developed much of the area and administered through Makati Commercial Estates Authoriy (MACEA), its subsidiary. 

Shopping Centers

Ayala Center, along EDSA and Ayala Avenue is the most known commercial center in the city. Developed by the Ayala Corporation, it contains two shopping malls, Glorietta and Greenbelt, five hotels, and an office building. The Larger of the two shopping malls is Glorietta, which itself is a cluster of malls. Rising from Glorietta 4 is the Ascott Tower, a luxurious hotel-apartment residence at the heart of the center. Along the periphery of Glorietta are three department stores: SM Department Store Makati, Rustan’s and the Landmark. Across Makati Avenue from Glorietta is Greenbelt. This is one of the most sophisticated, modern, and expensive m alls in the country. Greenbelt features dozens of coffree stores and restaurants, all overlooking a well-landscaped green park at the center where a domed Catholic chapel dominates the skyline. Other hotels in the vicinity of Ayala Center are the Makati Shangri-La Hotel, the Manila Peninsula, the Dusit Hotel Nikko, Manila Garden, the Hotel Intercontinental Manila, and Renaissance Makati City Hotel. Soon to rise is a 6-star hotel, Raffles Residences Manila, which is now under construction at the corner of Makati Avenue and Arnaiz Avenue.

Rockwell Center is the other first-class shopping center in Makati. Rockwell features the large Power Plant Mall popular with expatriates. At the periphery of the center are many high-class residential condominium towers, the Asian Eye Institute, and the Ateneo de Manila Professional Schools main campus, which houses the Ateneo Law School, the Ateneo Graduate School of Business, and the Ateneo School of Government.

Housing and Residences

Makati is home to the country’s wealthiest families in North and South Forbes Park, originally developed in 1948, and Dasmariñas Village, originally developed in the 1960’s by Ayala Land Inc. on the other side of EDSA from the Central Business District. Other well-to-do people live in San Lorenzo Village, Urdaneta Village, Bel-Air Village, Palm Village, Magallanes Village, and San Miguel Village. These gated communities surround the Central Business Districts. To date, a lot of world-class condominiums are developed in the Central Business District, and there are several new developments within the area for new investors.

Education, culture, and sports

Makati City is home to the Asian Institute of Management (AIM), located along Paseo de Roxas across Greenbelt began as a collaborative project of the Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University. The Ateneo Professional Schools, a unit of the Ateneo de Manila University has facilities in Rockwell Center and Salcedo Village. The Rockwell campus houses the Ateneo Law School, the Ateneo Graduate School of Business, and the Ateneo School of Government. The Salcedo campus houses the Ateneo Information Technology Institute. De La Salle University’s Professional Schools also operates in RCBC Tower along Ayala Avenue. Mapua Instititue of Technology alongside Buendia which is an extension of Mapua in Intramuros in Manila.

Other notable colleges and Universities in Makati are the Asian Seminary of Christian Ministries, Don Bosco Technical Institute Makati, Assumption College, Colegio San Agustin, Asia Pacific College, the Unversity of Makati, and a private nursing school owned by one of Makati’s renowned hospitals, Makati Medical Center.

Along the south-eastern border of Makati beyond Forbes Park are the Manila Golf Club and the Manila Polo Club. The Manila Golf Club features an 18-hole golf course amidst the lush greenery of the city. The Manila Polo Club counts among its polo enthusiasts some of the country’s wealthiest people. The Makati Sports Club in Salcedo Village is another popular place for sports people. The Makati Coliseam is another famous sports landmark in the city, where some of the biggest sports gatherings are held.

The Ayala center also features aside from its shopping malls the Ayala Museum. This museum is most noted for its series of dioramas depicting major events in Philippine history, from the Battle of Mactan, to the People Power Revolution.

Makati has many Spanish-era churches, such as the Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Nuestra Señora de Gracia in the old town. At the Greenbelt Park stands the modern-style domed chapel of the Sto. Niño de la Paz. Between Forbes Park and Dasmariñas Village is the Santuario de San Antonio, a popular church for weddings in the Makati area. The National Shrine of the Sacred Heart is located in San Antonio Village.