Market! Market! lease extended to 2040 with P1-B modernization, future subway link - Rappler

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OLD ICON. Entrance of the Market! Market! mall.

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MANILA, Philippines – Shoppers and commuters can expect Market! Market! to remain in operation well beyond 2027, after the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) extended the lease of Ayala Land-led Station Square East Commercial Corporation (SSECC) by another 12 years and seven months.

Under the agreement, SSECC will continue operating Market! Market! for another 12 years and seven months beginning June 5, 2027, effectively extending its lease until January 2040, while Ayala Land commits P1 billion to modernize the BGC mall and prepare it for integration with the future Metro Manila Subway.

The subway’s Bonifacio Global City Station will be located within the Market! Market! property, effectively putting the commercial center at the center of one of BGC’s biggest planned transport upgrades.

“For us, renewal does not simply mean building something new. It means looking again at the places we already have, understanding how cities and communities have changed around them and investing in them so they can create even more value for the next generation,” Ayala Land president and CEO Anna Ma. Margarita “Meean” Dy said in a press release on Monday, September 14.

The companies did not provide a detailed breakdown of the P1-billion investment, including which parts of the mall will be renovated or how construction could affect shoppers, tenants, and commuters. (READ: The renovation is done. Now Ayala is changing the shops inside its malls.)

Part of the property, however, is already expected to change as BCDA develops the area around the subway station. The agency said its transit-oriented development plans will repurpose a portion of Market! Market!’s Central Plaza as the site evolves into a transport hub connecting rail, road, commercial establishments, and workplaces.

BCDA President and CEO Joshua Bingcang said integrating the subway into the property would allow Market! Market! to continue serving as a gateway into BGC.

Market! Market! traces its roots to Ayala Land’s 2000 master plan for what was then called “Convergence Square,” envisioned as a mixed-use development combining retail, public transport, and civic space. Ayala Land disclosures show that the original agreement with BCDA covered a 25-year lease, renewable for another 25 years, with a P700-million upfront payment plus annual lease payments with fixed and variable components.

The mall eventually opened in September 2004 and has since become one of BGC’s oldest major commercial centers. Its original lease was due to expire in 2027, prompting earlier uncertainty over the property’s future before BCDA and Ayala Land agreed on the new 12-year-and-seven-month extension. – Rappler.com