MANILA, Philippines — Listed certified green developer Italpinas Development Corp. has lined up several projects for this year including the completion and turnover of phase 1 of Primavera City, a mixed-used project in Cagayan de Oro.

“These will include completion and turn-over of the phase 1 of Primavera City, by the second quarter. This first phase will be comprised of Tower A and B. As we speak, Tower A is already 85 percent sold while Tower B is more than 40 percent sold,” said Italpinas chairman and CEO Romolo Nati.

He said the company intends to launch the second phase of Primavera City within the year, following through from the strong sales performance of the first phase.

Primavera City is a masterplanned dining, shopping, commercial, office, and residential complex to be developed in four phases. It is Italpinas’ second project in CDO following the success of Primavera Residences.

Both Primavera Residences and Primavera City are located in the spacious, progressive, and flood-free uptown precinct of Cagayan de Oro.

Primavera Residences is fully EDGE certified, and is the first EDGE certified condominium project completed in East Asia in 2015. Primavera City is now in the process of EDGE certification.

EDGE certification – Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies – is the Green Building certifying body of the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corp.

The body is present in more than 130 countries, to determine and certify the most effective green design solutions for each location, particular climate and conditions.

Aside from Primavera City, Italpinas also plans to launch the Miramonti project in Santo Tomas, Batangas within the year, its third project and its first in Luzon. Miramonti will offer 352 residential and around 14 commercial units as well as first class amenities.

“We have already attained our License to Sell (from the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board, or HLURB), and we are gearing up to begin sales. Its location in Santo Tomas, Batangas, places it at the hub of ongoing growth throughout the southern Tagalog region, spurred by new infrastructure, the development of Batangas Port, easier expressway connections to Metro Manila, and the expansion of expressways through other corridors for development to the east,” Nati said.

Asked about the viability of developing green buildings, Nati said it is not only feasible but also vital for sustainability to become part of all the developments in the country.

“Sustainability should also be a way of thinking and living, a mindset. Without a genuine “green” culture based on the respect for our environment, there will be no sustainability. We can contribute to reduce the environmental impact if we put attention to our everyday actions. Like what we buy, what we consume, how much we consume etc. Choosing to live in a green building is not just a lifestyle, but a choice to live in comfort and wellbeing,” Nati said.

He said the key is for sustainability to be available to all buildings and houses, not just expensive ones.

“If green building is seen as a luxury (through use of expensive materials or devices, rather than through the pursuit of skillful, mindful architectural design solutions), then environmental responsibility becomes trapped within the narrow upper point in the social pyramid. This would only represent a small percentage of actual built environments in any city,” Nati said.

Italpinas’ buildings also feature solar panels on their rooftops to generate renewable energy, which contributes to the building’s consumption of electricity, including electricity needed for common areas.

“The result is that residents pay less money toward the upkeep of these common areas, than they would have done without solar power,” he said.

This article first appeared on www.PhilStar.com