Puregold, Vista Land in property lease deal for supermarkets

Puregold Price Club Inc., a popular supermarket chain in the country, will build a new store in Muntinlupa, a populous city in southern Metro Manila. The new store will be built in Vita Land's The Lakefront project. The company has recently signed a 10-year lease agreement with listed Vista Land and Lifescapes Inc. for a 2,350-sqm are in Sucat, Muntinlupa’s The Lakefront, one of the land developer’s many projects, according to a Vista Land statement. Vista Land has already completed several subdivision developments and buildings at The Lakefront over the last few years and recently announced the launching of mid-rise projects in the area. The company has spent more than P10 billion for capital expenditures in 2010 and is widely expected to increase its capex program this year. Leonardo Dayao, Puregold president, said the supermarket should be open for business by the fourth quarter of the year. “Puregold is pleased to have forged this agreement with Vista Land and we expect to further strengthen our business relationship by setting up stores in other key developments of Vista Land in the coming years," he said. Vista land and Puregold are currently exploring the possibility of signing similar lease agreements in key projects by Vista Land, including Evia in Las Piñas, Rizal and Sta. Elena in Sta. Rosa, Laguna, as well as other property developments in Cavite. Last year, the company said it started developing a significant leasing portfolio as many of its projects around the country have areas that are suitable for commercial purposes. Spurred by robust demand in the property sector, Vista Land recently announced plans to launch several mid-rise buildings in the first quarter. The company, which had more than 1660 hectares of raw land as of end-December, will use some of its existing land bank for these vertical projects. Owned by Sen. Manuel Villar Jr., Vista Land is the holding company of five business units, Brittany, Crown Asia, Camella, Communities Philippines and its condominium development subsidiary, Vista Residences. — VS, GMA News