Makati City, Paradise Philippines

The City of Makati, or simply 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 economical 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 the 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. Many expatriates live and work in the city. Makati is also home to many first-class shopping malls, which are located at Ayala Center and Rockwell Center. The city also has many of the country's five-star hotels like The Peninsula Manila, the Shangri-La Hotel Makati and the Intercontinental Hotel Manila. Independent business travelers also benefit from budget hotels like the Saint Illian's Inn, El Cielito Inn, The Copa Businessman's Hotel, and The City Garden Suites, while serviced apartments like The Salcedo Suites, Fraser Place Manila, The Sunette Tower, and The Oxford Suites are gaining in popularity among business-minded travelers as well.

Makati came from the Tagalog word kati, which means tide.[citation needed] This primarily refers to the rise and ebb of the tide of the Pasig River on the city's northern border. The city was also known as San Pedro Macati during the Spanish era.

Today the city is one of the most modern cities in the country and the Philippines' major global economic competitor in Southeast Asia.[citation needed] However, it faces challenges due to the disparate gap between the new city in the west, which contains the Central Business District, and the old city in the east, which is largely poor and where most of the city's slums are located.

Geography and Landmarks

Makati is located within the quadrangle of 12′011″ °north and 14′331″ °E right at the center of Metro Manila. The city is bounded on the north by the Pasig River, facing Mandaluyong City, on the northeast by Pasig City, on the southeast by the municipality of Pateros and Taguig City, on the northwest by the City of Manila, and on the southwest by Pasay City. Makati has a total land area of 27.36 square kilometers; it constitutes 4.3 % of Metro Manila's total land area.

At the center of the city is the Central Business District (CBD) 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 (EDSA) pass along the southeast part of Makati and connects the city with Mandaluyong City and Pasay City. The South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) runs through the western part of Makati and 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.

Makati's sister city is Los Angeles, California. Makati is also twinned with Ramapo, New York.[citation needed]

Population

Makati City has a population of 444,867, according to the 2000 Census. This figure represents an increase of 39,824 or 8% over the 1995 Census figure. Among the cities and municipalities in Metro Manila, Makati ranks fifth in population, with a 5% share. In a span of 97 years, Makati's population grew 193 times. The 1903 Census placed the population at 2,700.

Although its population is slightly less than half a million, the daytime population of Makati City is estimated to be a million during a typical working weekday because of the large number of people who go to the city to work, shop, and do business, especially in the Central Business District.[citation needed]

The Central Business District

The Central Business District (CBD) is where most of Makati's financial resources are concentrated. This is an informal district bounded by Gil Puyat Avenue (formerly Buendia), Makati Avenue, Ayala Avenue, Arnaiz Road (formerly Pasay Road), and Chino Roces (formerly Pasong Tamo). It mainly encompasses Legaspi Village, Salcedo Village, and parts of Bel-Air. Much of the area is owned by Ayala Land, Inc and administered through Makati Development Corporation, its subsidiary.

Many skyscrapers rise in this area. PBCom Tower along Ayala Avenue is the country's tallest building and reaches up 265 meters.[citation needed] It is the headquarters of the Philippine Bank of Communications, or PBCom.

One of the trading floors of the Philippine Stock Exchange is housed in Ayala Tower One and at the old Makati Stock Exchange Building, both also along Ayala Avenue. The Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI), the country's oldest bank, has its headquarters at the corner of Ayala Avenue and Paseo de Roxas.

Other companies that have their offices and country/regional headquarters within Makati City, most within the CBD, include IBM, Procter & Gamble, Citibank, Ayala Corporation, Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP), Metrobank, Intel Philippines, Microsoft Philippines, Nestlé, Syngenta, Shell, Convergys Corporation, PeopleSupport, Pan Pacific Computer Center, Inc. (PPCC) and JG Summit, Accenture.

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(formerly Oakwood Premier), 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 malls in the country. Greenbelt features dozens of coffee 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 Nikkō, Manila Garden, the Hotel Intercontinental Manila, and Renaissance Makati City Hotel.

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.

Other shopping centers. The Cash and Carry Supermarket in the west along South Luzon Expressway (SLEX) features many products at low prices. Makati Cinema Square, along Pasong Tamo Road, used to be a popular shopping mall with the residents. Adjacent to the Makati Cinema Square is the big and modern Waltermart Mall. The Guadalupe Commercial Center, along EDSA and Pasig River is a middle-class shopping center frequented by residents from the poorer areas of Makati. PureGold is another independent Supermarket located at the end of J.P. Rizal Street, Barangay Singkamas. Shopwise, another popular Supermarket Chain in the Philippines, is situated at Pasong Tamo corner Vito Cruz.

Housing and residences

Many of the country's wealthiest families live in Forbes Park and Dasmariñas Village, 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, Magallanes Village, and San Miguel Village. Others live in condominiums and apartment units in the Central Business District of Salcedo Village, Legazpi Village and San Antonio Village. These "villages" are not rural settlements, but gated communities. The usage probably arose because most villages correspond to barangays. In these communities, homeowner associations may assess punitive fees and impose regulations through management companies such as Ayala Land.

Most of the average residents of the city live in the city's periphery, especially in the eastern portions of Rizal, East and West Rembo, Pembo, Comembo, South Cembo, and Pitogo.

Housing, especially for the poor residents of the city, remains an acute problem. Some in the outlying provinces migrate to Metro Manila looking for better living but end up squatting in many areas of the metropolis. In Makati, the squatter shanties lie mostly around Guadalupe on the bank of the Pasig River, except on the barangays in the privately-owned Central Business District.

Education, culture, and sports

Educational Institutions in Makati City

* AMA Computer College
* Asia Pacific College
* Asian Institute of Management (AIM)
* Asian Seminary of Christian Ministries (ASCM)
* Assumption College
* Ateneo Professional Schools
* Benigno Ninoy S. Aquino Jr. Science High School
* Bethany Baptist Academy Makati
* Centro Escolar University Makati
* Colegio San Agustin
* Colegio de Sta. Rosa
* De La Salle-Professional Schools, Inc.
* Don Bosco Technical Institute
* Fort Bonifacio High School
* Gen. Pio Del Pilar National High School
* Lyceum of the Philippines College of Law
* Rolf Jost Information Technologie Institute
* Makati High School
* Makati Science High School
* Mapúa Institute of Technology
* Our Lady of Guadalupe Minor Seminary
* RTRMS-Makati Medical Center
* San Carlos Seminary
* Saint Paul College of Makati
* San Antonio National High School
* San Isidro National High School
* STI Makati
* University of Makati
* Informatics Computer Institute of Makati


Makati City is home to the Asian Institute of Management (AIM). AIM, located along Paseo de Roxas across Greenbelt began as a collaborative project of the Ateneo de Manila University and De La Salle University-Manila. 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 Institute 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 (ASCM) [1], Assumption College, Colegio San Agustin, Asia Pacific College, the University of Makati. Assumption College, in San Lorenzo Village, is an all-female college. The University of Makati (officially, Pamantasan ng Makati) is a university run by the city government. Also in the city are the Makati Science High School and Benigno Ninoy Aquino High School, both city-run high schools. Makati is also home to RTRMS-Medical Center, a nursing school.

The Sta. Ana Racetrack, which actually part of the City of Manila, beside Pasig River in the northern part of the city, is one of the two centers of horseracing in the country. The other is in the San Lazaro Leisure Park in Carmona, Cavite. Along the south-eastern border of Makati beyond Forbes Park is 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 Coliseum 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 EDSA Revolution.

Makati has many Spanish-era churches, such as the Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Nuestra Señora de Gracia (Our Lady of Grace) 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.

At the northern part of the city is the 25-hectare Manila South Cemetery. Every All Saints Day, thousands of people flock to the cemetery to pay their respects to their deceased loved ones.

Transportation

Buses plying the Epifanio De los Santos Avenue (EDSA) route from Baclaran in Paranaque to Quezon City and Caloocan City pass through the Central Business District daily. Jeepneys ply Makati's inner roads, and connect the city to its surrounding towns and cities. The Metro Rail Transit (MRT-3) on EDSA has four stations located in Makati: Guadalupe, Buendia, Ayala and Magallanes.


Government

Like other cities in the Philippines, Makati City is governed by a Mayor and Vice Mayor who are elected to three-year terms. The Mayor is the executive head and leads the city's departments in executing the city ordinances and improving public services. The Vice Mayor heads a legislative council consisting of 18 members: 8 Councilors from the First District, 8 Councilors from the Second District, the President of the Sangguniang Kabataan (Youth Council) Federation, representing the youth sector, and the President of the Association of Barangay Chairmen (ABC) as barangay sectoral representative. The council is in charge of creating the city's policies in the form of Ordinances and Resolutions.

Makati city is divided into 33 barangays. These barangays are grouped into two congressional districts, with each district represented by a congressman in the House of Representatives. Congressional District I occupies the western and modern half of the city, while District II covers the poorer half.