Tag: Projects

March 9, 2022 – Two groundbreaking events took place in Catbalogan City, Samar for the Antiao Riverwalk Project and the Catbalogan City Hall. The two projects are meant to serve the communities of Catbalogan City.

The Antiao Riverwalk project intends to be a place of refuge in the city by encouraging a vibrant environment through a network of public open spaces connected by a link of active pathways.

The concept is rooted in the relationship between the locality of the site to water, which has given importance to places for shelter and protection for seafarers and fishermen.

The Sky City Hall will be the new city hall in Catbalogan. The project will take up 2 hectares of the 440-hectare Sky City development. It will serve as an expansion from the current city hall with a goal to masterplan and pioneer mountaintop sustainable living as a model for future developments.

Sky City aims to tackle these issues as it will be built 120 meters above sea level, creating opportunities for development while being naturally sheltered by the mountain ranges. It will be designed to include residential, commercial, and governmental cores that will be powered from renewable sources, and will be planned together with pedestrian and cyclist-friendly spaces to reduce transport emissions.

Dec. 10, 2021, Manila, Philippines – Horizon Manila by WTA Architecture and Design Studio is the 2021 WAFX Project of the Year at the 2021 World Architecture Festival (WAF). The project was awarded as the winner of the WAFX Water Category in July 3, 2021 and was announced overall winner during the last session of the last day of WAF, December 3, 2021. The WAFX Award herald’s the world’s most forward-looking architectural concepts, and is awarded to future projects that identify key challenges that architects will need to address in the coming years.

Horizon Manila is a 419-hectare reclamation project that is currently the largest reclamation project in the City of Manila. The project is meant to serve as a new hub for growth and development for one of the densest and largest mega cities of the 21st century. Its concept – the Manileño – presents a bottom-up community-centric organic growth model in contrast with the archetypal command-driven top-down master plan. It centers on creating shared experiences and building distinct community identities by establishing soft boundaries and edges.

This masterplan is composed of 3 islands bisected by a 4 km long canal park that recalls the identity of the Tagalog (River) people who settled along the mouth of the Pasig River. It focuses on people and local activities as the main determinant for diverse and organic growth. The goal is to grow 28 unique communities or barangays along the water’s edge. Each of the 28 communities will have its own development guidelines and will promote mixed-use development in each locality. Barrier-free developments with complete accessibility for all, such as open spaces and parks, will be obligatory and urban infrastructure promoting social connectivity will be the defining framework for the city. Shared experiences that tie the communities together are developed through activated public spaces with programs that strengthen the vitality of the streetscape. Placemaking features that stimulate local experiences define these spaces. They range from the ubiquitous streetball culture of Manila to lush tropical gardens, from water gardens to civic and religious plazas. Each place is a kernel of ground activity that evokes the culture and lifestyle of Manileños.

To learn more about the project, visit: https://wtadesignstudio.com/horizon-manila-manileno/

We are delighted to announce that WTA Architecture and Design Studio has won the B1M Construction Story of the Year 2021 for its Emergency Quarantine Facilities! It has been an opportunity for the team, industry friends and key partners who helped along the way to highlight a powerful part in our industry. Being able to contribute to society in light of our current situation is something that drives the team to continue to innovate, collaborate, and learn from other people.

The Emergency Quarantine Facility (EQF) Project, was an initiative to augment and increase the capacity of our hospitals during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and help flatten the curve of the pandemic growth. It consists of a temporary structure design that embodies speed and scalability. The structures were simple and comprised of readily-available materials, which allowed the teams to build them in 5 days. Plans were made open source to allow people from other provinces, islands and countries to access and use the same design.

“We learned from the builders, it taught us how much more we can learn from the communities when it comes to designing and building,  moving forward,” says William Ti, Principal Architect of WTA Architecture and Design Studio

Collaboration played a huge role in the success of these EQFs. WTA, together with the Armed Forces of the Philippines, medical experts, industry partners and sponsors, built more that 3,500 additional beds in the Philippines.

“We are proud that we were able to show that architecture and the building industry play a vital role in society. Even in an emergency, shelter is still vital and it shows how we can come up with new ideas quickly, collaborate, and bring everyone together.“ – William Ti

In a video by B1M, William explains how fulfilling it is to see something that one builds or thinks about coming to fruition. He believes that we cannot be paralysed by fear during an emergency and points out how action and agency can lead to so many things. This is what can set one apart from others.

A big thank you to everyone who supported and made our Emergency Quarantine Facilities possible!

Learn more about the EQFs: https://wtadesignstudio.com/eqf/

Horizon Manila is currently the biggest approved reclamation project in the Metro Manila side of Manila Bay. The first phase of development of Horizon Manila is Horizon East. It is a 12-hectare superblock located in the centre part of the first island. Within Horizon East is a church, a village, an esports arena,  offices, dormitory, and an International school.

Horizon East embraces a conscious commitment to providing lush green spaces. It fosters the growth and well-being of a holistic and thriving community.

The village in Horizon East is surrounded by amenities that define its perimeter. It features 100 villa lots around a transversal community centre. A green lane bisects the entire neighborhood to encourage movement and interaction for both adults and kids. It includes a clubhouse, a pool, basketball courts, playgrounds and gardens.

To the north of the village, the church of the crossroads weave various paths that come together to form the church. Representing the convergence of all devotees, the church becomes the epicentre, the communal hearth. This journey is an experience of openness and solemnity. It allows us to take a breath and reconnect us with nature and ourselves.

Building more foundations for the community, Horizon East features a comprehensive K-12 program with the best learning facilities in Manila. The school focuses on learning through exploration and collaboration called the learning loop. It is a collection of pockets of ideas that serves as meeting point. These take form in social parks that stimulate learning though sensory experiences and social interaction. As children hone their skills in school, their formed experiences contribute to creating a sustainable collaborative community – a ripple effect that spreads out towards the city and our country.

The skatepark and e-sports arena is a multi-level outdoor activity centre. This includes retail outlets, skating pits, and a central rock climbing pillar. Inspired by rock formation, the e-sports arena integrates technology with the surrounding landscape creating a dynamic and unique structure. It features areas that suit active lifestyles within the city setting. This provides city dwellers with an accessible venue for health and recreation.

Our vision to maximize what the city can be continuous throughout Horizon Manila. Building with communities in mind, Horizon East envisions a well-connected core for the city of tomorrow.

Ilocos Norte, 2021 – The FEM Stadium setting up its steel frames and bleachers, as seen in the construction update taken last June 23, 2021. The project is set to be completed by 2022.  

The Stadium of the North is a redevelopment project that will rebuild the Mariano Marcos Stadium, locate beside the Mariano Marcos State University. The stadium design uses social architecture that designs with communities in mind.

Learn more about the FEM Stadium

Manila, the country’s capital, has fallen several times — it has struggled through colonial conquests, the ravages of war, natural disasters and hazards, and now, a pandemic.

Yet, just as it has gone through the most adverse of times, the city continues to prove that it is a survivor — resilient and adaptable.

The Covid-19 pandemic may have brought intense health and economic challenges, but through the vision of its leaders, Manila is poised to be great again as a greener, healthier and future-ready city.

Horizon Manila, a joint venture between the city government of Manila and JBros Construction Corporation, will be a testament to its triumph of the will as the project will further fortify and elevate the city beyond Covid times.

The mixed-use planned community is said to be the biggest reclamation development in the Philippines. Located south of the Manila-Pasay border and east of Roxas Boulevard, the 419-hectare
raw-land reclamation and development will see the rise of three islands on the foreshore and offshore areas in Manila Bay.

Island 1 will consist of 140 hectares; Island 2 will have an area of 140 hectares; and Island 3 will be 139 hectares.

As part of its vision to make Manila great again, the project is also expected to attract business opportunities and generate 400,000 jobs and business opportunities. This is the vital hope that the city has been endeavoring as its government continues to find solutions for the city’s recovery and progress.

It’s the perfect partnership for a city of tomorrow as JBros Construction has already accomplished notable projects in Manila, including the GSIS Building and the National Museum of History.

Both parties, the city government and its private partner, will share profits, risks and losses. The resulting unincorporated joint venture will be governed by a sharing arrangement with 51 percent for Manila and 49 percent for JBros Construction.

Manila, 2021 – Tribune.net.ph features WTA’s project: Horizon Manila in “Breathing new life to Manila”. Click here to read more.

Learn more about Horizon Manila

Located in San Juan, Manila, The Twelve Luxury Flats stack houses that allow for gratifying views, healthier ventilation, better privacy, tighter security and a more efficient footprint. Moreover, the ground floor serves as commercial space for the residents’ easy access to goods and services.

In form, the verandas sweep in and out creating an organic profile. Its soft curves and clean flowing contour humanizes the otherwise cold contemporary building. This distinct profile, coupled with its light scale work, creates a landmark that is soft and elegant in contrast to being dominating and overpowering.

The Twelve Luxury Flats, San Juan, Manila, approaches design and space planning in a way that we must consider in our post-pandemic world. We must build up enough space to accommodate this density instead of squeezing everyone together in ever tighter spaces. We cannot continue to build homes that are barely bigger than the parking spaces that come with it. As our families and children begin to spend more time at home together, we must have homes in which we can grow together.

Learn more about Twelve Luxury Flats

Developed by Golden Bay Land Holdings, and designed by WTA Architecture and Design Studio, the Garden City Cavite wins the Outstanding Property Award London (OPAL) 2020 for the Property Development: Mixed-use category.  Aspire Corporate Plaza was also among the awarded projects done by Golden Bay Land Holdings.

Learn more about Garden City

Read also:

• Golden Bay Land Holdings Wins Big At Prestigious OPAL Awards 
• Outstanding Property Award London 2020 honors Golden Bay Landholdings’ world-class projects

Manileño is a masterplan that focuses on the people who make up the storied and vibrant communities, from Chinatown to Tondo, from Quiapo to Baclaran, that define Manila and make it the distinct heart of our country. Instead of the usual top-level master plans, It stitches together diverse communities(or barangays) that come together to form a kaleidoscope. Each community is developed around unique public amenities and plazas that allow its residents to develop a shared experience. These unique features are never too far from the next, encouraging not just exploration and interaction, but also making sure that the next community will have its own features that define the boundaries between communities. Shared experiences and defined boundaries strengthen and reinforce communal identity.
 

The main highlight of Horizon Manila is the canal park, a unique and enriching feature that will define the lives of all its residents. The canal park not only connects the 3 islands but also provides Horizon with a public park at its core that stretches all the way to the water’s edge, ensuring that the Manila Bay sunset will always belong to the public. A viaduct with a monorail system allows direct access from Manila to the islands. From the Central Station, the trackless electric tram system loops around the development, and no place on the island will be more than a 5-minute walk away from a tram station. All the roads will be tree-lined and will feature 8m wide sidewalks with 3m arcades that ensures you can walk in the shade or away from the rain anywhere in Horizon. The development emphasizes personal mobility with pedestrian and bike lanes and looks to encourage a car-free lifestyle for most of its residents.
 

Horizon Manila will feature hyper-local public amenities that give residents a diverse mix of programs and activities in each community. These facilities include micro libraries and pop-up galleries and museums, as well as the country’s first e-sports arena. A state-of-the-art basketball arena will be enhanced by basketball parks throughout the islands that reflect the prevalence of streetball in our culture.

We see Horizon as the City of Tomorrow. It is envisioned to once again bring development and growth energy back to the City of Manila. It will reestablish Manila as the heart of our nation and provide a model and impetus for the rehabilitation of the old city center.

Learn more about Horizon Manila