Late 20th Century (1975–2000)

Bonifacio Global City (BGC) Masterplan (Manila)

1995– · Philippines · Southeast Asia · Military, colonial, and ideal-city planning · Planned by Ayala Land; Bases Conversion

Reference plan-map of Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, showing the HOK-derived street grid and block layout of the former Fort Bonifacio. Direct SVG file on Wikimedia Commons. · cc-by-sa

Core idea

Former military base to CBD

Why it matters

Philippines’ premier planned business district

Description

Bonifacio Global City is a planned central business district in Taguig, Metro Manila, developed from 1995 on the former Fort Bonifacio military base after the Bases Conversion and Development Authority privatised the land, with Ayala Land and partners leading implementation. The master plan established a walkable street grid of high-rise office and residential blocks, structured open spaces such as Bonifacio High Street, and district-wide design controls and underground utilities unusual for the Philippine capital. It has grown into the country's premier corporate address alongside Makati.

Significance

BGC is Southeast Asia's leading example of military base conversion into a privately managed financial district, and a benchmark for masterplanned urbanism in a metropolis otherwise marked by fragmented development. It is frequently discussed as evidence that coherent street grids, pedestrian priority and design governance can be achieved in Manila, while also figuring in critiques of privatised, enclave-style urban space and its detachment from the wider city's poverty and congestion.

What shaped it

Neoliberalism (1970s–1990s)
The skyscraper (1885)
Floor Area Ratio (FAR/FSI) (20th c.)
The master plan (early 20th c.)

Sources

Open it on the interactive timeline →

hub.toekom.st — History of Urbanism · an interactive timeline of 850 planned cities across 6,000 years.