Trivia no. 4: The Cost of Casa Manila

Did you know that the San Luis property was bought for PHP200,000? 

By Rancho Arcilla
05 May 2020

In the 1970s, the lot of present-day Plaza San Luis in Intramuros, Manila was a vacant property where San Agustin Church mass and wedding goers parked. Because it faced San Agustin and its patio, the Intramuros Administration, then led by Action Officer Jaime Laya, thought  it was a “perfect place” for a so-called “Old Town.” 

Jaime Laya, who was then also the Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, negotiated with the property owner, Mr. Soriano. In the book The Manila We Know, Laya recalls the meeting from his office at the Central Bank:

“He was reluctant to sell but pointed out that developing one on General Luna would increase the value of his other properties.”

“I also dropped the name of Mrs. Marcos.”

At that point, Mr. Soriano agreed, and the deal was sealed at PHP200,000.00, a fair price in 1979. It is important to note that while Jaime Laya was the Intramuros Administration’s first chief executive, Imelda Marcos, then the First Lady of the Philippines, was also its founding chairman. However, in contrast to common belief, Imelda Marcos’ involvement in the conceptualization of Laya’s “Old Town” was actually very minimal, limited in fact to attending events and cutting ribbons. It was actually a group of four men, Ramon Faustmann, David Baradas, Martin Tinio, and Conrado Escudero, who framed how project was to be executed.

The property consisted of seven separate lots. Initially, seven houses were designed but nine were eventually built. A walk around the block would in effect be a survey of Spanish-era styled homes. Three lots fronted the San Agustin Church. On the lot at Calle Real corner would be the Casa Manila. The center house would be modeled on the photograph of a probably 17th-century house along Solana St. near San Francisco Church. The third house would be a recreation of an 1890s plan in the National Archives, a Cuyugan home from Ermita. 

Reference: Laya, Jaime (2017). The Noble and Ever Loyal City. In Panlilio, Erlinda (Ed), The Manila We Know (p. 25). Anvil Publishing, Inc. 

Texts and Illustrations by Rancho Arcilla
All rights reserved by the author.
05 May 2020 (updated 31 May 2020; 03.28)