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Cebuano Pride: How JEG Development Corp. partners with local businesses to showcase expertise and culture

JEG Development Corporation has always envisioned a better Cebu. Inspired by the legacy of its namesake Jose Escano Garcia’s vision of putting his homeland first, JDC has been promoting Cebuano pride by partnering with local businesses and celebrating the province’s heritage. The company’s long-standing presence in Cebu has molded the family corporation’s vision to give back to the Cebuanos through their businesses.

JEG Tower @ One Acacia, the country’s Best Commercial Green Development for 2020, is the Garcia-Sarmiento clan’s pledge to a better Cebu. The 22-storey premium office and commercial tower features state-of-the-art technology to provide the best and safest working environment for its tenants. The development was also designed and constructed to minimize negative impacts on the environment, earning a LEED Silver Pre-certification from the US Green Building Council.

Partners for Growth

Aside from pushing for a more sustainable real estate sector in Cebu, JDC also aims to support local players in the industry. The company has collaborated with local suppliers, consultants, vendors in completing construction. In the process, JDC has become a partner for these businesses’ growth.

“We’d like to think that we are growing with them,” Ayla Gomez, JDC’s Brand Manager expressed. “We wanted JEG Tower @ One Acacia to be a representation of what Cebu can offer. We wanted to showcase the talents of Cebuanos, being a homegrown and local developer as well.”

PEZA Accreditation

JEG Tower @ One Acacia is Cebu City’s newest PEZA Accredited building. Cebu-based Fernandez Aguja Law Firm has been the company’s consultant in the whole registration and accreditation process.

The premium commercial development is also nearing its completion and launch. This is made possible by homegrown contractors and suppliers that have shared the company’s vision of bringing the best to fellow Cebuanos.

Showcasing talent and heritage

JEG Tower @ One Acacia has also recently opened its much-anticipated showroom. More than presenting a staging of an office space in the tower, the 7th floor showroom also features locally produced furniture from Detalia Aurora and Obra Cebuana. Pieces from these Cebu-based companies were carefully curated to complement the building’s sophisticated design. Some of the furniture and decorative pieces in JEG Tower’s showroom also highlight Cebu’s rich heritage and culture.

JEG Development Corporation partners with local businesses to showcase homegrown expertise and celebrate the province’s heritage and culture. Driven by the goal of giving back to their people, JEG Tower @ One Acacia becomes a symbol of Cebuano pride and accomplishment.

Interested in leasing in this proudly Cebuano property? Schedule a viewing today! Contact Lorenzo Rodriguez at (+63) 917-852-6884. You can also send us an email at info@kmcmaggroup.com or reach out to us through (+63) 2-8403-5519.

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In Focus: Cebu To Launch Its First Sustainable ‘Smart Building’ Soon – Here Are The Deets!

Cebu, an ever-bustling city, is undeniably one of the country’s biggest centers for tourism, culture, and commerce. Known for its varying industries, each of its businesses play a big part in keeping the city’s pulse alive. But one company in particular is hoping to lead Cebu into a new generation. JEG Development Corporation, originally a holding company started in 1994 by the late Jose E. Garcia, has since evolved into a real estate development company in 2004, when the family’s younger generation took over in his passing in 2003. Now, at its helm is its Chief Operating Officer, Marko Sarmiento, a budding entrepreneur and grandson of Jose E. Garcia, who is looking, not only to grow the business to new heights, but to also lead Cebu into a more progressive future.

“My background was actually in the furniture industry, which is a big industry here in Cebu, and I was doing that for 10 years. My father’s side of the business is furniture, and mother’s side is real estate. When real estate was picking up, it was something that my family wanted to develop further. I had other family members in JEG Development that were working there, but they shifted to our main industry, which is power generation and distribution. So real estate was just plugging along, and no one was really taking the lead. That’s when I came in in 2010,” Marko tells ABS-CBN Lifestyle. “We had a few small projects when we started, but we always had this plan to develop an office building. And it was around 2017 when we decided we were going to pursue the building, and that became our first ‘big project— the JEG Tower.”

The JEG Tower is the first high-rise project of the company, set to launch late this year. Having been described as ‘the ultimate fusion of business and leisure,’ the development will mainly function as a commercial building with retail spaces in the lower floors, and office spaces on the upper levels. But what makes this building special, are its environmental and innovative components. It will be one of the few LEED certified buildings in Cebu, and will boast sustainable and practical features such as efficient energy consumption, lower water consumption, and a ‘green roof’ that collects rainwater for re-use, just to name a few. This will be a first of its kind in the city, and is something that the company hopes to be the catalyst for a more sustainable trend in Cebu.

“We realize that we came into the industry late. When we developed this building, the reason we decided to go LEED, green, and grade A, was because we had to differentiate ourselves from everybody else. But rather than just building one successful project, a lot of it had to do with making Cebu being a livable city. It’s a focus that the family has, the board has, and we feel that a LEED building puts us in the right step forward,” Marko says. “‘Smart buildings’ are something we’d want to push for.”

Coming from relatively smaller projects such as The Gallery, a strip mall in the city, and Tomodachi Residences, a premium residential townhouse development, their new commercial high-rise acts as a promising launch pad to a more progressive direction for the company. With Marko, and the rest of the team hopeful for brighter things to come, their focus stems from a more meaningful vision for their growing company.

“We want to be seen as the guys who really took time to think of developing projects not only for the bottom line, but to develop the community, and for the rest of the country to look at Cebuanos as more than just your typical developer. That we actually think of the environment, the community, and livability,” Marko stresses.

Beyond the company, Marko envisions JEG Development’s projects to contribute to the broader strokes of Cebu’s development and to help showcase the ingenuity of the Cebuanos, as well as how they can be up to par with the developments in Metro Manila, and what can also be seen from around the world.

“We want to give Cebu something to be proud of, because of something we’ve actually developed in Cebu that could hopefully be a microcosm of what else we’d be doing in the future. A township is something that we’d one day like to develop, where we’d have parks, maybe in a smaller scale, but a little community where we could have nice commercial buildings and walkable spaces. In other countries, you can see that it’s nice to walk in the city, and unfortunately, Cebu isn’t as walkable, and it’s something we’d love to somewhat create,” he muses.

“We’re all Cebuanos, we take pride in being Cebuano, and we want people to look at Cebu as a place that’s not only a nice place to visit for its beaches, but also for having premium office spaces and residential developments, with good quality of life.”

Source: https://lifestyle.abs-cbn.com/articles/7890/in-focus-cebu-to-launch-its-first-sustainable-smart-building-soonhere-are-the-deets