BUILDING A DREAM

It is a project of lofty proportions: the first smart, green, and resilient planned community in the Philippines, replete with residential, commercial, government, leisure, and sporting facilities, among others, built from the ground up. Spanning 9,450 hectares, New Clark City in Capas, Tarlac—not to be confused with the already existing Clark Freeport Zone or Clark Global City—is under the management of the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), an agency under the Office of the President and one of the driving forces of the current administration’s “Build Build Build” infrastructure plan. Phase 1A of the construction includes the Aquatics Centre, Athletics Stadium, National Government Administrative Centre, Athletes’ Village, and River Park Corridor. Crucial to be completed on schedule were the sporting facilities, which are to serve as the main hub for the 2019 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games, slated to open on 30 November. Faced with an immovable deadline,