Three townhouse units are clustered in a modern three-storey building at the new residential area dubbed 68 Roces. (Photo by NOEL B.PABALATE)

MANILA, Philippines — Don Alejandro Roces Avenue in Quezon City has never been known as a fashionable area. Unlike the nearby streets, it isn’t lined with trendy restaurants and bars. A handful of high-rise condos do stand along the strip. Yet for so many decades, it was just known as the road that linked motorists from Tomas Morato Avenue to Quezon Avenue.

But that’s about to change, now that an upscale neighborhood is being constructed along this street. And as if to emphasize the fact that this street has arrived, the name of the residential complex has been christened 68 Roces (a la 79 Park Avenue or even 6750 Ayala Avenue). The property is being built on a lot covering roughly 3.3 hectares. Most of the townhouse units will have three bedrooms. Free standing houses with four bedrooms will also be built.  Both the houses and townhouses will have enough garage space for two cars. Rest assured the townhouses are real townhouses, and not cramped apartments masquerading as townhouses.

Although construction is ongoing, a model unit provides an accurate picture of what a townhouse at 68 Roces would look like. The unit has three floors and features modern, cubistic architecture.  This means white is the dominant color and lots of glass provides natural light to enter the place.

68 Roces is a project of Eton Properties Philippines, Inc. To furnish and decorate the model unit, the developer hired topflight designers Alexander Periquet and Joel Songsong. Given the architecture of the townhouse, the designers could have also taken a similar route and furnished the place with modern accessories. But what they came up instead was a look that is substantial and spiced with character. Periquet describes it as “dateless, rich in culture and not pretentious.”

“It’s profoundly memorable, appealing and stylish without merely being trendy or fashionable,” he says. “To put it simply, it should endure time.” The look is distinctly Filipino but with an international twist. Periquet calls it the “new found Filipino Design Lifestyle,” and a “new Eco Filipino that is now a part of the Global Community.”

Periquet notes that he and Songsong implemented a simple aesthetic that combines the finest elements of the East and West. “We tried to create different spaces that reflect one’s lifestyle utilizing Asian but mostly Filipino designed pieces that create an enormous variety of interior décor,” he says.

The two designers also furnished the unit with eco-friendly items and materials. Their firm, called Songsong and Periquet, has long been an advocate of green living and they’ve been using eco friendly and sustainable materials for their projects. These include the use of Philippine hemp and shells. “We have tried to achieve a calm and restful environment,” says Periquet. “Natural organic materials, quality accessories and artworks produce a simple, uncluttered look. Attention to details and neutral colors are paramount.”

The two designers say the modern cubistic design approach of 78 Roces prospects a striking image towards the future. “It’s a place where architecture, design and comfort can be felt and experienced. It’s a step ahead of the rest in terms of luxury living,” they say.

For details regarding 68 Roces, contact 845-ETON (3866) or visit www.eton.com.ph