MANILA, Philippines – Harrison Plaza will be back in 2027. 

The Sy family’s property conglomerate SM Prime Holdings announced on Wednesday, April 1 that it would open SM Harrizon Plaza next year as it released anew the initial artist’s render of the mall’s facade and atrium. 

SM Prime took over the 7-hectare property — located just beside the Manila Zoo, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, Rizal Memorial Sports Complex, and Lucio Tan’s Century Park Hotel — from the Martel family. 

SM Prime said it is investing over P6 billion to redevelop the former Harrizon Plaza Complex, which shut down on December 31, 2019. The Martels put up the mall in 1976 and had leased the lot from the Manila City government for more than 40 years.

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The Harrison Plaza Complex was billed as the country’s “first one-stop shopping mall” even though the Araneta family’s Ali Mall in Cubao, Quezon City, opened earlier on June 30, 1976. (READ: Experience a bit of New York and Europe in Araneta City’s Gateway 2 Mall)

In a disclosure, SM Prime said SM Harrison Plaza will have a gross floor area of around 200,000 square meters, comparable to SM City Clark in Pampanga, and to SM City in Davao in Mindanao.

“The development will incorporate nature-inspired architectural elements alongside open layouts, community spaces and green areas designed to support cultural and social activities,” said SM Supermalls president Steven Tan.

The company said SM Harrison Plaza would be a “mixed-use retail and lifestyle hub, extending the company’s reach to office workers, residents and students across Malate and Ermita.” 

Manila City Mayor Isko Moreno, who made a comeback in the 2025 mid-term polls, said in October 2025 he had asked the Sy family to fast-track the construction of SM Harrison Plaza in order to perk up the local economy by creating jobs related to the mall’s operations.

SM Prime said SM Harrison Plaza is part of the company’s P150-billion mall investment program for 2026 to 2030, which includes the major redevelopment of 16 existing malls and the construction of 12 to 15 new lifestyle malls.

It launched its 90th mall in the country, SM City Zamboanga, last March 20, after opening two malls in 2025, SM City Laoag, and SM City La Union. The Sy family also has 9 malls in China.

SM Supermalls’ 89 malls in 2025 averaged 115 million visits per month or 3.8 million visits per day, an increase of 1% from 2024. It said the 1.4 billion total mall visits for 2025 reflects “steady consumer activity despite challenging economic conditions and weather-related disruptions.” 

The Sy family’s malls business contributed 60% to SM Prime’s P85 billion revenues in 2025.

Other scheduled mall openings this 2026 include SM City General Trias in Cavite; SM Sta. Rosa (Yulo), a premium mall in Nuvali, Laguna; and SM City Tagum in Davao del Norte. – Rappler.com