New Clark City


New Clark City is a planned community currently undergoing development and is located within the Clark Special Economic Zone in the towns of Capas and Bamban at the Tarlac province, Philippines. It has an area of approximately and will accommodate up to 1.2 million people. It is managed by the Bases Conversion and Development Authority. NCC is patterned after the development of Putrajaya, the federal administrative capital of Malaysia.

Naming

The project was named "Clark" for marketing purposes for potential investors in the area. This naming decision was made despite being located in Tarlac and not in Pampanga due to the latter being more known to foreign investors. The BCDA compared this with the situation of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, which was Olongapo and Morong, Bataan, and not in Subic, Zambales.
During the Duterte administration, the planned city was renamed from "Clark Green City" to "New Clark City".

History

New Clark City, previously known as Clark Green City was first presented by the Bases Conversion Development Authority under the administration of then-president Arnel Casonova in 2012. The then-proposal was met with skepticism from some high-ranking government officials due to the development's proposed location being remote. Casanova envisioned a development with wide and tree-shaded pedestrian lanes. He also envisioned the development to be free of gated communities to discourage heavy traffic.
The BCDA held a design competition for the master conceptual development plan for Clark Green City with AECOM coming up with the winning design in 2015. After the Casanova's tenure as BCDA ended he joined AECOM as the firm's representative in the Philippines.
In March 2015, the Philippine Congress approved House Resolution 116 in support of Clark Green City.
The development is under the BCDA. The BCDA signed a 50-year contract with Filinvest to develop the of land allocated for the project. BCDA also managed to make partnership with foreign firms to develop Clark Green City such as Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corp. which plans to connect Clark Green City to Manila as well as surrounding cities by rail, and IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute which will assist the BCDA to come up with "smart and disaster-resilient" features for the planned community. An agreement was also signed between Paris-based Vivapolis.

Groundbreaking and construction (2016-present)

The groundbreaking rites for New Clark City, led by then-President Benigno Aquino III was made in April 11, 2016. The development became one of the flagship projects of President Rodrigo Duterte, the succeeding President. In March 2018, the development of Phase 1-A of the National Government Administrative Center which consists of the New Clark City Sports Complex began and would serve as one of the venues to the country's hosting of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games. The sports facilities were completed in record time in time for the games.
In July 2020, the BCDA and the Department of Agriculture are planning to put up an Agro-Industrial Hub in New Clark City aimed to support farming communities, and strengthen food security in Luzon.

Geography

New Clark City spans an area of and is located within the former U.S. military base of Camp O'Donnell. The development is located in the municipalities of Capas and Bamban, Tarlac province although it is administered from Angeles, Pampanga as part of the Clark Special Economic Zone. Out of 9,450 hectares of the city, only 3,500 hectares will be developed, leaving the rest for green and open spaces, making it a green city.
The development is not a flood-prone area with its minimum elevation being at above sea level and its planned central park also serves as a flood catchment basin. The Sierra Madre mountain range is located on the development's east while the Zambales mountain range is located on the west, with both geographical features providing New Clark City a natural protection from typhoons. The maximum elevation of New Clark City is at around.
The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology has assessed the area to be relatively less prone to earthquakes.

Districts

New Clark City will be divided into various districts depending on primary function. As of 2019, there are two official districts with ongoing development.
It is planned that the New Clark City will accommodate about 1.12 million residents and 800 thousand workers.

Sports

The New Clark City Sports Hub located within the National Government Administrative Center contains an athletes' village, an aquatics center and a 20,000-seater athletics stadium. New Clark City was one of the host cities of the 2019 Southeast Asian Games, which took place all over Luzon. The closing ceremony was held in the Athletics Stadium. The said sporting facilities will also serve as the venues for the Aquatics and Athletics events in the 2020 ASEAN Para Games
In December 2019, BCDA, the Asian Swimming Federation, Philippine Swimming and Philippine Sports Commission signed a partnership agreement for the country’s hosting of the 2020 Asian Swimming Championships which will be held in New Clark City.
In 2020, the National Academy of Sports system, a soon-to-be government-run sports academy was established with the signing of Republic Act No. 11470 on June 9, 2020 by President Rodrigo Duterte. The NAS is a body attached to the Department of Education. The main campus will be set up at the New Clark City Sports Complex in Capas, Tarlac.

Transportation

Land

The planned PNR North–South Commuter Railway will connect New Clark City to the capital, Manila.
New Clark City will also be served by the Subic–Clark–Tarlac Expressway and Central Luzon Link Expressway specifically through the six-lane New Clark City-Mac Arthur Access Road which will connect the NCC to MacArthur Highway.

Air

NCC is served by the Clark International Airport in Pampanga.