Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila

Gallery

Buildings

Gusaling Antonio Villegas
Gusaling Arsenio Lacson
Gusaling Ramon Bagatsing
Gusaling Katipunan
Gusaling Don Pepe Atienza
Bahay Maynila
Property & Supplies Bldg.
PRM Entreprenurial Center
Rajah Sulayman Gymnasium
Gusaling Intramuros
PLM Chapel and Christian Community Center
PLM Grandstand (Tanghalang Bayan)
PLM Activity Center

Infrastructures and Buildings

The PLM Campus
The PLM Campus is strategically located at the heart of Manila, inside the walls of historic Intramuros, immediately beside the eastern tip of the fortification and right after the age-old architectural gate of Puerta Real that leads to the main road of this protective enclave which, for centuries, was the seat of power of the entire Spanish East Indies and the western Pacific Ocean. The then-ruling Peninsulares (mainland-born) and Insulares (islands-born) Spaniards in the service of the royalty or crown of Spain under the Spanish Governor-General or the Royal Audiencia and Chancellery, as well as the Ilustrados (Filipino liberals and educated class) of the old times, have treaded along its pathways. In the early times, Intramuros itself was considered the entirety of Manila, the capital city of the Philippines, and the PLM campus was the site where the first formal educational institution in the country was pioneered in the late 16th century.

Accessible from the campus are malls, recreational centers, museums and educational facilities such as the SM City Manila behind the Manila City Hall, Robinson's Place in Ermita, the Rizal National Park and the Quirino Grandstand at the Luneta, the Manila Ocean Park and the Baywalk along Roxas

Boulevard, the Manila Golf Club and the Manila Planetarium right outside the walls of Intramuros, the Manila City Library at the Mehan Garden, and the National Library at Kalaw St., among others. Other sites as historical as the PLM's grounds surround the campus, including the Acquario de Manila, the Balwarte de San Andres, the Balwarte de San Diego, and proximate is the Fort Santiago where the National Hero was detained by foreign colonizers.

Intramuros is reputed in the past as the local Vatican of the Philippines for having a cathedral/basilica or church at almost every nook and corner, a testament to the fact that PLM's grounds were the site of the first stone church in the country constructed in 1590. Today, PLM is only two blocks away from the San Agustin Church, the grandest and oldest surviving church in the Philippines and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Constructed in the late 16th century, no other structure in the Philippines predates this church. Another two blocks away is the Manila Cathedral which is the seat of the Archbishop of Manila, the cardinal bishop primate of the Roman Catholic Church in the country.

Major national government functionaries also dot the horizon, including the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) just across the PLM's main gate, the National Museum complex which used to be the National Legislature (Philippine Senate) and the old Department of Finance, the Department of Tourism fronting the old Department of Finance, and the National Commission on Culture & the Arts within Intramuros. A few meters eastward is the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, the old
Department of Foreign Affairs (now part of the Supreme Court), and the Department of Justice. The Manila City Hall and its prominent Big Ben-style clock tower is just outside of another eastern gate of Intramuros.

Other well-meaning institutions are likewise proximate. Just beside PLM is the national headquarters of the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC), and a few meters away is the national main office of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). Also a stone's throw away is the chancery of the Embassy of the United States of America just beside the Museo Pambata, and northward is the head office (in the Philippines) of the World Health Organization along the United Nations Ave.

Campus Buildings and Facilities
The PLM Campus consists of different buildings which, except for the Gusaling Lacson and the Gusaling Villegas, possess an 18th to 19th-century "Insulares Hispanic" architectural design. Moldings, window and door materials, grillwork and paneling depict the details of the “Bahay na Bato” (stone house) that characterize the structures on the site during the Spanish era. These buildings are designed with Spanish influences in order to preserve the national heritage of this historical ground where "every single conqueror of this country flew its flag" as its seat of power -- the Spaniards, the British, the Americans, and the Japanese.

Since 1978, with the promulgation of PD No. 1537 and the subsequent creation of the Intramuros Administration (IA) by virtue of PD No. 1616, the design of buildings in Intramuros is subject to the inspection and approval of the IA in conformity with the national legal requirements of preserving the national historical heritage of the country. Hence, the Walled City is the only district of Manila where old Spanish-era influences were retained. As aptly enunciated by a columnist in a national daily, "Square foot for square foot, no other site in the country holds as much national historical interest as Intramuros. Even its very ground is unique as it holds artifacts that recount the ages of trade even prior to Spanish conquest" in the 16th century.

The buildings in PLM are either separate or interconnected with one another. These buildings include:

Gusaling Antonio Villegas: The original building built just before the creation of PLM, consisting of two wings along Gen. Luna St. and Muralla St. that meet along the corner-façade which is the main iconography of PLM. At the tip of the fulcrum-façade rises the Eternal Torch and Flame of Excellence, atop the former base of the statue of National Hero Jose P. Rizal.
The 3-storey GV, though smaller than the 7-storey Gusaling Lacson, is PLM's main building. It houses the offices of the vice presidents (academic affairs, administration, and finance & planning), the College of Engineering and Technology, the old PLM Registrar's Office, the University Clinic, the Office of Student Development & Services, the University Guidance Center, the Center for University Extension Services, the Ang Pamantasan student publication office, the Department of Military Science and Tactics, the Science and Chemical laboratories of the College of Science, the Computer-Aided-Design (CAD) laboratory and the Software Programming laboratory of the CET-Computer Studies Dept., the finance offices of cash, accounting, budget and auditing, the Emeritus College, the Bulwagang Manileño mini-theatre, modern cafeteria and several other offices and audiovisual rooms, including the new Accenture Ideas Exchange Room.
A 5-storey tower at the end of the right wing accentuates the corner of Victoria street. A cellsite tower of the Smart network rises over its flat rooftop.
An automated teller machine (ATM) facility is also housed beside the Cash Office at the main entrance which caters to ExpressNet, BancNet and MegaLink depositors.

Gusaling Arsenio Lacson: Rising at seven floors, it is the highest building in PLM which resembles a skyscraper that imposes a prominent landmark along the Roxas Blvd. just opposite another towering landmark -- the Manila Hotel. Erected just before the imposition of design restrictions in 1978, it showcases a unique design different from the Bahay na Bato, purposively to withstand deep intensities of earthquakes as an aftermath of the tragic tremor that hit the metropolis. The GL houses the College of Science, the College of Liberal Arts, the College of Management and Entrepreneurship, the College of Human Development, the College of Mass Communication, the College of Accountancy and Economics, the College of Tourism, Hotel and Travel Industry Management, the PLM Science Instructional-Research Laboratory, the PLM Speech Laboratory, and the PLM Radio & Speech Laboratory.

Gusaling Ramon Bagatsing: Replacing the centuries-old “Intramuros ruins” that served as a stage or venue for nostalgic events until the early years of PLM, the GB is another showcase of a design of historical heritage. The outside panels deceivingly exhibit a mostly wooden structure of a local mansion of circa 3 centuries gone by, though the main base is actually concrete; whereas the inside is a mixture of wooden structure and modern facilities including an ampi-theatre. Formerly known as Gusaling Maynila, the GB houses the College of Medicine and the Bulwagang Agham (PLM Science Hall).

Gusaling Katipunan: Despite having an historical architectural design like most buidlings in Intramuros, this 4-storey building is actually a full concrete building tiled entirely by marbles. It houses the College of Law, the PLM Law Center, the Graduate School of Law, the Graduate School of Health Sciences, Bukod Tanging Bulwagan of the College of Law, the Students' Wellness Center and Therapeutic Laboratory, and the Celso Al Carunungan Memorial Library with its sections and constituent libraries: the Health Sciences Library, the Graduate School library and the Dr. Norman R. Dahl Memorial Medical Library (formerly the Chicago-Norwegian Hospital Medical Library). Currently, it is the location of the main office of the University Registrar. It is also the former home of the College of Nursing.

Gusaling Don Pepe Atienza: Aptly known as the Graduate School building, it houses most of the Graduate Schools: the Graduate School of Arts, Sciences and Education, the Graduate School of Engineering, and the Graduate School of Management, as well as the T.O.P. ampi-theatre room, the Regents' Lounge where Board meetings are conducted, and several audio-visual and conference rooms at the higher floors. The air-conditioned lecture rooms are equipped with LCD projectors.

Bahay Maynila: Otherwise known as the PLM Alumni and Community Center (ACC) or the Executive Building, it houses the Executive Offices of the Top Management Team: the Office of the University President, the Office of the Executive Vice President, the Office of the Secretary of the University and of the Board of Regents, and the Office of the University Legal Counsel. The ground floor of this 3-storey building is the home of the University Cafe and its kitchen laboratory managed by the College of Tourism, Hotel and Travel Industry Management. Just beside the building is a landscaped promenade leading to the Rajah Sulayman Gymnasium.

Multi-purpose Building: Formerly known as the Physical Therapy building, it currently houses the Property & Supplies Office and its warehouse.

PRM Enterpreneurial Center: Erected through the efforts of the PLM Scholars’ Foundation, Inc. and largely through the endowment of then-Sen. Ramon Magsaysay Jr. in memory of his father, the late President Ramon Magsaysay, it is a 2-storey resource building where training programs on entrepreneurship are conducted. The PLM Alumni Association, Inc. is also furbishing its reception-office at the ground floor so alumni can have a focal place for inquiry and accommodation by the PLMAAI staff.

Rajah Sulayman Gymnasium: Housing the spacious and newly furbished PLM Basketball Court, it is the center of sports and recreational activities, as well as the home of the College of Physical Education, Recreation & Sports. Just outside but adjacent to the building is the PLM Fitness Center where employees and athletes come for their regular health regimen.

Gusaling Corazon Aquino: A new imposing edifice along the main road of Intramuros, and formerly known as Gusaling Intramuros, it houses the College of Nursing, the College of Physical Therapy (CPT) and its PLM Community-based Rehabilitation Clinic, the Information Technology Center, the College of Architecture & Urban Planning, and audio-visual rooms. The PLM Bids & Awards Committee and its secretariat (Procurement Office) also transferred to one of the building's spacious office spaces at the ground floor. The whole building is fully air-conditioned.

PLM Chapel and Ecumenical Community Center: A place of worship and sacred sanctuary where PLM scholars and employees regularly attend mass and conduct ecumenical prayers. An apt place for solitude and self-searching, the Center provides a refuge for the weary souls and dejected hearts to find renewal and muster strength and courage to fight and carry on. The Catholic Chapel is known as the Shrine of Jesus, the Divine Teacher.

PLM Grandstand (Tanghalang Bayan): A grandstand fronting the PLM Field where big or major events such as graduation, concerts and public gatherings are conducted. Below the grandstand is an exhibit hall, which is now the PLM Pride Hall.

University Activity Center: A new, vibrant, ever-busy open enclave where scholars can freely conduct their scholarly or extra-curricular activities. It is the fulcrum of student activities where college and even university-wide events are held. On regular days, scholars conduct their rehearsals for plays, dance and cheering competitions, song numbers and a wide array of presentation activities.