The Maharlika Livelihood Center stands on the former site of the Baguio Stone Market, which was gutted by a major fire in 1970 and was demolished in the mid-1970s.

[2] In 1972, the Baguio city council leased the property to MAR-BAY and Co., Inc., which was given the right to build and manage the Maharlika Livelihood Center for 25 years.

[3] The center opened in 1982 under the auspices of First Lady Imelda Marcos as human settlements minister.

[4] In 2009, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo issued a directive to the DA to hand over the retail complex to the city government since it does not fulfill any agriculture-related function.

The Baguio city council allowed Mayor Benjamin Magalong in 2019 to start negotiations with the HSDC for the return of the Maharlika Livelihood Center to the city government ahead of the scheduled expiration of the lease deal in 2025.