Quezon City’s next power address

Can’t this future power address in Quezon City match or even overtake Makati’s towering corporate hub?

Proponents said it’s now all possible after the Quezon City council approved its own central business district (CBD) ordinance and marked some 250 hectares of prime real estate for multiphase development.

The ordinance has met strong opposition from urban poor communities in danger of losing their homes.

Passed on third and final reading before the Holy Week break, the measure designates an area composed of  North Triangle, East Triangle and the Veterans Memorial Medical Center. Together, these areas will make up a CBD with five districts.

The ordinance still awaits the signature of Mayor Herbert Bautista, but the city administrator, Dr. Victor Endriga, said the mayor had always been a vocal supporter. “Perhaps after Holy Week he will sign it, definitely,” Endriga told the Inquirer.

With a current value of at least P70,000 per square meter, the 250.6 hectare property— bordered by four major roads in the heart of Quezon City—had already attracted several developers, Endriga said.

The passage of the measure is in accordance with a local zoning ordinance. “The groundwork has been laid down since the previous administrations, and the measure will be the start of the public-private partnership,” Endriga said.

The official named bigtime developers such as Ayala Land and Megaworld as among those who had expressed an interest in the project.

The CBD’s master plan features five districts: The Triangle Exchange, the Emporium, the Downtown hub, the Residences and the Commons.

Hubs for everything

It will be bordered by a stretch Edsa from the MRT North Avenue station up to GMA-Kamuning station, portions of East Avenue, North Avenue and Elliptical Road.

The Triangle Exchange and Emporium districts will be allotted for commercial establishments such as retail and service shops, restaurants, banks—and even for radio and TV stations.

The Downtown hub will be for national or local institutions such as schools, medical centers, academic research or scientific centers, museums and religious structures.

The Residence district, as the name suggests, will be for individual or family dwellings for those who will be employed or practicing their professions in the CBD.

The Commons district will provide space for parks, open-air sports facilities, memorials or shrines, etc.

Residents in Quezon City will be given prime consideration when businesses begin hiring, Endriga said. “We will require employers to hire a certain percentage of Quezon City residents so that our locals will also benefit,” he added.

Citing a recent census, Endriga conceded that at least 6,000 families mostly living in shanties behind the Trinoma mall and portions of Agham and BIR roads may have to be relocated.

The National Housing Authority, Endriga said, had readied relocation sites for them in Rodriguez, Rizal, and in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.

But according to cause-oriented groups backing the informal settlers, the number of affected families is far greater than what the government claims.

Urban poor gripes

Alyansa Kontra Demolition lead convenor Carlito Badion placed the figure at around 25,000 families, while Sisel Cari, chair of the Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap-QC chapter, put it at 15,000 families.

Cari slammed the CBD as a government ploy to extend favors to landed developers while disregarding its responsibility to the urban poor.

“People will stand to fight for a decent living and adequate housing with the last drop of their blood,” the urban poor leader said.

Badion noted that the government seemed insistent on moving the affected residents to relocation sites in Bulacan and Rizal despite having no clear prospects of livelihood awaiting them in those areas.

“Development? For whom? For the citizens or for the rich? We, the poor, are not against development if they would include us in the planning of this project, but they respond to us by giving us relocation sites that are so far away,” he said.

Badion said his group would be preparing to protect their homes in the coming weeks, starting with the setup of barricades around their communities to block any demolition team.