Pasay starts clearing slums for Naia Expressway

The Pasay City government has started the relocation of informal settlers to clear the path for an airport expressway set to be constructed next year.

City officials earlier identified at least 83 families to be removed from Barangay 191, which will be affected by the construction of Phase 2 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Expressway project.

The Naia Expressway is a 7.15-kilometer, four-lane road that will link the airport to Skyway on the South Luzon Expressway, the Manila-Cavite Expressway, major thoroughfares such as Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard, and the Entertainment City casino complex in Parañaque City.

On Thursday, 21 of the identified informal settler families agreed to be relocated to a government housing project in Barangay Aguado, Trece Martires, Cavite province, according to Pasay City Mayor Antonino Calixto.

The city’s Urban Development and Housing Office chief Paul Vega said a second batch of about 23 families is set to be relocated on Aug. 29.

Families who had availed themselves of the housing units were given P5,000 in financial assistance, while those who declined were given P25,000 by the Department of Public Works and Highways.

“The families who were relocated will not be required to pay rent during the first year of their stay. They will only start paying the monthly rental after one year,” Calixto said.

The mayor said the city government was targeting the relocation of all identified informal settler families by next month.

“We can report to the President that Pasay is doing its part in facilitating the right of way of this flagship program of his administration, while at the same time providing decent and affordable housing to our constituents,” he added.

Phase 2-A of the expressway, which will link Entertainment City to Naia Terminals 1 and 2, will start construction in January 2014 and is expected to be finished in March 2015.

Phase 2-B, which will link Domestic Road to Terminal 3 at Sales Street, is scheduled for construction from April 2014 to September 2015.

Calixto clarified that the city government had a separate relocation project starting next month for families living along danger zones on Maricaban creek and Tripa de Galina.  Jaymee T. Gamil