ASIDE from necessary repairs that would cost around P7 million, the Cebu International Convention Center (CICC) needs major upgrading in order to be at par with other international convention centers.
Improvements needed in the facility built under the administration of former governor Gwendolyn Garcia are
More rooms are needed to hold various functionssaid Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale.
“In the strict sense of the word, it’s really not an international convention center. A real convention center has several rooms for different functions,” she told reporters yesterday.
Cebu provincial administrator Mark Tolentino said the centralized airfconditioning system is faulty and the CICC lacks a loading ramp to facilitate loading large objects.
“Those are just some of the issues that need to be addressed. We are aware of the criticism that the structure has faced so if we plan to repair it, we might as well make it better,” he told Cebu Daily News.
The facility is being considered as one of the conference venues of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit on 2015 and the International Eucharistic Congress (IEC) on 2016.
Gov. Hilario Davide III and Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes already agreed to take on the “costly” rehabilitation effort when they met the other day. They plan to convene next week the CICC board composed of officials from the Mandaue City government, the Cebu provincial government and representatives from the Philippine Exhibits and Theme Parks Corporation (Petco).
The 7.2-magnitude earthquake on Oct. 15 damaged the building.
Plans for the rehabilitation will be laid out in the meeting, as well as suggestions for improvements and possible sources for the renovation’s funding.
More than P70M
More than P70 million is needed for the building’s repair after parts of the center’s cladding were detached during the 7.2-magnitude earthquake last October 15. Interior walls sustained major cracks while the electrical and water systems were damaged.
The aftershocks also damaged the CICC’s front and back canopies, comfort rooms, function rooms, summit and exhibition halls as well as its gypsum board ceilings and glass panels.
The CICC was built for Cebu to host the January 2007 ASEAN Summit.
APEC bid
Cebu province’s bid for the meeting of the heads of states for APEC appears uncertain with other locales such as Manila and Subic leading the shortlist but Magpale said Cebu has advantages over other proposed venues because of the Mactan Cebu International Airport’s superior facilities which can handle all types aircraft the international leaders will be using when they fly in to Cebu.
The province also has enough hotel rooms for the large delegations of the participants.
“What we know now is we might not get the venue for the heads of state meeting but we will definitely host the ministerial meetings. But still, that’s very important and we need a venue for that,” she said./Correspondent Peter L. Romanillos