Manila dads OK condo near Luneta

MANILA, Philippines – The Manila City Council, after investigating and issuing resolutions against the construction of a condominium that critics say would mar the sightline of the Rizal Monument, has adopted the zoning board’s recommendation approving the project.

“The members of the City Council of Manila find no cogent reason to deny and/or reverse the recommendation of the Manila Zoning Board of Adjustments and Appeals and hereby ratify and confirm all previously issued permits, licenses and approvals,” a council resolution passed on Friday said.

The resolution was authored by Councilor Ernesto “Jong” Isip, chair of the committee on housing, urban development and resettlements, who also sits as vice chair of the zoning board.

The Torre de Manila project drew controversy after tour guide and activist Carlos Celdran launched an online campaign against it in 2012. Celdran warned that the structure being built on Taft Avenue would stick out of the horizon and ruin the view of the Rizal Monument.

Councilor DJ Bagatsing, chair of the committee on tourism, then authored resolutions recommending the temporary suspension of the project’s permits, which were issued during the previous city administration, under Mayor Alfredo Lim.

When interviewed on Friday, Bagatsing explained that after the investigations “there were significant gains and positive strides achieved as compared to the situation before.”

He said officials of the developer DM Consunji Inc. (DMCI) had “a roundtable discussion” with him and Celdran and agreed to improve the design of the facade to complement the Rizal Monument sightline.

The company also agreed to plant two rows of tall trees “to protect the view” and keep the building free of advertising materials, Bagatsing said.

“They don’t have to do these things but we pushed for that. And Celdran and I will vigilantly monitor their compliance to these commitments,” the councilor said. “At least now (DMCI is) not violating any law. It went through the right process and coordination with City Hall.”

In a text message, Celdran said: “They must directly address the visual sightline of Rizal’s monument; either fully block our view of their condominium with trees or lower the height by 15 stories. That is the only solution I support.”

The council, in hearings conducted in 2012 and November 2013, arrived at the conclusion that Torre de Manila violated the height restriction in the area but that no law was being violated pertaining to the Rizal Monument.

The condominium project consists of 49 floors—including 41 floors for residential units, four levels for podium parking space, three for basement parking, and the ground floor for various amenities—and will rise behind the former Jai-Alai Building on Taft.

In a letter dated Dec. 18, 2013, DMCI president Alfredo Austria wrote to former President and now Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada seeking “clarification and assistance” regarding the issues raised against the project.

The letter was coursed through Edward Serapio, secretary to the mayor and chair of the zoning board, which came out with the recommendation for approval on Dec. 23.

The other members of the board are Danilo Victor Lacuna Jr., chief of the City Planning Development Office; Jose Alberto Flaminiano, city legal officer; Jose de Juan, city assessor; Roberto Bernardo, city engineer; Salvador Philip Lacuna, Liga ng mga Barangay president; council majority floor leader Marlon Lacson and minority floor leader Manuel Zarcal.

In an earlier interview, Estrada said that he “more or less” supported the suspension of Torre’s permits.

But on Friday the mayor said: “I referred (the DMCI letter) to the council and the city planners, and they approved it. What more can I do?”

“You have to consider that the city will also benefit from the project,” Estrada told the Inquirer.