Town execs urged anew to spare old plaza

For the second time, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) asked the municipal government of San Jose in Batangas to reconsider its plan to put up a new municipal building at the center of the town’s heritage plaza.

NHCP Chair Maria Serena Diokno urged Mayor Entiquio Briones in a letter to keep the 1,000-square-meter plaza an open, free space.

The Municipal Development Council wanted to build a P60-million modern building in front of the old municipal hall to accommodate more offices. The proposal was approved by barangay and municipal officials in August.

Residents, however, were opposing the move, saying it would ruin the architectural beauty of the old square that had been preserved for over 200 years. They insisted that a declared heritage site should not be altered, as cited by the NHCP in its first letter on July 5.

“Once again, we urge … Mayor [Briones] to retain the plaza as an open, free space. This is more than a matter of law or technicality. It is a matter of our nation’s historical resource that we, as public servants, are bound by duty to preserve,” Diokno said in her letter dated September 19.

16th century

According to the NHCP, San Jose’s open air plaza dates back to the 16th century, when “royal ordinances” stipulated that center plazas should be accessible and no other structures should be built around it, “except when (the structure) contributes to commodiousness or beauty.”

The town plaza is surrounded by the Shrine of St. Joseph the Patriarch built in 1788, a school, and the municipal hall.

“Your proposed municipal building will shatter the beauty of the plaza and deny the residents and citizens of San Jose a right they and future generations ought to enjoy,” Diokno said.

“The NHCP strongly opposes your plan to put up enclosing structure within the town plaza and is prepared to use the means and resources available to it to keep the plaza open and free,” she said.

Not on NHCP list?

But Briones contended that the plaza was not on the NHCP’s list of historical sites. It was originally used as parade grounds, a school garden and site for “peryas” (market fairs), he had said earlier.

Moreover, he said, a health center, a facility for the elderly and youth, a water tank serving the urban area residents and a vending kiosk had been constructed around it.

Trees were planted over the years, Briones said.

The mayor said the NHCP should not hinder the local officials’ objectives of making public services accessible to the people and attracting investors by creating the “face” of San Jose.

“It is to make San Jose, a first-class municipality, (have) a face that could attract investors and ease the working environment in the old municipal hall,” he said.

A new face

The new town hall would house the executive departments and the offices of the League of Barangays, senior citizens, Sangguniang Kabataan and the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, Briones said.

The old building would house the Sangguniang Bayan, municipal library and archives, and offices of national agencies.

Briones assured the NHCP that the project would not remove the park but improve it by adding some amenities.

A new plaza would be developed at the present site of the health center, he said, while a new health center would be part of the new town hall.