1.9 M public funds for road project on private property faces snags; parking lots instead

By Gina Dizon

SAGADA MOUNTAIN PROVINCE – In response to  traffic  issues here in
this tourist town, a proposed  diversion road  by the local government
unit  to be constructed  within the private lot of the Mission
compound faced  differing  sentiments  during a public consultation
held here at the municipal hall  August 1,2014.

A  common suggestion  among participants  to resolve  heavy traffic
jams  along  the narrow streets of  this tourist town  is the need for
parking lots instead of building a diversion road near the basketball
court to the boundaries of the Mission lot along sitios Dekkan,
Sayocsoc  to Dagdag and joining  the  highway.

In said public forum, women leader Soledad Belingon forwarded  there
is need for parking spaces further  proposing  realignment  of the
P1.9 million fund sourced from the Cordillera Highland Agricultural
Resource Management Project (CHARMP)  for  said  diversion road to
building of parking  lots.

Two proposed areas for parking lots favorable to authorities of the
Church of St Mary the Virgin of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern
Philippines were  identified in Tangeb, Dagdag and KenGedeng, Patay
both sites  located within the Mission compound.

CSMV Vestry member  Peter Tauli further said what is needed are pay
parking facilities referring to the two  identified areas where
collections shall serve as income for both barangays and the church.

Sagada mayor Edwardo Latawan however said it is not possible for said
CHARMP funds allocated for  a farm to market road to be realigned to
parking lots.

The suggestions came in the light of a decision from the vestry of the
CSMV not to allow the opening of the proposed  diversion road  within
the  Mission compound  in response to a letter of  Engr Isabelo Abing
of  winning bidder Benguet Builders  writing his intent to start the
project  May this year.  Said project, improvement of  diversion road
with funds  sourced from CHARMP-Department of Agriculture and a local
counterpart  was bidded out by the  Sagada LGU in December 2013 to be
finished in 51 days.

This tourist town hosts a number of inns and restaurants
accommodating  some 30,000 visitors a year and  tourist  cars
including  residents’  vehicles  parked along the already narrow road
causing heavy traffic jams and accidents especially during weekends
and tourist peak seasons  on holidays. Two children already incurred
accidents along the road in barangay Dagdag this year.

Another  issue  posed was the bidding out of the project despite the
absence of  necessary documents.

EDNP Bishop Brent Alawas in a separate interview said  there is no
memorandum of  agreement  inked between the  local government  unit
as the implementing agency of said proposed road and  the EDNP for the
use of part of the private lot within the  Mission compound.

Government  policy  requires no use of public funds over private
property, however gets cured with agreements between parties  such as
usufruct.

Sagada Mayor Eduardo Latawan said he was advised by authorities from
the Department of Agriculture to proceed with the bidding but not to
award said project to the winning bidder pending completion of
documents.

Though  Engr  Abing of winning  bidder Benguet  Builders  in his
letter to the  Vestry of CSMV  said the project was already awarded to
his firm and will start  implementation by May 21, 2014  to be
finished by June  30 of t4eh same year.

Latawan  however  said the project was not yet awarded to winning bidder.

Should the project be  implemented  on said proposed site measuring
nearly one kilometer, Latawan said available funds can only start the
project  with no  application of cement, though  other  means  can be
sourced out to complete  the proposed diversion road  until it gets
finished including a P1.6 million from LGU  coffers budgeted for 2015.
The Department of Public Works and Highways  (DPWH)  estimates 20 to
25 million pesos per kilometer of road work.

A resident commented the project cost of 1.9 million pesos only opens
the road with no assurance of  road completion.

And among the  church goers,  construction does not come that easy for
the diversion road with a church decision not allowing  said road
project  following  the congregational assembly’s decision to let the
vestry  decide on whether to allow or not building of the road
considering differing views of the  congregation. CSMV rector Fr
Constancio Naoy noted  more of voices of opposition during said
assembly.

Newly  elected  CSMV senior  warden  Dave Gulian said reasons for the
CSMV congregation’s  opposition hinged on  anticipated issues on
congestion, destruction of the  Mission  compound as an eco-park,
squatting, and problems  on waste along and near the building of
proposed road noted during the  June 1 congregational consultation.

The past vestry in 2010-13 forwarded their favourable decision to the
building of diversion road noting that it was included as a proposed
project of the church. Though no consultation  was done with the
congregation as noted by  Wanay Pagadian former  Vestry member.

Former vestry member and president of the Episcopal Church Women Jane
Bawing  echoed  opposition of  some women members  to said  diversion
road, and further forwarded that the master development plan of the
church is  currently being drafted inviting  the public to input their
recommendations  and comments  on said plan.

With a divided stand of the congregation and vestry members on
proposed road  including  differing views noted during said public
consultation made the road budget  vulnerable  to other  proposals
including realignment and  reprogramming  of the proposed road project
apart from parking lots.  Road alternatives  were  identified inside
the municipality namely Pukan-Demang-Ambasing  and the
Suyo-Mabisil-Antadao  routes.

Latawan  refers to  big  vehicles  entering the town  southward  from
the direction of  the  currently implemented  DPWH-DOT  convergence
tourism road projects  to be finished in one to two years time namely
the P135 million second phase of the Madepdeppas  Sabangan-Taccong
Sagada route awarded to BMK-Latawan Construction and  the P100 million
Balili Bontoc-Suyo Sagada road awarded to RS Sepian Construction .

Currently, heavily visited Sagada can only be traversed from the
century old Dantay -Sagada road and a one lane road from the currently
worked on Balili-Suyo road.

Celia Baldo an immigrant  from Manila married to an iSagada native
asked what  kind of tourism is being promoted  forwarding that
visitors look for pristine and rustic places  to relax in avoiding the
usual smog and big infrastructure  in heavily polluted cities.

Baldo  who is active in the  social media noted that  tourists who
visited Sagada  during the Holy week and residents as well
appreciated the management of  smooth  traffic with all  vehicles
except  public utility cars directed to parking lots and Sagada turned
to a walk town.