Baguio preps for 111th Charter Day; DOT sets P400-M for B’ham upgrade

By Pigeon Lobien  

BAGUIO CITY – Monuments, busts and other markers that trace the city’s history in the last 100 years will be given the facelift needed in time for the city's 111th Charter Day on Sept. 1.

The city government is also set to rehabilitate one of Baguio's crown jewels, the Burnham Park.

The Department of Tourism has pledged P400 million for its upgrade but it has been delayed due to the pandemic.

Mayor Benjamin Magalong said during the Filipino-American Friendship Day celebration at the Baguio Cemetery on July 4 he has directed the City Environment and Parks Management Office (CEPMO) to undertake the facelift in time for the celebration.

Magalong, in a message read during the simple ceremony beside the grave of the last American Baguio mayor Eusebius Halsema, said the busts of Lyman Kennon at the View Deck of Kennon Road, George Malcolm at the People’s Park, Daniel Burnham at the Rose Garden of the park that bears his name as well as markers for World War II heroes, will be upgraded as they have been neglected in the past years.

Kennon connected Baguio to Manila by constructing the 37-kilometer Kennon Road or the Benguet Road, Malcolm crafted the city’s charter, the famed Chicago-based Burnham designed the city, while Halsema was also the city engineer and provincial engineer for Mountain Province.

Magalong said the markers and busts are very much part of Baguio’s history.

The mayor said improvements must be made as Baguio tries to recover from the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic and regain its position as one of the prime tourist destinations in the country.

Kennon’s bust that sits beside the view deck at Camp 6 gives a majestic view of the zigzag and the Lion’s Head. Burnham’s "head" stands guard at the entrance of the Burnham Park at the Rose Garden, while Malcolm serves as a sentinel at the foot of Session Road or city plaza, formerly the Malcolm Square and now the People’s Park.

These were built through the efforts of the late councilor Narciso Padilla, a journalist.

Magalong thanked the Americans who established a Hill Station and later a city that became a home to thousands of people.

During the short speech on a typical gloomy Baguio morning at the Baguio Cemetery, he also vowed to spruce up the 8.9-hectare public cemetery that will do justice to Baguio’s stature as a tourism haven.

“This is the right time to make the improvements. We have to fix everything now,” Magalong said in a previous interview referring to Baguio’s problems, including pollution and bad urban planning leading to decay.