Legal operation of transient houses in Baguio pushed

BY Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY -- City officials recently requested the City Local Zoning Board on Adjustments and Appeals (LZBAA), the City Permits and Licensing Division of the City Mayor’s Office, and the City Tourism Office to recommend appropriate measures and regulations for the legal operation of transient and lodging facilities in the city.
    Under Resolution No. 632, series of 2020, signed by Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong, local legislators stated they were informed that numerous transient and lodging facilities in the city were being issued closure orders because of the failure of the owners to secure the required business permit, among other pertinent requirements, to operate their establishments.
    The local legislators desire that all transient and lodging houses operate legally for them to earn income from which the city government could generate income too from the operations of the said facilities.
    This issue of legitimate operation of transient and lodging houses came in the light of the ongoing campaign of the tourism department to issue certificates of authority to operate for hotels and similar lodging facilities compliant with the stringent requirements for their operations following the gradual, safe and responsible opening of the local tourism industry to prospective tourists that enroll in the city’s online registration platform.
    In joint inspections conducted by representatives of the tourism department and the city government on hotels, transient and similar lodging establishments for the issuance of their certificate of authority to operate, the inspectors discovered that most of the transient houses and similar accommodation establishments could not comply with the basic health and safety protocols.
    Earlier, tourism officials admitted that numerous transient and lodging houses could not comply with the required standard of accommodation establishments for them to be issued the certificates of authority to operate because of alleged insufficient health and sanitation facilities, absence of security personnel, among others.
    However, the regional office of the tourism department claimed the city government can issue the appropriate permit to operate to the transient houses and similar lodging establishments if the owners are able to initially comply with the requirements of the city while working on their compliance with the additional requirements of the agency for them to be issued the certificate of authority to operate in the future.
    The council urged the concerned city government offices, in close coordination with the appropriate government agencies, to provide the city with their recommendations for the compliance of the owners of transient houses and lodging establishments to enable them to be subsequently issued the certificate of authority to operate.