BAGUIO CITY – The city government already issued appropriate notices warning around 32 owners of establishments and buildings within the central business district to return the parking spaces that were originally provided in their structures which were later converted into additional stalls and extension of businesses leasing from them.
Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan revealed some of the establishment and building owners requested time from the local government for them to comply with the order and were able to fulfil their commitments while others who requested for time to comply failed to do so and did not do anything to bring back the parking spaces in their structures.
“We have given enough time to the notified establishment and building owners to comply with the provisions of their occupancy permits that were will be available parking spaces in their structures. We will go through the process of issuing them the notices for the cancellation of their occupancy permits and the subsequent issuance of closure orders,” Domogan stressed.
After the issuance of the notice warning them to comply with the provisions of parking spaces, the local chief executive cited the city buildings and architecture office (CBAO) will nose issue the notice for the cancellation of their respective occupancy permits of their structures that will translate to the eventual cancellation of their business permits.
According to him, once their business permits will be cancelled, closure orders will be then issued to the establishment and building owners for them to stop their business activities until such time that they will be able to comply with the provisions of parking spaces within their structures.
He expressed disappointment that after the CBAO issued the pertinent occupancy permits to the concerned establishment and building owners, most of them converted their parking spaces into additional spaces for lease which is in gross violation of the permits issued to them, thus, the conduct of the inventory and issued warnings for them to comply with lawful orders.
Because of the conversion of parking spaces into business spaces for lease by the establishment and building owners, the city mayor said motor vehicles of their clients have no longer parking slots that contribute to the proliferation of the number of motor vehicles that are illegally parked along major roads around the city.
With the continuous increase in the volume of vehicles and the limited parking spaces around the city, traffic congestions within the central business district have continue to worsen through the years warranting the need for the local government to use an ‘iron hand’ to discipline erring establishment and building owners that have converted their parking allocations to leased spaces.
By Dexter A. See