BAGUIO CITY – The city legislative body unanimously approved the request of the Baguio Flower Festival Foundation, Inc. (BFFFI) for the extension of the ongoing Baguio Blooms Exposition and Exhibition at the Baguio Convention Center grounds originally until March 8, 2020 to April 15, 2020 to allow the exhibitors to recover some of their investments in the conduct of one of the major highlights of the 25th edition of the Panagbenga.
The decision was reached by the members of the City Council after organizers and participating landscapers and exhibitors appeared dung the council’s regular session last Monday.
Earlier, Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong approved the request of BFFFI Chief of Staff Evangeline Payno and Baguio Bloom Exposition and Exhibition committee chairman Frederico Alquiros for the extension of the ongoing Panagbenga-related event at the Baguio Convention Center grounds originally scheduled until March 8, 2020 to April 15, 2020 following the postponement of the major flower festival highlights due to the Corona Virus Disease (COVID) 2019 scare.
From the 62 landscapers and exhibitors that originally participated in the initial offering of the Baguio Blooms Exposition and Exhibition last February 1, 2020, Payno disclosed that the number dropped to 49 following the reported uncertainty on the schedule of the major flower festival highlights and the decision on the request for extension that could have helped convince them to stay with the hope that the situation will drastically improve in the coming weeks.
The BFFFI official informed city legislators that with the approved extension of the Baguio Blooms, there is a possibility that the remaining exhibitors and landscapers will remain aside and the organizers may be able to convince some of those that backed out to come back for them to be able to recover their investments considering the added promotional activities of the city government in the Baguio Convention Center to help promote the exhibit area.
City Administrator Bonifacio dela Peña claimed that the presence of the exhibit area within a portion of the Baguio Convention Center grounds is a come-on to those holding their conventions, meetings and gatherings inside the city-owned facility and those attending the same will patronize the products sold in the different booths put up by the exhibitors and landscapers.
Organizers assured city officials there will be no additional charges collected from the exhibitors during the extension that was granted except for the additional charges on the utilities that could either be absorbed by the foundation or collected from the tenants depending on the appliances being used in their stalls.
Previously, BFFFI released some 300 application forms to interested exhibitors for the Baguio Blooms Exposition and Exhibition but only 80 interested exhibitors responded and participated in the initial staging of the Baguio Blooms.
However, 18 exhibitors withdrew their participation because of the very low foot traffic which will not allow them to be able to recover their investments and the rentals apart from the assessments done on them by the city government for the special permits granted them to join the said event.
By Dexter A. See
