BAGUIO CITY – The City Council approved on first reading the proposed land banking edict in the city purposely to maximize the utilization of its limited land area for the welfare of the people.
The ordinance authored by Councilor Leandro B. Yangot, Jr. stated that all lands in the name of the city shall be specifically set aside for the needs of the city.
The ordinance tasked the City General Services Office to submit an inventory of city-owned lands to the local legislative body for perusal and possible identification on how the land will be used for public purposes.
The ordinance mandated the local government to appropriate the needed funds to purchase additional lands that could be used by the city for the general welfare of its constituents.
Yangot claimed the City Mayor will be authorized to implement the pertinent provisions of the proposed measure and that the same will be authorized to perform such other functions to see to it that the land banking ordinance will be in full force and effect.
Under the provisions of the ordinance, land banking refers to the practice of buying lands as an investment and holing the same for future use and development purposely for the benefit of the public.
Yangot pointed out that the City of Baguio has multifarious land needs for its various multi-sectoral concerns.
Among the identified needs of the local government include lands to be used for the security of the city; those use, reserved or otherwise set aside for government offices, facilities and installations; those set aside as parks, reserved for flora and fauna, forest, watersheds and other areas necessary to maintain appropriate ecological balance or environmental protection; those actually used for religious, charitable or educational purposes, cultural and historical sites, hospitals and health centers; cemeteries or memorial parks, public or private; those sites for an engineered sanitary landfill; those sites for a centralized bus terminal; and those lands suitable for socialized housing needs for qualified residents among others.
The ordinance noted that the city has a limited land area that is why there is a need for the local government to embark on the needed land banking initiative to be able to maximize the utilization of the limited lands for whatever public purpose to prevent the possible proliferation of informal settlers in the different barangays.
The ordinance added Baguio City has grown to become one of the prime tourist destinations, an educational center and an economic hub north of Manila that is why its available lands must be utilized for the benefit of the public.
The robust economic growth in the city continues to entice people from the rural areas to migrate to the city for better economic activities and improved sources of livelihood that will translate to the upliftment of their living condition beneficial in improving the status of their families in the communities.
By Dexter A. See
