BAGUIO CITY – Mayor Mauricio G. Domogan underscored that one of the priority projects of the local government is to put up a multi-level parking structure in the vacant lot near the Baguio fire department to accommodate the rapidly increasing number of government-owned and private vehicles parked around the city hall which contributes in the worsening traffic congestions around the seat of government.
The local chief executive pointed out the need to use the savings for the partial rehabilitation of the city-owned Baguio Convention Center to fund the construction of the proposed 8-storey multi-level parking building as the parking area for government vehicles and cars of people transacting business with the different offices of the local government.
“We have to use the local funds that were allocated for the repair of the Baguio Convention Center to build the multi-level parking facility near the Baguio fire department because the public works department committed to shoulder the programmed repair and rehabilitation of the city-owned facility,” Domogan stressed.
He explained the proposed structure will serve as the parking area of all government vehicles to free the city hall premises so that private vehicle owners could park their cars in available parking slots to allow them to freely transact business with the different offices.
According to him, the local government is trying its best to look for suitable areas where multi-level parking structures could be constructed to help decongest the city’s streets and contribute to reducing unnecessary factors that constrict the smooth flow of traffic around the city.
He explained the local government is circumspect in identifying the suitable areas where to build multi-level parking facilities around the central business district and it has been already clear that the Ganza area and the former site of the old city auditorium are two sites that had been identified to accommodate multi-level parking facilities to help decongest the city’s roads from parked vehicles.
Under the plan for the Ganza multi-level parking structure, the rooftop will serve as a production area for flowers and other plants for the green garden while the rooftop of the old city orchidarium parking structure has been proposed to accommodate a number of business and other recreation facilities to help make the facility viable for interested proponents.
He admitted pay-parking is actually not a lucrative business, thus, there is a need to incorporate other income-generating activities in the pay parking structure once it will be done through a private-public partnership (PPP) to attract interested investors to partner with the local government for the realization of the said endeavour.
He stated the local government is always open to suggestions on how to address the city’s parking problems and it has considered the same in the planning and conceptualization of the put up of the needed multi-level parking structures either through PPP or whatever available local funds to help address the rapidly increasing need of the city for available parking areas for motor vehicles.
By Dexter A. See
