A new business district is being proposed for the City Planning and Development Office to consider, as it is currently updating the city’s comprehensive land use plan.
Councilor Isabelo Cosalan, Jr., former chair of the city council committee on urban planning, said there might be a need to create a new business district as the rapid rise in construction and development at the current central business district resulted in crowding that rendered public facilities like roads, water supply, green spaces, and other public amenities insufficient.
Cosalan suggested that the new business districts be located along major road arteries in the city.
He said new growth areas will also benefit adjacent municipalities.
Easing of traffic congestion and lesser pollution are among the advantages of creating a new business district, Cosalan said.
Cosalan’s proposal is not a new concept.
In the 2013-2023 CLUP, one of the strategies suggested to achieve the vision of balancing ecology and enhancing the natural beauty of Baguio is to designate “special areas for spatial development.” Four areas were identified as new growth nodes: Leonard Wood Road to South Drive corridor, Palispis-Aspiras Highway, and Kennon Road.
Through a concept called multi-nodal urban form, it redirects development away from the urban core or city center toward identified urban growth nodes.
At present, the CPDO is pursuing development of nine hectares of the Baguio Animal Breeding and Research Center along Marcos Highway as relocation area for several government offices, waste transfer station, and as south-bound terminal. – Rimaliza A. Opiña
