Council authorizes Tom to sell 31 hectares of South Road Properties

The Freeman
Thursday, August 23, 2007

The Cebu City Council yesterday authorized Mayor Tomas Osmeña to sell 31.9 hectares of lots at the South Road Properties so the city could earn an amount of close to P4 billion to finance more projects.

The city legislators unanimously approved the resolution of councilor Joey Daluz, III to allow the mayor to dispose of properties through a public bidding and hope that such would be the start of SRP’s development.

Mayor Osmeña, who is now on an official trip to India to study the country’s clean and cheap airconditioning systems, said these properties are situated immediately after the viaduct or just across barangay Mambaling, a location he described to be “advantageous to buyers”.

The city would construct signage at the SRP worth P5.2 million and would spend P2.6 million for the landscape at the end of the viaduct, on the right portion of the SRP upon reaching the reclaimed properties from the city.

Osmeña said the properties located at the back where the welcome signage is to be constructed are the same 30 hectares of lots that are first to be sold through bidding.

It was learned from Daluz that the lots were already titled and registered with the Land Registration Authority under the name of the City of Cebu on September 22, 2005.

The mayor said any licensed real estate brokers who could help the city sell the lots at the SRP would be given a two-percent commission out of the proceeds of the sale.

If sale of lots is not done through a broker, the mayor said the commission intended for a broker would be donated to the Emergency Rescue Unit Foundation or to any charitable institution.

As of now, not even a single square meter of the 295 hectares of the reclaimed lots was sold, although an international filmmaker - the Bigfoot - has rented a two-hectare lot for only 40 US cents or about P26 for every square meter.

The city needs P1.7 million everyday to pay for its loan from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation.

Tinago barangay captain Joel Garganera earlier said the city could not sell the SRP lots to the public because until now the property is still being owned by the national government.

He claimed that the SRP lots are still not owned by the city because when President Arroyo issued a proclamation order transferring the ownership of the SRP to Cebu City, she made it without congressional authority. – Rene U. Borromeo/MEEV