Friday, April 20, 2012

Stop Selling Cebu Condo

by PNA

A joint inspection team has recommended the suspension of the permit to sell condominium units of the developer of 55-storey P1.7-billion Horizons 101, set to become the tallest building in Cebu City. 

The inspection team, composed of representatives of the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HULRB), Office of the Building Official (OBO) of Cebu City and the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB) 7, recommended that Taft Property Venture Development Corp. (TPVDC) be allowed to resume selling only after measures to correct defects at the condominium project site have been undertaken.

In a memorandum dated April 17, 2012, the group required the property developer to submit the names of affected families, a list of immediate corrective measures it will undertake, and a slope protection plan, which OBO approved design calculations.

The team recommended that TPVDC to provide a temporary relocation site for the 10 families whose houses were damaged when a portion of the retention wall at the Horizons 101 project site collapsed last week.

Fe Sadaya, 56, one of the affected residents, said TPVDC offered them to choose which type of assistance they want: a daily allowance without temporary relocation or accommodation at a pension house without an allowance.

All of them get three meals a day from the developer.

Government inspectors have required the developer to submit a compliance report and establish a multipartite monitoring team, as provided in the condo project's environmental compliance certificate (ECC).

TPVDC communications consultant Cerwin Eviota said the company chose not to comment until it had received a copy of the report.

The joint inspection team's report was addressed to Vice President Jejomar Binay, also Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) chairman.

It went through HLURB commissioner and chief executive Officer Antonio M. Bernardo; Ria Golez Cabrera, supervising commissioner for the Visayas; and HLURB 7 director Alizes Roy Lopez.

The report was prepared by engineers Francis Ordeniza, Billy Joseph Requina, Romeo de los Santos, Mark Anthony Lindugan, Ernesto Tan and Godofredo Gulane Jr. of HLURB; Pascual Gimenez Jr. of Cebu City OBO, Brian Gerundio of EMB 7; and Joseph Abellar of the Cebu City Department of Engineering and Public Works.

The government team inspected the Horizons project site on Gen. Maxilom Ave., Cebu City, after the wall's collapse. City Hall also ordered the suspension of the condo's construction.

Twelve out of 15 families living within the 10-meter radius of the condo project in sitio Sta, Teresita, Barangay Cogon-Ramos, chose to leave the area.

But Sadaya chose to a daily allowance of P500 instead of relocation.

"I need the money after my house got damaged," she said.

Sadaya owns a lodging house with five rooms, which she rents for P1,500 . She is staying with a friend who lives near her house.

Edwin Duran, who said a crack appeared on the floor of his house when the retention wall collapsed, took TPVDC's offer to stay in a pension house. But he changed his mind and is now getting a daily allowance.

His neighbors said Duran sleeps on a bamboo bed one meter away from his house, while his two children sleep at their friend's house nearby.

Roberto Pacheco, 62, said he did not have a choice. His house was destroyed when the ground near the collapsed wall slumped.

TPVDC rented a place to store Pacheco's belongings.

Pacheco said he signed a contract with TVPDC, stating he will be given a house after 60 days or less from the day the accident happened.

"They treat us well. We don't complain for now because they have good plans for us," said Pacheco.

Affected residents are made to stay in a pension house, which charges P1,050 a day for a room with two beds, a comfort room, and one TV set.

No comments: