City government to sell 12 SRP lots

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City Government plans to sell 12 small lots in the South Road Properties to generate some P1.2 billion income being eyed as one of the sources of income to support next year’s budget.

This is supposed to be included in the Revised Revenue Estimates for the 2012 Annual Budget prepared by the City Treasurer’s Office and submitted last Thursday but the City Council did not accept it because it lacked the signature of the members of the Local Finance Committee and the mayor.

But an official from the executive department said that even if the council refused to use the sale of SRP lots as a source of income for the 2012 Annual Budget, there is no reason it shall not push through.

Each of the 12 lots will have an area of 2,600 square meters.

The subdivided lots will be sold at a retail floor price of P40,000 per square meter, which is the current appraised value of the SRP lot.

The lots will be bid out to interested investors following Commission on Audit bidding procedures, city officials assured.

The Cebu Investment Promotions Center has been proposing this strategy of bidding out of small lots at the SRP since last year because many investors have expressed interest to buy small parcels only.

The city might prioritize investors over those who want to buy the lot for non-commercial purposes because the SRP is considered as an economic zone.

The property to be subdivided is proposed to be located beside the property bought by SM Prime Holdings which is currently building its mall that will be as big as the Mall of Asia in Luzon.

Assistant City Administrator for Economic Enterprise Dominic Diño said the total area of the 12 lots, which is three hectares, is only one percent of the whole SRP property and selling it to small investors is in no way disadvantageous to the city.

He said that three hectares that will generate over P1 billion in income for the city is just a third of the property disposed by the City Government for free to some government agencies and institution like the Court of Appeals, Department of Public Works and Highways and the University of the Philippines.

The city’s donated lots total 108,495 square meters which might have a value of over P4 billion now, Diño said.

Apart from the sale of SRP lots, the proposed revised revenue estimates also included some P600 million proceeds from the joint venture agreement between the city and Filinvest Land Inc.

Recently, FLI reported their accomplishment so far at the joint venture agreement and said that they might obtain the license to sell condominium units for both Amalfi Oasis and San Remo Oasis by the end of the year or early next year.

Meanwhile, after COA prevented the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation from directly giving financial assistance to Cebu City’s marketing arm for the SRP, the City Council found another way for the city to continue granting financial assistance to CIPC.

The city legislators have already authorized Mayor Michael Rama to sign and enter into a contract with the CIPC represented by Joel Mari Yu for the granting of P480,000 monthly to the Cebu Economic and Business Foundation, the formal name of CIPC, that was founded by former mayor and incumbent Cebu City South District Rep. Tomas Osmeña.

It was stated in the draft Memorandum of Agreement that the local government units are authorized to provide assistance, financial or otherwise, to such people and non-government organizations for economic, socially-oriented, environmental and cultural projects.

The CIPC’s task is to help the city market the 295-hectare SRP to possible investors as one way for the city to earn revenues to fund its projects for the people.

Councilors Margarita “Margot” Osmeña and Jose Daluz III said there is a need to continue the granting of financial assistance to CIPC for its projects and operations.

For the past years, CIPC got P400,000 monthly directly from Pagcor out of the P4 million monthly share of Cebu City from Pagcor operations.

But when COA advised Pagcor to stop the practice, Pagcor directly gave the whole P4 million every month to the City Treasurer’s Office, hence the need to create a MOA for the continuous granting of the cash assistance to CIPC.

The state auditors earlier recommended that the city officials should prioritize the use of Pagcor funds for projects and activities, “which will redound to the social and economic welfare of the less fortunate segments of the community, as envisioned by its grantor, so that the much needed government assistance can reach the intended beneficiaries.”

Pagcor’s guidelines is that the funds it donated to the city shall be spent for projects that involve self-sustainable economic livelihood projects, infrastructure projects essential to the community projects related with the delivery of basic health services and peace and order.

They should also be projects designed to prevent widespread disease or epidemics, those for the improvement of peace and order, emergency assistance to victims of natural disasters and calamities and projects for social amelioration. —/BRP (FREEMAN)