City wants full use of roads near mall

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu City Traffic Operations Management (CITOM) wants the owner of the burnt Gaisano Capital South building to remove the perimeter fence installed along Leon Kilat and Colon Streets on or before May 31 or before the opening of classes.

CITOM wants to restore the normal flow of traffic in the area as they foresee heavy congestion if half of the road will be closed to traffic when classes resume.

At least three universities will be affected by the congestion in the area including the University of San Jose-Recoletos, University of Cebu and University of the Visayas.

CITOM OIC-Department Head and lawyer Rafael Christopher Yap said they have requested the council to pass a resolution to inform the owners of the Gaisano Capital South to remove the perimeter fence by month's end because the six-month sidewalk enclosure period applied for is almost over.

Yap said the contractor hired by the Gaisano to demolish the building applied for a six-month sidewalk enclosure before the Office of the Building Official (OBO).

The six-month period is almost over but demolishing the burnt structure is expected to go beyond this month.

Yap said CITOM is yet to discuss with the board if removing the perimeter fence is feasible for safety reasons considering the demolition of the structure has not been completed.

"We will also wait for the comments of the Disaster Council and the safety of the area if we decide to remove the perimeter fence," Yap said.

The perimeter fence had to be installed to keep pedestrians safe from falling debris while the demolition is in progress.

The Gaisano Capital South was destroyed by fire last December 22. Last January, the Bureau of Fire in Cebu City declared the structure unsafe for occupancy and should be demolished immediately for the safety of the passing public and the adjacent establishments.

Yap said that if the fence cannot be removed on-time due to safety reasons, they have other options like imposing fines so the contractor will be compelled to fast track its work.

As of the moment, there are no alternative routes to ease the foreseen heavy traffic in the area during the opening of classes, but Yap said they will try to find alternative routes. – (FREEMAN)