DMCI Homes turns over donated houses in Payatas

MANILA, Philippines - DMCI Homes formally turned over to beneficiary families 15 of 20 houses it donated to the Quezon City and Department of Education (DepEd) social housing project in Payatas called Bistekville I.

Tady Palma,  secretary to Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, DepEd Assistant Secretary for Legal Affairs Tonecito Umali, and DMCI Homes marketing manager Jan Venturanza led the turnover ceremony highlighted by the blessing of the houses along Molave St. Habitat for Humanity Philippines (HFHP) president and CEO Charlie S. Ayco, BPI Foundation executive director Randy G. Maranan, LBC Foundation president Monica G. Araneta, other public officials and home partners joined the rite. Fr. Orlando Norniella, parish priest at the Mother of Divine Providence, blessed the houses.

The 15 completed houses in Block 8 of Bistekville I were constructed with the help of HFHP, which organized the home beneficiaries and volunteers for the construction work. The remaining five sponsored homes of DMCI Homes still under construction in Block 9 will be turned over after completion in the first quarter of 2013.

DMCI Homes signed on March 26 a memorandum of agreement with HFHP to be a corporate partner and sponsor of the NGO’s “I Build Campaign.” Under the agreement, DMCI Homes donated P4 million to be used for construction materials for its house-building program. HFHP identified 20 of 145 homes in Bistekville I as the sponsored homes. The 15 home partners for the houses DMCI Homes sponsored were identified by the Urban Poor Affairs Office of Quezon City and HFHP.

Twenty-two families of teachers from the different public schools near Payatas and informal settler families in Quezon City moved into their new homes in Bistekville I in May. With the recent turnover of the newly-completed homes, there are now a total 86 homepartners for the Payatas housing project.

It was not the first time that DMCI Homes sponsored the construction of homes for informal settlers or urban poor. As part of its corporate social responsibility program and “good neighbor” policy, DMCI Homes joined the Paranaque City government, District 3830 Rotary Homes Foundation and CFC ANCOP Tekton Foundation in building homes in Barangay La Huerta for poor and informal settlers along the city’s river. The company donated P12 million, which was used to buy materials for constructing 92 homes in the 4.2-hectare relocation site along C5 Extension Road near the NAIA 1 runway. The site will eventually house 1,500 informal settler families.