QC to transform Chinatown into tourism hub

MANILA, Philippines - Quezon City’s Chinatown will be developed into a tourism district, Vice Mayor and tourism czar Joy Belmonte said yesterday.

“We have created a design plan to further develop the area,” Belmonte said as the city prepared for the annual Chinese New Year celebration in Chinatown along Banawe street yesterday.

“There is already a pending measure before the city council that seeks to declare the Quezon City Chinatown as a tourism district,” she added.

Once approved, Belmonte said the measure will set restrictions on the designs of buildings that will be erected in the area.

“We are also talking to investors to bring more businesses,” the vice mayor added, noting that she has also ordered authorities to ensure peace and order in the district.

The Quezon City Chinatown was officially launched in 2013 in a bid to develop Banawe street – known for its automobile parts and accessories businesses – into “an attractive and convenient destination for tourists, visitors, patrons and investors.”

Its development as a special economic growth area was provided under an ordinance approved by Speaker Feliciano Belmonte during his term as mayor in 2005.