Groups slam plan to demolish old Sta. Mesa fire station

MANILA, Philippines — After workers barricaded the 106-year-old Sta. Mesa fire station with corrugated sheets, heritage conservation groups slammed the decision to demolish one of four prewar fire stations in Manila.

According to the Renacimiento Manila and Manileños for Heritage, the Santa Mesa fire station was completed in 1919 – the last to be built by the Americans during their rule in the country.

“This makes it more than a century-old, way past the 50-year requirement to be a presumed important cultural property under RA (Republic Act) 10066 or the National Cultural Heritage Act,” the Renacimiento Manila said in a statement.

Manileños for Heritage also protested the lack of public consultation by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) and the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) on the fate of the old Sta. Mesa fire station.

“It is deeply ironic that while the NHCP is planning to recognize other remaining heritage fire station structures in the City of Manila as historic landmarks, it is simultaneously facilitating the destruction of one, treating it as a sacrificial lamb,” the group said in a memorandum sent to the NHCP board earlier.

The plan to replace the current Sta. Mesa fire station stemmed from a road widening project along Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard to give way to the construction of elevated expressways in the area.

Neither the NHCP nor the BFP issued a statement on the issue.

Previously, the BFP said the fire station need to be replaced due to safety concerns.

The new fire station would cost P17.9 million, according to the terms of reference proposed by the BFP and posted by Renacimiento Manila.