More funds will be allocated for the ongoing construction of two Bacolod City government legacy buildings, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said on Monday, July 15.
The two buildings are the Bacolod City Legislative Building behind the Bacolod City Government Center (BCGC) and the old City Hall at Araneta Street that are targeted for completion next year, he said.
The initial budget for the legislative building was P515 million and P223 million for the old City Hall.
About P80 million more will be needed for the old city hall, Benitez said.
That is because the original design did not incorporate the second, third and fourth floors on top of the Fountain of Justice and the driveway, Benitez said.
The legislative building is also short about a P100 million, he said.
One option is to use part of P525 million originally intended for the construction of a new Burgos Public Market that was rejected by the vendors, Benitez said.
The realignment of funds will have to be approved by the Bacolod Sangguniang Panlungsod, he said.
Benitez said the BCGC that was built more than 16 years ago had a construction cost of P41,000 per square meter.
The legislative building after 16 years will cost P43,000 per square meter, he said.
Benitez also said that the P300 million from the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) is already available for the enhancement of the Bacolod public plaza and BCGC grounds.
Plans are being finalized and the improvements will hopefully be completed by Christmas, he said.
Meanwhile, the direction of the city government to address the problem of the spaghetti wires of Central Negros Electric Cooperative and telecommunication firms is to place them all underground, starting with Lacson Street, Benitez said.*