City: Geonzon Street public

CEBU, Philippines - The controversial W. Geonzon Street at the I.T. Park in uptown Cebu City is a “public street”, thus it should be open to everyone.

This was the stand of the City Legal Office contained in an eight-page opinion issued upon the request of the City Council.

“The W. Geonzon Street is a public street and should be accessible to all members of the community, without discrimination. This Office is of the position that W.Geonzon St. is, for all intents and purposes, a public street and consequently, access thereto must be unhampered and unimpeded to all of the members of the community,” read the document.

City Legal Officer Jerone Castillo said their findings, including the various issues raised by Cebu Property Ventures and Development Corporation (CPVDC) and Filinvest Land Inc., were “carefully” deliberated and studied upon for several times.

In a joint opinion, lawyers Mary Rose Salvatierra and June Maratas said the contested street is a public thoroughfare, although titled under the ownership of CPVDC, pointing out that “when a private road has been thrown open to public use, the owner cannot exclude and discriminate against any person who desires to make use of it.”

“Having conceded that W. Geonzon Street has and will always be a roadway open to the unrestricted and unhampered access of the general public and is in fact exempted from payment of real property taxes, CPVDC cannot now hide behind the curtains of its private ownership and maintain a position over W. Geonzon Street which is prejudicial to public interest,” added the document.

Upon the application of CPVDC, the city’s Local Board of Assessment Appeals on June 1, 2007 declared W. Geonzon Street as exempted from payment of real property taxes. The exemption was according to the recommendation of the City Assessor’s Office, because the road is directly being used by the general public.

Since 2006 until now, CPVDC reportedly did not pay real property taxes amounting to P24 million, or P2.6 million per annum, of real property tax for Geonzon Street because of the exemption.

The street is currently designated as part of the travel route for public utility jeepneys to and from Apas, as provided for under City Ordinance No. 2000 (Travel Line Ordinance of Cebu City).

The FREEMAN tried to contact lawyer Jeanette Japzon, Cebu Holdings Inc corporate communications manager, regarding the legal opinion but she was not available for comment.

FLI entered a joint venture agreement with the Provincial government to develop a 1.23 hectare Cebu Cyberzone Project situated at the former City Jail, the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center along the said thoroughfare.

However, development was allegedly stalled because of CPVDC constructed a fence abutting the street and along the project site, burdening project contractors in transporting materials and causing delay to FLI’s P5-billion business process outsourcing complex.

CPVDC, nonetheless, maintains that the concrete fence along W. Geonzon Street was constructed pursuant to Philippine Economic Zone Authority Accreditation, which requires that the “PEZA registrant must construct perimeter fences and other appropriate facilities that will physical segregate/isolate the Asiatown I.T Park from the rest of the adjacent area.”

The City Legal Office, however, said the fence can be validly pursued for demolition pursuant to Section 50 of Presidential Decree No. 1529 (Property Registration Decree).

“It is beyond cavil that a sidewalk is necessarily and essentially part of the public street to which it is appurtenant to. Thus, fencing the perimeter of the sidewalk in W. Geonzon Street is tantamount to closure in violation of the restriction set forth in its transfer certificate of title and PD No. 1529,” it said.

“Such act can be considered as a public nuisance since it affects a community or considerable number of persons considering that not only patrons of adjacent establishments are affected but also the riding public,” it added.—Kristine B. Quintas/RHM (FREEMAN)