BCDA to start planning for Clark hosting of SEA Games

State-owned Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) said it has yet to start planning for the 30th Southeast Asian Games in 2019 where some of the sports competitions will be hosted inside Clark in Pampanga.

“We will get back to you,” said BCDA President and CEO Vince Dizon when asked by reporters on the sidelines of the pre-bidding conference for the construction of the R12.55-billion new terminal building of Clark International Airport. Clark Development Corporation (CDC) is a subsidiary of BCDA. It operates Clark Freeport and Clark Special Economic Zone, which is now undergoing massive development.

He noted that the country’s hosting of the Sea Games was just announced last week so they cannot be expected to know everything that soon.

“Let’s exchange jobs, even for just one week,” he said when pressed on what facilities may be built in Clark.

Dizon later said “there is still enough time” referring to the preparation of Clark as one of the venues for the 30th SEA Games.

The Duterte administration was hesitant at first to host the next SEA Games on the ground because it has to focus on the reconstruction of Marawi City. It later agreed to host the sports competition to be conducted in three venues – Subic, Clark, and Bulacan.

But Dizon also said later on that Clark City developments must be fast tracked to be able to host some of the ASEAN games. “We’re still going over the masterplan, it is not easy to build the city, so complex, so we have to be very sure,” he said.

He, likewise, stressed that they are ensuring not to waste resources so they are validating and masterplanning with the help of third parties.

He noted that the critical part of building a city is Phase 1 because if it fails the rest will just be a failure as he cited Ayala and Manila as poorly planned cities.

One thing Dizon emphasized though is the need for housing in Clark. According to the BCDA chief, there is no executive housing in Clark.

Executives and expats from big multinational firms in Clark used to stay in Mimosa Villas, but Filinvest is now redeveloping the area to build new facilities.

Thus, he said, the 21 ASEAN Villas being constructed in Clark will be a very good investment and there are already investors lining up to eventually buy these villas.

Aside from the executive housing, he also cited the need for housing for the working class.

“It’s going to work, we don’t want to make the mistakes of the past,” he said.