Capitol plans to loan P4.5B for high-rise building project
The Cebu provincial government plans to apply for a P1.5 billion loan for the construction of a new high-rise building within the Capitol compound.
Governor Hilario Davide III said that a proposed design for the new building was presented yesterday in the caucus meeting with the members of the Provincial Board (PB).
Vice Governor Agnes Magpale said that the design features a 20-story building.
In previous interviews with the governor, he said that it will be a mixed-use edifice.
Initially, Capitol plans to use it for government offices such as the Resource Command Center for Disaster Risk Reduction and possible commercial spaces for lease.
It will be erected on the site where the Bureau of Agriculture Extension (BAEx) building is standing.
The building has been declared unsafe for occupancy by the structural engineers and the Office of the Building Official(OBO) after the earthquake in 2013.
Capitol is looking for interested contract companies which can supply labor, materials and incidentals for demolition of the BAExbuilding.
A review committee also presented the results of their feasibility study supporting the project.
When the project was on its early stage, the projected cost was lower than P1.5 billion.
Davide said that according to AS Enriquez Engineering Consultancy, the project cost has gone up as the prices of the materials are affected by the implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration (TRAIN) Law.
With this, the provincial government is set to ask the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) to grant them a P1.5 billion loan.
Magpale added that if approved, the Capitol will have to pay the loan in 10 years but the PB is negotiating with DBP if they can extend it to 3 to 5 years more.
In early 2017, Davide said he wants the project realized within his term as governor.