Old Davao airport terminal set for conversion to trade hall this year
DAVAO CITY — The conversion of the old airport terminal here into a trade and cultural complex, expected to cost P174 million, will start this year, according to an official of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA).
The project, to be called Mindanao Trade and Cultural Village, comes ahead of the bidding for the contract to develop, operate and maintain the Francisco Bangoy International Airport under the private- public partnership (PPP) program.
Undersecretary Janet M. Lopoz, MinDA executive director, said the Tourism Enterprise and Infrastructure Zone Authority and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) will bankroll the project.
CAAP will be in charge of managing the establishment.
“We need to convert the airport so it could be put to good use, especially in showcasing the tourism and agricultural potentials of Mindanao,” said Ms. Lopoz of MinDA, which proposed the conversion of the facility that has gone unused since the opening of the new terminal in December 2003.
Several groups, including business associations such as the Mindanao Business Council and the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc., also pushed for the conversion.
Under the initial plan, the cultural village will be connected to the new airport terminal through an underground walkway.
The Davao Airport PPP contract worth P40.57 billion is part of the second bundle of airport projects up for bidding, which includes the New Bohol (Panglao) Airport (P2.34 billion) in Central Visayas and the Laguindingan Airport (P14.62 billion) in Northern Mindanao.