A study on the li-vability of the city’s 128 barangays has shown that only one remains to be livable, two with declining status and the rest moderately livable.
The barangay li-vability index was put together through an intensive study conducted by the city government through the City Planning, Development, and Sustainability Office (CPDSO) and partners from the private sector as part of the crafting of the Comprehensive Land Use Development Plan (CLUP) 2024-2032 which charts the city’s physical and economic development for the next eight years.
Mayor Benjamin Magalong said the study was done alongside the Barangay Digital Twin Project, which for its part provides digital representations of the barangays based on audit and mapping of their existing structures and remaining natural covers.
Both aimed to determine the current status of the barangays to serve as guide for the city government and the barangays themselves in deciding their development thrusts towards becoming livable, inclusive, creative, sustainable, and resilient.
The liveability index presented during a townhall meeting held June 4, 2024 showed that only South Drive made the cut as a livable barangay.
Lower Dagsian and San Antonio Village manifested declining livability while 41 were found to be moderately livable and the remaining 84 were of minimum livability compliance.
CPDSO Coordinator, Arch. Donna Tabangin said the livability parameters used in examining the barangays were localized based on Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 United Nations Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Philippine Development Plan.
The indicators used were set by urban planners and experts who have been cooperating with the city government in the crafting of the CLUP. These are:
Healthy place (based on proximity to a district health center, communal hand washing stations, liquid waste management, solid waste management, and land ownership); with food sources (urban food/survival gardens, satellite markets, good preparation enterprise); safety and security from crime (crime rate, anti-road obstruction, response time to emergency events;
Accessibility (access type to barangay and interior communities, ramps on sidewalks and public building entrances, pedestrian lanes, sheltered public utility jeepney waiting areas, accessibility of dwellings; mobility choices (proximity to school or barangay hall, with off-street pick-up and dropoff points, connected sidewalks and traffic accidents;
Presence of essential retail and services; safety and security from hazards (climate and disaster risk assessment on seismic, flood, landslide and sinkholes, building safety, evacuation area and fire response time); community spaces and engagement (open space to built-up ratio, proximity to open/green spaces, parks and playgrounds, library, culture and creative facility, outdoor sports and recreation, community civic/social activities; and
Clean water supply (connection to water supply, water quality in rivers and creeks, rainwater harvesting facility, unoccupied waterway easements) and good governance (financial management, enterprise development, community involvement and transparency and accountability).
The livability index is part of the CLUP of the city which was approved recently by the City Development Council and will soon be submitted for approval by the Regional Land Use Committee and the city council. – Aileen P. Refuerzo
