Sunday, August 17, 2008 Ramp to wait 6 more months
AFTER an eight-year delay, Cebu Mayor Tomas Osmeña promised the Carbon Public Market ramp will still materialize, but six months are needed before construction can start.
He said a new program of works and estimates (POWE) will have to be made after the contractor withdrew from the P135-million project because of price escalation of construction materials.
“We have to revise the POWE to find out how much it will cost at this time. It has dragged on for seven or eight years, so we have to take a closer look at the costs and we have to work out funding for it again,” he said.
Last month, WT Construction owner Willy Te informed the mayor of his decision to back out from implementing the project, citing the soaring prices of construction materials.
Price increase
With the contract price of P135 million, Te said his company cannot absorb the price increase.
In his news conference last Friday, Osmeña said the project cannot be included in the next supplemental budget because other programs have to be funded also.
Too much
“We still intend to build it (market ramp) but if it’s too much, we’ll have to hold it back a little bit because right now, we have other priorities to pursue. Definitely, it will be funded, maybe early next year,” said the mayor.
He has given instructions to review the multi-purpose ramp’s design and check if the City Government can bring down project cost without sacrificing quality.
The ramp, first proposed in 2000, will serve as a market structure with rooftop parking. It will also have a flyover that motorists can use to go M.C. Briones St. to ease traffic along Quezon Blvd. (LCR)
