THE Cebu City Government will conduct a public hearing on the proposal of SM Supermarket to improve the state of the Carbon Public Market.

Mayor Edgardo Labella assured stallholders and other affected stakeholders that he would listen to their concerns and that he would be “very objective” in the discussion on the matter.

The Cebu Market Vendors Multi-Purpose Cooperative (Cemvedco) recently expressed its opposition to SM Supermarket’s plan to modernize the Carbon market and turn it into a supermarket like what it did at the SM Marketmall in Dasmariñas, Cavite.

On Oct. 2, 2019, some Cemvedco members visited the SM Marketmall in Dasmariñas and met with stakeholders and the market management.

“Cemvedco will be heard, as well as the affected stakeholders, the market vendors. All of those who will be affected will be given an opportunity to speak out their opinion, whether for or against the proposed development,” the mayor said.

Labella clarified that SM Supermarket has yet to submit a concrete proposal or a perspective plan of the building as they only had an initial talk about the project.

Since news on SM Supermarket’s plan to modernize Carbon market broke out, Cemvedco chairman Erwin Gok-ong Sr. has been urging Labella to include them in all future meetings between the City and SM Supermarket.

Gok-ong said he also wanted to share with the mayor what they discovered during their visit to SM Dasmariñas that they never want to happen in Carbon.

“We want to inform them about the situation there. If possible, they should see it for themselves,” he said.

Gok-ong said vendors in SM Dasmariñas are assigned on a floor where they cannot be immediately seen by shoppers, adding that the SM Supermarket also sells the same products that vendors sell.

Gok-ong said they are open to the possibility of transforming Carbon market into a supermarket, but Cemvedco must be included in all consultation meetings.

Carbon market currently has more than 1,000 stallholders.

According to SM Supermarket’s proposal, it plans to build a three-story supermarket. The first floor will house the stalls; second floor, the parking area; and the third floor, loading and unloading of goods.

The structure will rise on a two-hectare property, replacing the Unit I building where meat and seafood are sold, the Unit II building under construction and the Unit III building where fruits are sold.

The mayor had announced that no stallholder would be left behind by the development.

The Carbon market is the oldest and largest market in Cebu City. It is located on M.C. Briones St. in Barangay Ermita. (JJL)