THE Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) has created a fifth and last option for Limketkai group to agree on the drainage plan that is seen to solve urban flooding in CM Recto area in Cagayan de Oro City.
City Engineer Rolando Pacuribot, however, pointed out that the option is not the best and will only to lessen flood water at the CM Recto Avenue.
DPWH project engineer Leowald Pecore said the last option is to elevate the national highway by about five meters, creating an impounding area where the excess water will be stored.
This project will traverse only along the national highway, leaving the Limketkai area heavily flooded, Pecore said.
Pecore said this is their last option, as the Limketkai group already rejected four options they presented.
Option A is the most feasible, as the project will traverse in a government property and will save resources and time. Option B and C were already turned down since this would involve expropriating private properties, and option D is hardly being considered because this would redirect the project to a Lapasan road.
Pacuribot expressed dismay that the Limketkai group cannot meet them halfway in agreeing to the DPWH plan.
"Sayang kay ang design sa UP-Planades is the best. If we follow this last option, mawala asa na moconnect ang tubig gikan sa upstream Bitan-ag paingon sa Valenzuela St. sa Agora. The design is a drainage system, not an impounding system," Pacuribot said.
Pecore said the DPWH has now shifted its concern on the flooding in the vicinity of the University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines (USTP), since it is a government property too.
"Our mandate is to undertake the planning of infrastructure, such as national roads and bridges, flood control, and others so we will focus our energy and resources there. What we are doing is we are just helping the city undertake this project. The ball is with the city now and see if they can convince Limketkai so that we can proceed with the project," he said.
The committee on public utilities is set to meet with concerned agencies on October 24 to try to agree on a design.