TWO hotels and a pension house in Bacolod City were closed by the City Government on Friday, December 29, for operating without a business permit.
The City Legal Office (CLO), along with the Permits and Licensing Division and other agencies, padlocked the Westown Hotel on Corner Luzuiaga-San Juan Streets, the Bacolod Pension Plaza on Cuadra Street, Barangay 21, and Rainbow pension house on Mabini Street, Bacolod City.
City Legal Office Joselito Bayatan said they inspected various establishments in the city that engaged in board and lodging, including hotels.
He said they checked the hotels' strict compliance on safety of their clients and customers.
"Our concentration is the compliance of the safety of their clients and customers which was required by the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and the Office of the Building Official (OBO)," he added.
The Permits and Licensing Division and BFP recommended the closure of these business establishments for committing some violations.
"We ordered the closure of these business establishments and we issued the safety measures for their corrections," Bayatan said.
He said the business establishments should comply with the requirements first, so they can operate again.
"This is a continuing way of doing it and after this, we will shift into the boarding houses to inspect their safety compliance," he added.
The two business establishments violated Article 67 of City Ordinance 565 or the Revised Revenue Code of Bacolod City.
On November 26, the fire destroyed the Java Pension House, a former Bascon Hotel, where six persons including the pension house owner and its family members were killed.