CEBU City Mayor Edgardo Labella will waive the rental fees of the vendors during the relocation period as the construction for the redevelopment of Carbon Public Market starts.
Labella, during the groundbreaking ceremony, said he will issue an executive order waiving the market fees for at least three years.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the redevelopment of Carbon pushed through on Wednesday, March 24, 2021, after it had been postponed twice.
Labella also asked City Councilors Joel Garganera and Renato Osmeña Jr. to craft a measure in the City Council to back the executive order he will issue.
City Administrator Floro Casas Jr. explained in an interview that the mayor wants the vendors not to pay any fee during the relocation period.
Casas said the mayor’s move will take effect only during the relocation period of the vendors at the interim market in unit 2 building of Carbon Public Market.
Market Administrator Irvin Cabales said this measure would be a “big” help for the vendors.
Cabales said the current rental fee of the vendors is at least P20 a day.
Civil works
After the groundbreaking ceremony, Megawide Construction Corp. will proceed with the land development and civil works by next week. Megawide was awarded the contract to redevelop the seven-hectare Carbon market complex and maintain the new development for at least 50 years.
Louie Ferrer, Megawide’s chief corporate affairs and branding officer, said the interim market will be renovated in May 2020.
Once the renovation is completed, more than 2,000 stall holders and ambulant vendors from the Warwick Barracks and Freedom Park will be transferred to the interim market.
Ferrer said aside from waiving of rental fees as planned by Labella, the fees will also be freezed for another three years as what was agreed in the joint venture agreement.
Ferrer said should there be any changes in the market fees, this will go through and needs approval of the Cebu City Council.
The groundbreaking ceremony was postponed twice as there were concerns raised by the vendors which the City and Megawide chose to address first before proceeding with the groundbreaking.
Some vendors want the City Government to implement any improvement at the Carbon market, not a private firm like Megawide.
The City, Megawide, and the vendors agreed to just proceed with the groundbreaking first, but the negotiations on the issues raised by the vendors will continue after the groundbreaking. (JJL)