THE WRS Holding Inc. has started the construction of the housing project in Bacolod City, Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said Thursday, March 9.
"They are now mobilizing and they need 10,000 workers to finish the project," Benitez said.Q
He said works include architectural, carpenter mason, design engineer, carpenter, electrician, backhoe spotter, dump truck operator, among others.
On March 7, the City Council authorized the mayor to sign the joint venture agreement (JVA) between the local government and WRS Holding Inc. led by William Russell Scheirman Jr., Scheirman Consortium; and Atty. Jennifer Ong, legal counsel of Scheirman Consortium.
Benitez said the housing project has an overwhelming pump-priming effect in the city.
"They need 10,000 workers so it will also decrease the unemployment here," he said.
He added the interested applicants should visit the Public Employment Services Office (PESO) at the Bacolod City Government Center for the submission of their application forms.
The mayor noted that the Pambansang Pabahay Program of the Department of Human Settlement and Urban Development (DHSUD) under the Marcos Administration will give an opportunity to the city’s information settler families (ISFs) to have decent homes.
"It’s a human settlement, a community, and an area where you are not just having a roof over your head, it’s a place to live, work, and play," Benitez said.
The Scheirman consortium will build an initial set of Asenso Yuhum Housing Units numbering 10,000 at the city relocation site in Barangay Vista Alegre with 3,000 units and on the city property in Bredco with 7,000 units, with a commitment to build another set of 10,000 units as additional land is made available by the city government.
Benitez said the construction of the housing project is expected to be completed in four years, and it’s the target of the city to build 50,000 units to accommodate the underserved sectors, who can’t afford to buy a house.
Councilor Jude Thaddeus Sayson, chairperson of the City Council committee on appropriation and finance, earlier said that after the completion of the project, the city’s recipients will process with the Pag-Ibig that will pay with the WRS Holding.
"For me, it’s a very good program because there will be no cash-out from the city government. The city will only provide a location for the said project that will be constructed in Barangay Vista Alegre and Barangay Banago," he said.
Aside from the three identified housing sites—Barangay Vista Alegre, Barangay 8, and Barangay Banago—he added the Bacolod Old-Airport is also part of the housing program.*