THERE was no zoning reclassification at Sitios Bato and Ermita Proper in Barangay Ermita, despite claims to the contrary by the barangay council.
This, according to the Cebu City Planning and Development Office (CPDO) in a letter-reply to the City Council dated Oct. 7, 2025.
The CPDO maintained that the zoning classifications of Sitio Ermita Proper and Sitio Bato under the Revised Comprehensive Cebu City Zoning Ordinance of 2025 were established through due process and remain legally valid despite a petition from Barangay Ermita seeking to restore their previous designations.
In her letter to the council, Ann Marie Yap-Cuizon, officer-in-charge of CPDO, clarified the areas were not changed from “residential” to commercial as they were already classified as commercial zones even before the 2025 revision, with records showing Sitio Ermita Proper was classified as Commercial 2 (C-2) under the 1996 Zoning Ordinance.
This means that its present classification as Low Density Commercial (C-1) is consistent with its original zoning lineage, Cuizon said.
Earlier, the Barangay Ermita Council requested to amend Ordinance 2784, or the Revised Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance of 2025. The request was endorsed by Councilors Mikel Rama and Harold Kendrick Go.
According to the CPDO, the confusion may have stemmed from the barangay’s use of a 2020 Existing or Actual Land Use Map, which merely reflected current land usage and not official zoning.
“An existing land use map is not equivalent to a zoning map. Only an approved zoning ordinance can legally reclassify an area,” Cuizon said in her letter.
While Sitio Bato also appeared as a C-1 zone under the 2025 ordinance, the CPDO assured that its designation as a socialized housing site under City Ordinance 1684 remains recognized.
“Socialized housing projects previously declared through specific ordinances retain their validity for planning and programming purposes,” the office explained.
It added that under Section 12.6, Article VI of Ordinance 2784, special socialized housing projects located in other zones may still be allowed, provided they are approved by the Cebu City Zoning Board.
Consultations
In a resolution, barangay officials had alleged that the zoning revision was passed without consultation, as the ordinance, which updates land use classifications across the city since 1996, is set to take effect 90 days after its publication.
However, the CPDO said multiple public hearings were conducted during the drafting phase between 2022 and 2023.
Cuizon explained that on Oct. 18-21, 2022, online cluster consultations were conducted with several barangays in coordination with the Cebu City Development Council.
There were also cluster consultations on Barangay Development Plans from March to April 2023, and several presentations and deliberations before the City Council prior to passage, said Cuizon.
“The process observed the required consultations under the Local Government Code and relevant planning guidelines,” she added.
The CPDO outlined the legal procedures for amending zoning classifications, noting that any change must first be reviewed by the Zoning Board, endorsed to the City Council, and may only take effect five years after the effectivity of the current ordinance — meaning changes cannot be implemented before 2030. / EHP