Each time I am invited to some occasion and the party is on a building rooftop in the Balibago area, I never fail to appreciate and marvel on the outlines of Zambales mountain ranges. It is made more beautiful with those painted white buildings at the Sunvalley area and the lush spaces below with Clark Freeport as backdrop.
But when I make 180 degrees scanning of Angeles City below, I am afraid the city is aging, but reversible if something dramatic can be done. The houses then were bungalow type and mostly rented to American servicemen and their dependents who were stationed in nearby Clark Air Force Base. But based on changing circumstances, and that’s after the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991 and the sudden departure of the Americans, rightfully owners adopted them to modern lifestyles. Most of the structures were built vertically.
The city is only more than 6,000 hectares. Hacienda Luisita in San Miguel, Tarlac is a little bit bigger. Angeles is divided by the Abacan river. On the north is the Balibago area and in the south is the San Nicolas area, where the main central business district is located.
Angeles city is really one of fastest growing cities in the country today. Then Mayor Carmelo Lazatin Jr. aka Pogi wanted to achieve more as in his two terms in office and kept continuing raising a higher bar. He moved to the House of Representatives. His successor, his brother Jonjon has his hands full in implementing the city land use program. In less than six months in office he achieved a record of sorts. For one he is continuing the infrastructure projects he started when he was congressman.
I am used to presentation of what a place should become when I was a member of the board of the Fort Bonifacio Development Corporation. I had the privilege to participate in the discussions with the likes of Tony Aquino, president of Ayala Land Inc and his successor Bobby Dy. Seated in a room with them and joined by Fernando Zobel, Butch Campos, Arnel Casanova, Narciso Abaya, Rene Valencia and others is a total education for me on how to build a liveable place. But much is still desired because the city has to cope with the increasing growth of nearby Clark Freeport.