ffi3i*rs Insight
QC solon vows
to fight
proposed auditorium at eMC
BY PETER IABII{GO
QUEZON Ciry Rep. lfinston
"Winnie" Castelo has voiced ob-
jections to a proposal made by an
asPrflng crty mayor to coflstruct an
auditorium at t1le Quezoo Memo-
rial Circle (QMC).
Castelq chairman of the Metro
Manila Development Committee
of the House, said the idea of
an auditorium espoused bv fel-
low Quezon City Rep. Vinceot
Crisologo wi.ll wreak havoc on rhe
ecological and bistorical value of
the QMC.
Ctisologo, who is running for
mayor in the midterm eleccions,
annouqced ovet the weekend
lftws
that he is eyeing the coostruc-
tion of a full-sized auditorium
inside the public patk to be used
as a venue for: sports eveqts and
other occasions, as well as sup-
porr facilities.
He noted that other Metro
Manila cities like Manila, San
Juan, Caloocan, and Makati have
already built sports auditoriums
or stadiums while Quezon Ciry
still does oot have one. All thai
is needed, according to him, is to
review tlle plans for the area to
rationalize its use.
Casrelo, however. said dre
eMC
would not be appropriare for such
a struclure as it is inrended pri_
marily as a memorial to a former
I P4ge
Thursday, March 74, 2079
presideot.
"The place would nor be ap-
propnate. A projecr like rhat would
compromise the serenity and tan-
quility of the place," he said.
-fIe a:i\d sa.id the
eMC is a
"green-island" in a sea of concrete
and was specifically situated to
create a recreational space fot r}re
public.
"The real purpose of drat park
is to set aside an ecological briath-
ing space whete city residents can
promenade," he explahed.
Castelo added rhat rhe OMC
should be off-limits ro intrusive
developmeots because it has lone
beeo designated as the resting pJaci
ot the remaios of the late Preqi
-requ
dent Manuel L. Quezon. warning
thar the proposed ptoject would
be a akio to a "desecration of the
remains" o[ the city's foundrnq
father.
He also warned of adverse
environmental impacr on rlte city,
noting that an auditorium means a
need for large patking spaces that
would entail killing thousaads of
old trees ar the park,
He said the ptoposed ptoject
would generate taffic problems
in one of the city's busiest sec-
tions. Castelo recommend-l tlat
Crisologot plan be relocated to
"some place in the city where rt
rvould not add to social and enyi-
tonmental concetns."