A Service of Leibniz-Informationszentrum econstor Wirtschaft Leibniz Information Centre Make Your Publications Visible. zbw for Economics Mercado, Ruben G. Working Paper Owning the Metropolitan Vision: The Case of BLIST PIDS Discussion Paper Series, No. 1998-16 Provided in Cooperation with: Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), Philippines Suggested Citation: Mercado, Ruben G. (1998) : Owning the Metropolitan Vision: The Case of BLIST, PIDS Discussion Paper Series, No. 1998-16, Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), Makati City This Version is available at: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/187358 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Terms of use: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Documents in EconStor may be saved and copied for your Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. personal and scholarly purposes. 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Chammag DISCUSSION PAPER SERIES NO. 98-16 (Revised) The PIDS Discussion Paper Series constitutes studies that are preliminary and subject to further revisions. They are be- ing circulated in a limited number of cop- ies only for purposes of soliciting com- ments and suggestions for further refine- ments. The studies under the Series are unedited and unreviewed. The views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and do not neces- sarily reflect those of the Institute. Not for quotation without permission from the author(s) and the Institute. October 1998 For comments, suggestions or further inquiries please contact: The Research Information Staff, Philippine Institute for Development Studies 3rd Floor, NEDA sa Makati Building, 106 Amorsolo Street, Legaspi Village, Makati City, Philippines Tel Nos: 8924059 and 8935705; Fax No: 8939589; E-mail: [email protected] Or visit our website at http://www.pids.gov.ph Owning the Metropolitan Vision: The Case of BLIST Ruben G. Mercado and Carmel P. Chammag1 1. Introduction BLIST stands for Baguio, La Trinidad, Itogon, Sablan and Tuba, contiguous areas in the regional center of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR). The BLIST is not a geopolitical entity but a planning area. When the Regional Physical Framework Plan of CAR was formulated in 1990, the BLIST was identified as a major subregional area due to the fast urban growth of Baguio City influencing the adjacent municipalities most especially, La Trinidad. The other municipalities close to the city are showing potentials of being the catchment area for Baguio’s rapid growth. The BLIST currently plays a key role in the development of the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) and the Northern Luzon as the educational, tourism and commercial center. The BLIST area is also one of the growth nodes of the North Western Luzon Growth Quadrangle (NWLGQ). The NWLGQ is a growth area being promoted as an economic and tourism zone linking the coastal provinces of Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, la Union and Pangasinan with the BLIST in Benguet Province of CAR. Serious planning for the BLIST area has been undertaken in view of the need to rehabilitate Baguio City which was seriously damaged by the earthquake in 1990. It was thought then that rehabilitating the city should go beyond restoration and address the city’s long-term reconstruction. This necessitates a deliberate attempt to plan for the city’s development considering its future interaction as well as integration with its neighboring areas. Metro BLIST is a new term being introduced to call the Urban BLIST. The term that was originally used was Metro Baguio but was received with strong negative reaction because it seems to leave the impression that the other areas are just extensions of Baguio City. This paper reviews the developments and challenges of Metro BLIST with focus on the needed steps to take to deal with its present and future concerns. 1 Research Associate, Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) and Senior Economic Development Specialist, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Cordillera Administrative Region, respectively. The views expressed in this paper are solely of the authors and not of the institutions they represent. 1 2. Development Trends in Metro BLIST 2.1 Demographic and Land Characteristics The population of Metro BLIST is less than half a million in 1995 distributed quite unevenly with about 59 percent in Baguio City (Table 1). Population growth rate in the whole area is a little higher than the national average. However, this average rate is unevenly distributed across each of the political units. While Sablan is growing at a modest rate of 1.67, Baguio and La Trinidad are experiencing very rapid growth of more than four percent. In contrast, Itogon and Tuba are losing population, quite rapidly in the former. Population density in Baguio City and La Trinidad are high relative to other municipalities owing to the smallness of their land area while being home to three fourth of the entire metropolitan population. Table 1 Metro BLIST: Demographic and Land Characteristics City / Population Population Growth Land Area Population Municipality Level Level Rate (sq.km) Density 1990 1995 1990-1995 1995 (prs/sq.km) Baguio City 183,102 226,883 4.38 48.9 4639.73 La Trinidad 48,252 63,089 5.51 61.4 1027.51 Itogon 61,773 47,781 -5.01 423.7 112.77 Sablan 8,440 9,170 1.67 91.6 100.11 Tuba 39,635 39,589 -0.02 314.4 125.92 Metro BLIST 341,202 386,512 2.53 940.0 411.18 Philippines 60,679,725 68,616,536 2.32 300,000 229 Basic Sources: National Statistics Office, 1990 and 1995 Census of Population and Housing Table 2 Land Use (in percent) LAND Baguio La Itogon Sablan Tuba BLIST USE Trinidad Built up 48.3 21.1 1.6 7.2 1.7 6.1 Agriculture 1.6 6.9 1.6 2.3 0.0 1.6 Grassland 44.7 60.8 56.8 76.3 53.7 57.3 Forest 5.2 11.1 39.0 13.7 43.7 34.2 Others 0.2 0.0 0.9 .05 0.9 0.8 TOTAL 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 Basic Source: BDUPP Report Volume B. Source of BDUPP report is DENR – CAR Geology Division, Land Use Map, 1:50,000 scale, December 1991. Particular land uses would reveal the physical development features of areas composing Metro BLIST (Table 2). Average rates for the entire BLIST area do not accurately represent the land use features of Baguio City and La Trinidad. These areas have definitely larger built-up areas (almost half of the total land area in Baguio City) and smaller forest lands. On the other hand, grasslands and forest lands dominate land 2 BLIST Location Map uses in the three other municipalities. Pressures of urbanization and urban development are expected to be experienced in the BLIST areas especially within Baguio City and La Trinidad. 3. The BLIST Master (Structure) Plan A master plan has been prepared for the development of what soon will become a Metro BLIST. This plan is essentially a structure plan which connotes greater flexibility than a master plan which is conceptually static and fixed. The Urban BLIST plan was prepared in 1993 by a joint group of European and Filipino consultants following the July 1990 earthquake. While expectedly, future urbanisation will be more increasingly felt in Baguio City and La Trinidad, the plan considered a larger planning area in view of the influence and integration of development of other areas surrounding them. Thus, Itogon, Sablan and Tuba along with Baguio and La Trinidad formed part of the larger urban planning area. Completed in October 1994, the Plan has already influenced planning and investment programming of local government units as well as regional institutions including the Regional Development Council (RDC, which is the Cordillera Executive Board, Cordillera Regional Assembly, Regional Line Agencies acting as the RDC of CAR), the government line agencies. Since its formal launching in 1994 with the President as audience, the BLIST Urban Master Plan has influenced the contents of the development plans of the region and LGUs (Benguet Province and the BLIST LGUs) as these plans now considered the BLIST concepts or proposals. In addition, programs and projects found in the Plan has become a handbook for program pr project proposals in the area. Consistency with the Plan has become one of the suggested acceptance criteria for these proposals. The formulation of the Plan was not an easy undertaking. It was met with strong resistance and open criticism all throughout the stages of its development from various sectors even among BLIST member-municipalities. Impressions were articulated that BLIST planning was a strategy for Baguio City to transfer the city’s problems to its neighbours. Some raised that urban concerns are not as important to the municipalities of Itogon, Sablan and Tuba than it is to Baguio and La Trinidad. In view of these views expressed, public consultations and information dissemination were undertaken to clarify the objectives of the planning activity and to raise awareness about the need for integrated planning as well as to involve as many sectors in plan formulation and decisionmaking.