BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) General Manager Mark Lapid, along with Mayor Benjamin Magalong, personally inspected the ongoing rehabilitation of Burnham Park in Baguio City, on the afternoon of February 26.

The P400 million fund for the rehabilitation of Burnham Park is a testament to TIEZA’s commitment to Baguio City to modernize the main public park in the Summer Capital, which is expected to be completed by May 2026.

Lapid, along with agency officials, inspected the ongoing dredging operation and rehabilitation of the lake as Phase 1 of the project with a P100 million budget, which is a priority work.

Contractor Dungan Constructors & Trading Corp. explained and Moment Diagram Builders Joint Venture informed Lapid and Magalong that the excavation works are about 40 percent complete, while the slope protection measures—considered the most technically challenging—have reached about 70 percent complete.

Lapid and Magalong expressed confidence and joy at seeing the smooth progress of the rehabilitation in relation to the right path in its implementation.

Lapid said the agency remains committed to providing continued funding support to ensure the completion of the rehabilitation, which aims to preserve the park’s historical value while improving its facilities for residents and tourists.

According to Magalong, “It is really time for us to have a modern park, especially Burnham, which is a center for tourism, once the lake is completed, the skating rink, Children’s Park and other parts of the park will follow, along with upgrading pedestrian pathways, restoring landscaped areas, improving drainage systems, and improving recreational facilities such as boating areas, promenades, and public facilities.

“This could have been done long ago because there was already a P400 million fund allocated, but during the pandemic, we withdrew it because our government needed funds to purchase medicine. So now that we have recovered and have the funds, I told the Mayor to start the rehabilitation, even if it is by phase by phase,” Lapid explained.

Magalong thanked TIEZA for fulfilling its promise to continue the rehabilitation of Burnham Park, to address the effects of aging infrastructure, environmental degradation, and increasing tourist activity.

(By Rose Frejane A.Cruz)