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GK to construct ‘designer villages’

By Patricia Esteves
Sunday, August 10, 2008 [ philstar.com ]

Because the poor deserve no less than the best – and that includes a beautiful design of their homes – the country’s top architects, engineers and interior designers have come together to lend their expertise and name to Gawad Kalinga (GK) “designer villages” all over the country.

Top architect Bong Recio, who spearheads the GK Designer Village campaign, said that under the project, students will also design GK homes that are a notch higher than the ordinary.

GK executive director Luis Oquiñena said the campaign is keeping true to GK’s vision to offer the best for the least and scale up in building world-class communities.

“Instead of just designing for the rich, the top architects of the country are designing for the least and really restoring it and elevating the dignity of the least among us,” Oquinena said.

Recio said the GK Designer Village is the brainchild of Gawad Kalinga champion Tony Meloto who wants to bring the design of the village to the next level.

“In the past, the GK villages were designed, constructed, conceptualized by GK members. Ika nga ni Tony, a lot of this were done bara-bara (hit and miss), a lot of this were done tantya-tantya lahat, that’s basically how the concept of villages came up and what has resulted are some very, very nice villages even without the help of architects,” Recio said at the launch of the GK Designer Village at the NBC tent in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig last Friday.

“Now, what Tony Meloto wants to do is to bring the design of the village up to the next level by inviting professionals in the field of architecture and design, who can lend their name and expertise to the design of the villages,” he said.

For example, top-caliber architects who are designing and building a high-end 30-40-story building in Fort Bonifacio will also contribute their expertise in the design of GK homes.

“The concept here is a GK village but the consultants are branded. Just like all these projects that you see, they announce the names of the consultants because there is recognition and it helps in selling the project,” explained Recio.

The challenge

To jumpstart the project, Recio said they would hold a challenge for fifth year students of architecture and engineering courses from various universities all over the country to design a GK house under a context of a 20-sqm area.

“It will be up to the students to work and design on the 20-sqm floor area. Architects are used to the 100-sqm model unit, even for interior designers. But now, the students are given 20 square meters to play with. So that’s the big challenge for all the students, they will be in-charge of the exterior of the building and the interior decoration as well,” Recio said.

The students will be mentored by the architects who are part of the GK Designer Village campaign and the First GK challenge will be launched in September, funded by the Metrobank Foundation.

Recio said they are busy preparing the guidelines for the GK challenge.

“When I was invited by Tony Meloto to help spearhead this project, I was a little bit afraid at the beginning because I really don’t know how to approach this challenge. When the dust settled, I realized that it is important to make this dream come true because housing is not only for the rich, but for the poor and we are doing this for the nation,” he said.

Among the notable architects and engineers who will be a part of this project are Jun Palafox, William Coscolluela, Roger Villarosa and Albert Yu.

Interior designer Edith Oliveros will also lend her talent in designing the homes, so with noted landscape artist Paolo Alcazaren.

“Aside from housing, we also included the challenge of landscaping, so it’s not just the house but how the environment around these houses will be able to enhance the lifestyle of the occupants,” Recio said.

Meanwhile, Taguig Mayor Freddie Tinga unveiled his major development plan for his city during the launch, with the housing and relocation of 30,000 poor families.

“If you look at Taguig, you will see high-end and high-rise buildings in Fort Bonifacio and poor squatters on C5. We want to create a socialized housing system and this is possible because the private sector is helping us and if we show them that if they help the poor, their money will not be wasted, then they will help us more in our efforts,” Tinga said.

Tinga calls his development plan “inclusive development” where the poor and the rich will live near each other in the premium land of Fort Bonifacio.

Beside the high-rise condominiums of the rich is a socialized building, a condominium for the poor.

“This is what Palafox calls anti-snob zone, for example, you have a high-rise building here for the rich and then maybe, separated only by a park or a lake, there is also a building for the poor. In that way, the rich will get to see the poor and they will feel the need to look out and help their less fortunate brothers and sisters,” Tinga said.

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